Actor / Student
Slauson Rec Documentary
Directed by Leo Lewis Oneil
In September 2018, Shia LaBeouf announced he was starting a free theater school at the Slauson Recreation Center in South Central Los Angeles. In his words: “You don’t have to be an actor; you don’t have to ever have thought about being an actor. You do, however, have to have a story that you’re willing to share.” He promised to be there every Saturday at 9:00 a.m., building something real with whoever showed up. “I’m trying to change the world, if you are too lets get it bang!”.
Hundreds of people responded to that call. Among them was Leo Lewis O’Neil, a kid from Austin, Texas who became both the official documentarian of the school and, over time, one of my best friends. Just like everyone else in that room, I arrived hoping to learn from someone many consider one of the most fearless artists of our generation. But what I received was so much more than acting technique. I walked away with a transformative life experience, one that shaped my perspective, my craft, and my sense of purpose.
The Slauson Rec Theater School wasn’t a traditional classroom. It was a living, breathing experiment in vulnerability, collaboration, and radical honesty. As a student, I witnessed raw moments of creation, personal reckoning, and community. There were times of tension and intensity, yes but also deep love, growth, and unforgettable breakthroughs.
The documentary Slauson Rec, premiered at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival and captured the breakthroughs, the breakdowns, the creative highs, and the dangers of losing control. I had the surreal experience of traveling to Cannes with Leo and watching the film in a sold-out theater, seated next to the very same mentor who once yelled at me, challenged me, and some might say pushed things too far. As I sat there, I watched a man come to terms with his wrongdoings, his failures, and his past. And in those final moments of the film, I felt a sense of closure not just for myself, but for so many of us who went through that journey.
It was, in its own way, an unspoken apology from a man who seems to be living his life completely different than the one we saw on screen and I experienced. My hope is that with enough accountability and a steady commitment to growth, even the most broken paths can lead to redemption. That with time, truth, and intention, people can change and perhaps become someone better than they ever were before.
