From as far back as she can remember, Farah Sobey wanted to be an actor, but she let go of that ambition to enter the corporate world of sales and marketing.
Now, the 37 year old Adelaide born mother of three is defying the odds, living her dream and proving to the world that it’s never too late to change your path!
Speaking from her new home in Sydney, Farah, dubbed by friends as ‘Faith Girl’ talks about her journey from corporate to creative, motherhood and motivation.
“I was born in Adelaide at the Queen Victoria Hospital, started schooling at East Adelaide Primary, then Littlehampton Primary and then Mount Barker High. My father took me to SA Casting to work with the legendary Ann Peters where I would travel from the hills into the city after school and on Saturdays for the classes. Ann Peters was the person who planted the seed and gave me the dream to go to NIDA,” she says.
But that dream took a very different turn when teenage insecurities kicked in and Farah made a choice to put a lid on her acting ambition and entered into a successful corporate career.
“From the age of 19 I went into the corporate world in sales. I had a successful, award winning career. I was with Warner Music and I won National Best Sales Rep, travelled overseas and did some amazing things with that career, but I always had a love of arts and would dabble now and then and go back to it and do bits and pieces and then feel like I wasn’t good enough and would run from it again,” she says.
But when Farah moved to Sydney to be with her partner, she decided to take a leap of faith and pursue her passions for a career in acting.
Farah was on maternity leave with her daughter, Aryana, (now nearly three) when she invested in private acting tuition and an acting coach.
“I set up an audition with NIDA and I thought, you know what? I’m going to give this a go! I auditioned for the 12 month course and was successful, and then I found out I was pregnant with my son Levi and I thought, no, I’m going to make this work! I’d also landed a role in a production called Toast at the Sydney Fringe Festival. I tried to resign from the play because we were playing at the Sydney Fringe Festival which was scheduled just after Levi was due to be born but the director, Stephanie Merriman convinced me to stay, so thank God for her for believing in me and encouraging me!” she laughs.
After finishing the season of Toast, giving birth to her son and deferring from NIDA, Farah is more positive than ever about her opportunities and where her career is headed.
From a role in upcoming television series, Love Child with Jonathan Lapaglia, Jessica Marais and Mandy McElhinney, to a feature film, Aim High in Creation with Peter O’Brien and most recently Brand Ambassador for an international shoe company, Farah meets every challenge and achievement with the same attitude.
“I am known as “faith girl” and I attribute my ability to overcome challenges and achieve my heart’s desires because of my Christian faith. My mantra is to bring a spirit of excellence into everything I commit to. Before I go on stage, before I audition, before I go to class, and in everything I do, I say to myself, ’Bring a spirit of excellence and bring your A-game!’” she laughs.
While she is motivating herself to overcome obstacles and set new challenges, Farah spends time inspiring and coaching others through acting workshops and mentoring.
“I coordinate acting workshops for Serhat Caradee, the writer and director of Cedar Boys. I want people to know you can do anything at any age as long as you put in the hard work and focus. Invest in yourself and believe in yourself. Know your passion. When I realised my dream of wanting to be an actor wasn’t going away, I decided to just believe in myself and commit to it. It is important to just keep believing and receiving,” she says.
Heading back to NIDA this year and focussing on gaining more work in television presenting & acting, Farah recounts her achievement fondly as she looks toward her future.
“NIDA will always be the most important success of my life. When I was at SA Casting, I used to look at the photos of people on the wall who studied at NIDA and I wanted to be one of those people on Ann Peters’ wall. I could be a mega movie star but NIDA will always be my greatest treasure; apart from my children!” she laughs.
With a gentle spirit and an incredibly positive outlook, Farah is indeed an inspiration to anyone who feels they may have missed the boat and can never fulfil that childhood dream.
“Now at my age when I’m wiser spiritually and self-secure I don’t take no for an answer! Someone recently told me that at my age, there was very little point in trying to get work in the voice over industry. I just refused to believe that. People said the same thing about me getting into NIDA, and said I shouldn’t have left my corporate career to become a “poor actor”, but I refuse to believe that! It’s never too late. When people say I can’t do it, I’ll always find a way to do it,” she says.
Farah Sobey writes a regular blog (www.inspire1another.com.au) and has a website (www.farahsobey.com ).
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