Interview with Romain Angeveld | Actor, TV Host, and Best-Selling Author
- Mar 27
- 6 min read
Romain Angeveld is an accomplished actor, TV host, and bestselling author who transformed his miraculous survival from childhood poverty in Romania into a thriving career in European show business. Now expanding his journey to Hollywood, he recently launched StarSmile Productions to create ambitious transmedia stories that directly fund his "Children of Stars" association, empowering underprivileged children to rewrite their own destinies.
9 QUESTIONS
WITH ROMAIN ANGEVELD
1. Your life began with unimaginable hardships in Romania, surviving against all odds before being adopted by a Belgian family. How has that early fight for survival and the "miracle" of your adoption shaped your resilience as an artist today?
Doctors told me this baby with his liver and lungs destroyed by alcohol and extreme conditions should never had survived. My adoption was a real miracle and I always wanted to give that back to life. So whenever I feel lazy I remember the amazing gift of life that God gave me and I never take it for granted as it is so fragile. I am living proof that everything is possible and by fulfilling my dreams and accomplishing my goals I remind it to myself and send that message to the world.
2. Before your acting career took off, you built a successful career in communications, even working for government ministers in Belgium. You described this as a "golden cage." What was the internal struggle like during those years when your artistic ambitions were put on hold?
Until I was 27, I have lived my life only to cope with the expectations of everyone around me. Society, parents, ... I needed to have a "real" job. So at that point, I had the house, the car, the girlfriend, the cat,... I had "everything" according to people but I was empty. I was living someone else's life and I was dying inside. I knew I had to change and chose myself at some point or it would have gone pretty bad.
3. The turning point in your life was a deeply poignant final conversation with your father, followed closely by losing your job. Can you take us back to that moment? How did his final words to you—telling you to do whatever it takes to achieve your dreams—give you the permission you needed to finally pursue acting?
My father was a very brave man who spent his whole life doing a job he did not like to provide for his family and take care of us. Our relationship was very hard at that point because he was doing all he could to dissuade me from pursuing an acting career as it would "never lead to anything". He was 62. Cancer got him and 3 months later he was gone. The day before he died, the doctor called me and said that I had to come and say goodbye to him because they were about to give him a shot of morphine and he would be gone soon after that.
When I arrived, we were left alone and he finally told me that he loved me and that he was proud of me. Then he asked me "Promise me just one thing, son. Whatever you want to do in life, find out what that really is and do whatever it takes to get there". That promise ignited a fire in me that has never been turned off. I was absolutely determined to become the actor I was meant to become and I often think of him, hoping he sees my life wherever he is.
4. After making the decision to go all-in, you quickly became a series regular in the French series Detox and appeared in the Cannes-selected film Red Soil. What was the reality of that transition like, and what did it feel like to validate your father's final wish?
Finally I was me. I was free. Happy. Full of joy and love. Finally I was able to love myself and I felt at home for the first time on a movie set. My father didn't ask me to become an actor. He asked me to be authentic and stop lying to myself and others. At that point, I decided to embrace my true identity. Ironically, to become an actor, you need to stop lying and be truthful.
5. You wrote a bestselling book, Acteur PRO, and toured as an acting and success coach. What is the most common piece of advice you give to aspiring artists who are currently stuck in their own "golden cages"?
Surround yourself with what I call an "artistic family". A tribe of people who believe in you, lift you up, share the same values and the same ambition. Then create your own projects. ASAP. Never wait until you're ready or until someone gives you permission. And finally, the most important one, always listen to your inner voice. it whispers so it's sometimes hard to hear and it has no proof so it requires a lot of courage to follow it but believe me if you do what your intuition tells you to do with faith, your life will be a wonderful living roller coaster full of miracles.
6. You’ve recently launched StarSmile Productions, which features an incredibly ambitious transmedia saga (spanning film, series, theater, and video games). What inspired this massive universe, and how do the different mediums interact with one another?
When I wanted to create the association "Children of Stars", I wanted to create a big charity event with a musical and all the profits of that night would have gone to the creation of the association. But when you write something, you dig deep, you create the backstories of all the characters. And so, with my partner in the company, Eric Behanzin, we started to write and write and write again. For more than 2 years, we have created a full universe and a story that expands over decades. There will be indeed a long feature film, a series, a play, a musical, a video game and many more and each new media will tell a different part of that saga "Children of Stars", so in order to understand everything, you will have to watch it all !
7. At the heart of your new production company is your association, "Children of Stars." Can you explain the mission behind this organization and how your productions will directly fund schools that help disadvantaged youth find their purpose through cinema?
I have been abandoned so all my life I have tried to create families for the family-less. And I have a personal saying that says "To make Dream is to make Live." The mission of the association is to help disadvantaged youth rewrite their story and find their purpose through cinema.
Eventually, I want to create 100 schools in 100 countries youth can attend for free where they will learn acting and the jobs of the industry so we will be able to directly hire them on our productions. I also want to grant them free tickets to our productions and if you let me go completely unleashed I want to create a completely free Theme Park. That's why a part of all the profits we will make with the saga will directly go to fund projects for the association.
8. Now, you are bringing your talents, your production company, and your mission to Hollywood. As you settle into Los Angeles, what is the immediate next step for the Romain Angeveld story?
We are raising money for our first long feature film. We want to be free in terms of direction, acting and creation and so we have decided to make it a very low budget of just 300k. To create the saga, to make our first project and show what we are capable of doing. We want to shoot it this very year in 2026 so we are looking for donators. On a personal level, I'm still pursuing my acting career and want to land my first Hollywood role within the year. You'll see it all in my Instagram.
9. Since you are in LA now, what is your favorite place in the city?
Sherman Oaks holds a dear space in my heart as there was my very first masterclass in LA in 2019. Otherwise, it might be cliché but I can't not cry whenever I see Robin Williams' Carpe Diem handwritten in the Chinese Theater... That place really means hope and vulnerability for me.
CONNECT WITH
ROMAIN ANGEVELD
WEBSITE
