Etienne Maurice enters the holiday season as a creative whose work and personal journey continue to inspire those around him. Known for his deep commitment to empowerment, Maurice has carved a unique place for himself in the entertainment industry. His production company, WalkGood LAdemonstrates her dedication to healing and connection. His journey as an artist has been shaped by his desire to make unheard voices heard and to bring authentic and impactful stories to life.

Maurice now plays a leading role in Mistletoe and weddinga deeply personal holiday romance. The film gives him another opportunity to merge his passions for art, storytelling and perseverance. In the film, Etienne plays Isaiah, a photographer who stumbles upon an emotional reunion while photographing the wedding of his ex-fiancé’s sister. For the actor, the role hit close to home.

“Isaiah’s story touched me on a personal level. Her love of photography, sparked by memories with her grandmother, reflects my own journey with my production company, WalkGood, and my relationship with my grandmother’s wisdom of ‘walking well,'” explained Maurice. “There are so many parallels between Isaiah’s life and mine: it felt like this role was written for me.”

During filming, Etienne relied heavily on mindfulness and community care practices, inspired by his own wellness journey. “There were times on set where I didn’t feel like I was good enough, but I found strength by returning to my roots, whether through yoga or reconnecting with my community,” he explained. “Taking care of myself has allowed me to bring my best to the screen, and I think that’s reflected in the work.” These experiences not only enriched her portrayal of Isaiah, but also reinforced the importance of taking care of yourself on set.

Beyond its role in Mistletoe and weddingMaurice remains focused on others. Its efforts include MovieGood festival, which combined cinema and wellness to spotlight underrepresented filmmakers and shine a light on mental health in the industry. “I’m excited to show that healing can take many forms, whether through yoga, art, or simply telling your story. My goal is to inspire others to understand that their journey matters, on screen and off. »

ESSENCE: This new film in which you star…Mistletoe and wedding— What initially attracted you to the project and why did you think you would be perfect for this lead role?

Étienne Maurice: I was really drawn to this role because of Isaiah. I play Isaiah, a photographer hired to photograph this wedding. Unbeknownst to him, it is the wedding of his ex-wife, his sister. And I arrive in my ex-fiancee’s world just as she is preparing for her little sister’s wedding. But I was really drawn to who Isaiah was because in the film we learn that he started photography when his grandmother was alive and he was taking photos of her and her friends. And that really grew his goal for the arts. And so when I think about my personal life, I think about WalkGood and my love for my grandmother and her reminder to “walk well” and take care of myself has now inspired me to start my production company and create mine. welfare organization. So there are a lot of parallels between my personal life and who Isaiah is as a person, as an advocate, as a human being, as an artist. And so I felt like this role was perfect and it was written for me in a lot of ways, but it took me a long time to really bring the character of Isaiah to life.

You talked about a personal connection to this particular role. On a personal note, this is your first Christmas as a married man, isn’t it?

Yes. This is my first Christmas as a married man.

How do you plan to celebrate this new season? Have you started any new traditions together?

So we got married in Jamaica and it was tradition for me. He goes to Jamaica every Christmas, but this year we’re doing something a little different. We spend time with his family in Texas, where his father is from. And so I’m excited to be with her and her family in South Texas. I had a good barbecue, good food, but then we go straight back to LA because I have to celebrate my sister and my mother’s birthday because my sister’s is on the 23rd and my mother’s is on the 30th. December. The holiday season promises to be busy.

I’m glad you mentioned your mom too, man, she’s an iconic actress. Did you always want to become an actor, or is it always something you always wanted to do?

I always wanted to be an artist. I always wanted to create, I always wanted to uplift and support my community. And these are all the things that my mother did so well throughout her career. And I’ve always been inspired by my mother in front of and behind the camera. I think her ability and ability to love people the way she does, her ability and ability to support people and act the way she does has always been an inspiration to me. I always remember as a kid pretending to be sick, just so I could be with my mom on set when she was doing Moesha, I would hang out in her dressing room and sometimes I would sneak out of the dressing room to go to services crafts. or spending time with Brandy or Marcus who played Miles. So I had a front-row seat to what it was like to create really good television.

And I think that was always in my DNA, it was my responsibility. And I think in many ways those days on set really foreshadowed what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. And now I can live my dreams out loud, with purpose and on my own terms. And it’s a choice that I decided to make for myself. My mother won’t do it, she won’t find me a manager. She’s not going to find me a PR, she’s not going to do the audition for me. I was the one who had to make this decision. It was me who had to really work to get to a place where people could believe in me and my abilities. Not his son, but Etienne Maurice.

How does Walk Good influence your approach to acting?

I believe that being of service is the highest form of life. I think being useful is everyone’s life goal. And that’s what I learned through Walk Good and how that translates into my acting ability, how can I listen more? How can I take care of my cast and crew like no one else could? And really, it made me focus more on myself. While I was on set, I had these moments where I didn’t feel like I was enough. I didn’t feel like I was appearing enough on screen. And I remember calling my wife, who was my fiancée at the time, and I was telling her about my struggles and she was like, well, maybe you should go back to your roots and go to the yoga.

Maybe you need to go find a community, or maybe you need to go take a cold plunge and go to Asana and really find something that’s going to make you feel good so that you can come back and settle in and be your best self. And that’s exactly what I did. And then I was able to finish the rest of the shoot and feel like I could do it because I took care of myself. Because if you don’t take care of yourself, you won’t be able to take care of others. And I think that’s reflected in the work.

Aside from your many efforts, how do you find balance and properly cultivate all the things you do so that one thing doesn’t get left out and vice versa?

I think it’s okay, what feels good? I think I’ve really had to do a lot of work internally on what feels good in my body and follow my intuition. My mother always tells me, follow your instincts. And whenever I follow my instincts, I’m never steered in the wrong direction. And I think it takes practice to listen to the little voice in your head that tells you to do something or not to do it and recognizes that you need help. And I really rely a lot on my community when it comes to a decision that I make and then I go from there. But it really depends on what makes Etienne feel good about himself. Because if I don’t, I don’t feel like I’m making the right decision. And I think that takes time and practice and a lot of self-awareness, a lot of self-awareness. You’ll even hear in my answers that a lot of it has to do with mindfulness and that it takes a lot of work to achieve it.

Now this film marks a seasonal premiere for you. As you reflect on this moment in your career and personal life, what excites you most about the future?

What excites me most is being able to tell stories. I’m really excited to build a good community. I think we’re getting ready for FilmGood which is next week. It is the first film and wellness festival ever organized. Find community, not just on your mat, but also behind the camera. We’re highlighting six underrepresented filmmakers. We are organizing the 30th anniversary screening of Jason’s words. And in the film, there’s a great story about mental health.

And so I’m really excited to find the intersection between wellness and film and entertainment. I think right now we’re going through a very, very difficult time and our industry is changing at a rapid pace and people are struggling to manage their mental health and the progress you need to make to be able to maintain your health. and create great art. So I want to continue to be a vessel and use my platform to the best of my ability to show that you can do all of these things. You have to be great at one thing and then move on to the next. But you have to be able to find time to take care of yourself in order to show your best self in this industry. But know that the industry is not everything and that you have to lose your self-esteem because of this industry.

So I hope, and finally, I want to end on this as well, is that I think what’s really important about what I do in front of and behind the screen with Walk Good and as an actor is is to show people that healing is there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Many of us think of healing and mindfulness as yoga and movement. Many of us don’t talk about artistic healing either. And the ability to laugh and tell your story that is healing in itself, because being able to set the stage for someone who might have had a shared experience, and that could be someone’s model for understanding this life. And I think a lot of us are just looking for people to inspire us and tell us that everything will be okay. But doing it through action is, and the arts are, I think, what I see for my future with WalkGood.