INPERSON
Athena of Suburbia
USC graduate makes a name for herself as author / actress in‘ Greek Goddess.’
BY PAUL GLASSER
When Eleni Romanias discovered she was being typecast as an actress, she wrote a script for the kind of character she really wanted to play— a Greek goddess.
Romanias, a 2010 graduate of Upper St. Clair High School, plans to release a trailer for her movie“ Greek Goddess” soon. She began acting in middle school after a friend asked her to participate in a musical theater class. Romanias discovered she loved acting and continued to perform in high school and college. She studied at the Community College of Allegheny County and experienced an epiphany while performing in a play called“ Wonder of the World.” Romanias describes herself as“ bubbly” and says the play was a challenge because her character was grittier than any role she’ d ever had before.
“ It was so different from my personality,” she explains,“ but it was fun because it really showed me what I was capable of.”
She transferred to Penn State and moved to Los Angeles after she graduated in 2013.“ It’ s a whole new atmosphere out there,” Romanias says.“ You have to figure out how to navigate it and find the best route for yourself. There are so many different workshops and agencies— it can be overwhelming. It was very eyeopening.”
She knew there would be a lot of competition for roles but also felt frustrated when she was typecast as the comedic best friend because she’ s a“ plussized” actress. Most of the roles called for older actresses, so Romanias decided to write a script for her own film instead of waiting until she was the right age for the roles casting directors expected her to play.
When writing the first draft of the script, Romanias drew on her Greek heritage and her experience as a member of the color guard in high school.“ What’ s easier to play than yourself?” she jokes.
The script of“ Greek Goddess” tells the story of an awkward female band geek who discovers she’ s inherited the spirit of Athena, the Greek warrior goddess. She then goes on to save the world from Ares, the god of war.
“ I used the color guard flag aspect to transition to a spear wielder,” Romanias explains.“ It all seemed to fall into place.”
After completing the script, she rewrote the story into a storyboard for a graphic novel. Romanias found an artist to illustrate the story and they finished the graphic novel in a few months. She’ s a fan of Japanese animation, such as in the show“ Sailor Moon,” which influenced the design. The experience taught her the importance of finding a collaborator with whom she had a very good relationship.
“ I gave him a lot of artistic license,” Romanias notes.“ In a creative project you have to connect with your partner.”
The graphic novel was published in 2016 and is available on Amazon and at Barnes
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