035. The Power of Stepping Outside the Box with Filmmaker Courtney Deelen

Without Losing Your Cool with Shantelle Bisson

Have you ever felt like you were living outside your own body? No matter what you did you still didn’t feel comfortable? Or, have you ever loved somebody so much, but even still you were unable to connect with them on that deep, deep soul level that you desired?
This week’s guest, dancer, turned actress, producer/director, Courtney Deelen has struggled with all these mixed up emotions. Dance fed into a long battle with an eating disorder. And her marriage to her now husband, helped her step into her true self, that of a bi-sexual woman.

This episode is about how we become brave enough to step outside of the boxes we’ve constructed for ourselves so that we can live our life fully, and out loud!

Life is filled with challenges and hard moments, all of which are what shape us and help us grow both personally and professionally.

Courtney (www.instagram.com/courtney_deelen) opens up about her journey of becoming the woman she is today, and how years of believing that she’s only been letting her loved ones down led her to completely shut down. She struggled with feeling like she was only ever quitting things. So much of her internal battle stemmed from the constant changes and challenges in the industry for women; to her personal struggles with eating disorders and coming out to her partner.

Her experience in front of the camera began to open doors to crafting her own stories behind the camera through writing, directing, and editing. She got involved in ACTRA's YEAA committee, where she took control of the producing duties of a variety of projects for other members. We'll also be discussing her new film, and the importance of setting aside ego when creating it. Connect with her at www.courtneydeelen.com.

We talk about:

• [0:00] Intro
• [2:20] How the acting industry changes for women
• [4:35] Why and how Courtney pivoted as an actress
• [6:50] What pushed Courtney into her eating disorder
• [11:40] How she found her way into healing
• [24:00] Learning to collaborate and be empowered by others
• [31:55] Setting aside ego when creating a film
• [40:20] Coming out as bisexual
• [48:30] How where we grow up can impact our sexuality and opportunities
• [50:00] Putting ourselves in a box from the stories we tell
• [52:40] Why it was so hard for Courtney to speak her truth
• [60:00] Having conflict in relationships and finding resolutions
• [62:50] The details behind Courtney's new film

Loved this episode? I know, me too, friend! Me too! If this episode resonated with you, we'd love to hear from you, say hi on Instagram @shantellebisson, @withoutlosingyourcool, and for the love of all things cool, if you have a burning question you'd like answered, go to shantellebisson.com/podcast and leave us a message for your question to be featured on our upcoming episodes!

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Until next time remember to keep doing the hard things, and show up like you mean it! Without Losing Your Cool!

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1. Episode 35 - Courtney (00:00:00)

2. Marker - How the acting industry changes for women (00:02:21)

3. Marker - Why and how Courtney pivoted as an actress (00:04:35)

4. Marker - What pushed Courtney into her eating disorder (00:06:51)

5. Marker - How she found her way into healing (00:11:39)

6. Marker - Setting aside ego when creating a film (00:31:44)

7. Marker - Coming out as bisexual (00:40:23)

8. Marker - How where we grow up can impact our sexuality and lived experiences (00:48:28)

9. Marker - Putting ourselves in a box from the stories we tell about ourselves (00:50:03)

10. Marker - Why it was so hard for Courtney to speak her truth (00:52:40)

11. Marker - Having conflict in relationships and finding resolutions (00:59:57)

12. Marker - The details behind Courtney's new film (01:02:47)