VADA Instructors

An Indian-Canadian working in the arts, Akshaya is a practitioner who is used to wearing multiple hats as an Actor, Voice and Movement Instructor, PA, Casting Director and Administrator. His experiences have been far from one-tracked, which makes him available for a variety of different positions within a production. He has completed acting training at USC School of Dramatic Arts; New York Film Academy in Los Angeles and studied applied theatre at Shiv Nadar University in New Delhi, India.

Chris Shields is a true industry professional, well-seasoned actor and writer best known for his recurring role work on The 100 (2014-2017). However Chris’s industry credits span over a much wide period and range of productions which include guest star and recurring roles roles in Batwoman (2019 – 2021), Nancy Drew (2020-2021), Riverdale (2021), Lost in Space (2019) The Flash (2019), Project Blue Book (2019). A Million Little Things (2018), Bates Motel (2017), Chappie (2015), Elysium (2013) and The Invisible (2007) to name just a few. Chris worked with Steven Spielberg on The BFG (2016) and even appeared in the very first Criminal Minds episode. He also includes appearances in over fifteen Hallmark productions during the course of his career.

Jake joins the faculty of VADA Studios thrilled to be calling Vancouver his home. Jake was born and raised in Niagara Falls and is a graduate of Sheridan College’s Music Theatre Performance program. Jake’s visionary approach to musical stories for the screen has led to numerous successes: ‘Kristine & Kirstine’ with the Second City Conservatory, ‘BEFORE THEY WERE THEM: a musical short film’ (Winner of Festigious International Film Festival Los Angeles & New York Movie Awards), which aired nationwide via the CBC, currently streams internationally via the CBC GEM, and features the music & lyrics of Kevin Wong, alongside whose work Jake is the creator of the upcoming musical-short-anthology-miniseries ’The Next BIG Thing!’

Jake’s direction for the stage has showcased at the University of British Columbia, the Highlands Summer Festival and Sheridan College, where he also returns as an alumnus guest lecturer. He has also worked alongside celebrated industry actors/coaches Dean Armstrong and Salvatore Antonio in his time with Armstrong Acting Studios in Toronto.

As an actor, notable credits include Star Trek Beyond (Paramount), Designated Survivor (Netflix), Eat, Drink & Be Married (ReelOne), REIGN (the CW), Love In Store (Hallmark), Murdoch Mysteries (Shafestbury), The Sunshine Boys (Highlands Summer Festival), Spring Awakening (Sheridan College) and CMTP/Original Workshop Casts of the Tony-Nominated, smash-hit Broadway musical Come From Away.

Jessica Garcie has been acting since her formative years in high school, graduating with honours in theatre. After earning her Diploma in Acting for Film and Television, she signed with her first agent and booked her first professional acting job in Voice Over. Jessica has extensive training in improvisation at Second City Theatre, Vancouver Theatre Sports and Blind Tiger, while continuing to train throughout the lower mainland in theatre, film, and voice over.

Jessica’s work can be seen on networks such as CW, Hallmark, ABC, HBO, CBS, Netflix, Paramount Players and Fox on hit series such as The Good Doctor, Batwoman, Firefly Lane, Away, Riverdale, Charmer, Altered Carbon, Lucifer and others. She has also worked on many commercial projects that have aired nationally and internationally with clients such as Dell, Shaw, Nissan, Snuggle, Hallmark, FedEx, Culturelle to name just a few.

Joel Semande is a Canadian-born actor originally from a suburb in LaSalle, Ontario. The youngest of two children, he began acting in a middle school, where he took an improvisation class. As a shy child, Joel found improvisation provided an avenue to express himself and refine his craft.

Joel is passionate about education and successfully completed a Psychology Degree at
University of Windsor and later moved to Vancouver to pursue a career in acting and is also involved in peer counselling and fitness coaching.

Joel quickly found his feet in the industry after landing a role as international pop superstar, Joey Lockhart on Disney’s 16 Wishes. This led to opportunities on shows such as Supernatural, Continuum, R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour, Girlfriend’s Guide to Divorce and You Me Her. He also landed guest star roles on CW’s Arrow, The Flash and minor roles on Lucifer and Prison Break.

Joel teaches as a substitute instructor in our Diploma program, part-time evening courses as well as our Summer Break Acting Camps. Utilizing his degree in psychology, Joel brings a unique approach to teaching acting his students enjoy.

IMDB Profile

Lee Shorten is a professional film, television and theatre actor, writer, director and producer.

Lee grew up and was raised in Tamworth, Australia, by his adoptive parents Merv and Judy. He graduated from Law School (University of Newcastle) in 2009 and worked as lawyer for several years before he decided to pursue a career as an actor.

While Lee is best known for playing Sergeant Yoshida on Amazon’s ‘The Man in the High Castle’ and Walt Yoshida on AMC’s ‘The Terror: Infamy’, he has also guest starred on ‘Van Helsing’ as Master Tsui, a role specifically written for him by the Van Helsing team and recurred as on ‘Supernatural’ as a fan favourite Demon.

In 2018, Lee made his directorial debut with the award winning Ultra Short ‘J’adoube’. This was soon followed up by ‘Parabola’, a 2019 production which Lee wrote and directed.

Lee has been nominated for a Jessie Award, for his portrayal of Jung in Pacific Theatre’s production of ‘Kim’s Convenience’.

Lee is committed to telling inclusive stories and continues to be a strong advocate for representation.

IMdB Profile

Maia Michaels is an experienced actor who has been working internationally in the industry for over 13 years. After completing her formal training in California, Maia has been working in the US, Vancouver, and Australia. In addition to her on-set and on-stage experience, Maia has many years of experience working with coaching actors on and off set, and is currently working as a casting assistant in her home base of Vancouver, Canada. Her insight into auditioning and what casting is looking for is an invaluable tool for our students looking to break into the industry. 

Scott Patey is originally from Alberta and came to Vancouver in 2009 to enrol in our Dramatic Arts Program Diploma. “I specifically came to Vancouver to train at VADA. Without that training I would not have an agent and would not be booking the work I am.” As a professional actor, improvisor and host, Scott has gained a lot of confidence and done a lot of networking. He now has over 60 Film & TV credits to his name. Most recently Scott appeared in Paramount Pictures Sonic The Hedgehog & Sonic The Hedgehog 2 and Apple+’s Musical Hit Schmigadoon. He has also appeared in Netflix Lucifer as well as Amazon Prime’s Upload and numerous hit TV Series such as A Million Little Things, Colony, The Age of Adulting, DC Legends of Tomorrow, Bates Motel, Supernatural.

His words of wisdom for aspiring actors: “Do Not Give Up! Also, let yourself get frustrated. It is a part of it all. Listen to your teachers and experienced people in the industry. You do not always have to do it the way they would, but take from that advice and make smart choices. Surround yourself with positive people and last but not least, no matter what your schedule always remain involved with your passion somehow.”

Shalyn Ferdinand is a Canadian-born actress. She has a Trini dad and a French-Italian mother and grew up in a small town attending theatre camps and playing sports. Shalyn has dabbled in stand-up comedy and loves to make people laugh. She’s known for her roles on The Good Doctor (2021), Motherland:Fort Salem (2020), Snowpiercer (2020), See (2019) and Batwoman (2019). 

Victoria Souter is a professional theatre and TV & Film actor from the U.K. She now resides in Vancouver, BC where she enjoys keeping busy in classes continually working on her improving her acting craft, attending live improv shows, taking dance classes, weapons training, learning a new instrument or singing whenever she can. Victoria has appeared in shows such as DC Legends of Tomorrow, The Neighbor in the Window, Sacred Lies.