Identity School of Acting is a part-time

drama school A drama school, stage school or theatre school is an undergraduate and/or graduate school or department at a college or university; or a free-standing institution (such as the Drama section at the Juilliard School); which specializes in the pr ...

that was founded in

London, England London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major s ...

Femi Oguns Olufemi Temitope Ogunsanwo (born 28 October 1977), known as Femi Oguns, is a prominent British agent and former actor who founded Identity School of Acting and Identity Agency Group. Background Femi Oguns obtained a joint honours degree in Ra ...

in 2003. A second branch and campus opened in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in 2018. Identity School of Acting began in 2003 with 10 students at the

Arcola Theatre Arcola Theatre is an Off West End theatre in the London Borough of Hackney. It presents plays, operas and musicals featuring established and emerging artists. The theatre building, in the former Colourworks paint factory on Ashwin Street, Dalst ...

in Hackney. Although open to prospective students of all ethnicities, Oguns founded the institution with the intent of reaching out to black and minority actors and promoting the diversity of the real world on stage and onscreen, as well as holding casting directors to account due to the lack of opportunity he had found in his own early acting experiences. The school later moved to

Holborn Holborn ( or ) is a district in central London, which covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part ( St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Ward of Farringdon Without in the City of London. The area has its roots ...

, and then again to

Brixton Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...

, as well as offering online classes. The school offers part-time acting training starting at age 16. The school is affiliated with Identity Agency Group, which was established in 2006. However, the agency is a separate entity; not all students and alumni are necessarily represented by the agency, and not every actor represented by IAG is necessarily a student or alumnus of IDSA. The

branch of Identity School was launched in 2018 with alumni

John Boyega John Adedayo Bamidele Adegboyega (born 17 March 1992), known professionally as John Boyega, is a British actor and producer. He first rose to prominence in his native Britain for his role as Moses in the sci-fi comedy film '' Attack the Block ...

Letitia Wright Letitia Michelle Wright (born 31 October 1993) is a Guyanese-British actress. She began her career with guest roles in the television series '' Top Boy'', '' Coming Up'', '' Chasing Shadows'', ''Humans'', ''Doctor Who'', and '' Black Mirror''. ...

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, and

Melanie Liburd Melanie Liburd is a British actress known for her roles in ''This Is Us'' and '' Power Book II: Ghost.'' In 2016, Liburd appeared as the red priestess in " No One", an episode of the sixth season of the HBO series ''Game of Thrones''. She was ...

as patrons of the new faculty. Oguns and Boyega launched a production arm of the institution, Identity Filmworks, in 2019.

Notable people

, founder

Alumni

London

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Shaquille Ali-Yebuah Shaquille Ali-Yebuah (born 26 May 1995) is a British actor. Early life Ali-Yebuah is from London. He trained with Identity School of Acting. Career In 2013, Ali-Yebuah was cast to play a young Steven K Amos in BBC Radio 4's ''What Does the K S ...

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Zackary Momoh Zackary Momoh (born July 1988) is a British actor. He began his career in theatre and made his feature film debut in ''A United Kingdom'' (2016). On television, he is known for his roles in the Netflix crime drama '' Seven Seconds'' (2018) and th ...

Rukku Nahar Rukku Priya Nahar (born 28 February 1996) is a British actress, known for her roles as Selina Khan on the CBBC series ''Wolfblood'' and Habiba Ahmed on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders''. Early life Nahar was born on 28 February 1996 in Bedford, ...

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* Chance Perdomo * Aaron Phagura *

Jessica Plummer Jessica Kate Plummer (born 16 September 1992) is an English actress and singer. From 2013 to 2015, she was a member of the British girl group Neon Jungle, with whom she released an album that peaked at number eight on the UK Albums Chart. She is ...

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* Kenny Umeh *

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Los Angeles

Sonya Balmores Sonya Balmores (born June 23, 1986) is an American actress, model, and surfer from Kalaheo, Hawaii who also competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant. Early life and education Balmores was born to a Filipino father and a mother of Irish and Native ...

References

{{Coord missing, California 2003 establishments in England 2018 establishments in California Drama schools in London Drama schools in the United States Educational institutions established in 2003 Educational institutions established in 2018