Help me fund my acting career and a trip to iPOP in LA

Hello everybody,

My name is Yekta Yazdchi, I am turning 12 on October 29th, and I currently live in beautiful San Diego, California. My parents helped me to create this page.

Ever since I can remember, it has been my dream to become an actress. And yes, I know this sounds cliché, because every girl my age wants to become a famous actress, but for me I truly feel that it is my calling.

What brings me here you might ask? Well, let me tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Yekta, and it means Unique in Persian. I was born in Iran and I absolutely love my culture. My mom cooks amazing Persian food all the time, and I love Chelo Kebab (rice and Kebab)! Then, when I was four years old, my family moved to Canada. I grew up in Montreal where I went to French elementary school. I learned to speak French fluently. And thanks to my mom, I can speak Persian fluently, as well.

When we moved to Canada, my mom became a single mother, and it was just her and me for many years. I had severe depression after my mom’s divorce due to physical and psychological traumas that my biological father inflicted on us. I was also diagnosed with ADHD, severe anxiety, and mild spectrum disorder. And getting bullied in school did not help either. Basically, my self-confidence was at rock bottom, and I was super shy, hiding behind my mom’s skirt at social events.

Luckily, I was surrounded by angels. I had a few wonderful friends during these times, and my grandparents were always just a phone call away. But mommy is my favorite hero! One of my favorite activities was and still is to record myself on mommy’s phone. I love creating videos! I love to talk! I knew then that acting was something I really wanted to do.

One day in the summer of 2022, my mom signed me up for modeling classes. There was a workshop created by TKFW ( Toronto Kids Fashion week). For several weeks I practiced catwalk, rehearsals, styling, fitting, and had grooming sessions. We practiced choreography and finally had a show, after which I received my certificate of achievement for completing the Rise-and-Shine modeling workshops, and became a certified TKFW Model and performed a catwalk for Diana Couture. This was so much fun, and it gave me a taste of what being in the spotlight felt like. But most importantly, it was a huge boost in confidence. I finally believed in myself and knew I could do anything.

Since then, I love taking care of my beauty and I continue to make videos for fun. Then in the summer of 2023, another big change in my life happened! My mom met my dad (step dad)! And he lives in San Diego! We moved to California right after that summer and I have been enjoying living here since then.

With the help of my dad, my mom, my therapist, and other wonderful people, I slowly healed those ugly wounds. I made amazing friends and even started to practice ice skating, which is a lot of fun. My parents say I am very dedicated to my goals.

My mom surprised me one day when she picked me up from school, and said that she came across an ad on Instagram about a talent agency hosting an audition for acting. She said I could participate in it. My heart stopped! My dream is coming true! And then she said, “You only have 45 minutes to memorize a commercial and prepare for the audition.” I was super excited and at the same time frustrated and anxious about how I could possibly memorize and prepare so quickly! But we did it. We rushed. I memorized as much as I could. I dressed up. My dad helped me setup the camera. And we joined the Zoom right on time. Pheww! My jaw dropped when I saw over 300 participants were on that meeting! But that didn’t deter me, I remained excited. Then it was my turn. “Mom’s cookies…” I can easily recall that commercial in my sleep now. We signed off after I gave my performance, and I couldn’t sleep that night, I was so nervous about the results. They would text us the next day if I was chosen or not.

At 6 am my dad received a text that I got selected 30 out of over 300 kids got selected, and I was one of them! I was super excited and so happy! After another audition with the scout that morning, I was registered in their program for acting classes for this summer, and to prepare for the iPOP event, which is what brings me here today.

The acting classes are amazing! I was in sessions with actors and stars that I know from my favorite shows, and I received hands-on training from them, even one-on-one sessions! They included people such as Cartoon Network’s Ryan Kelly, Jimmy Bellinger, Ashlee Brian, Larry VanBuren Jr., and Philip Galinsky. I am so grateful that I was able to receive training from these amazing professionals. They helped a lot! And when the final day of Audition came on July 13th, I was ready to show off my monologue and all that I learned. In that audition was iPOP’s Julian Georgeo, as well as other folks who were talent scouts. I was in, they selected me again! My heart is beating and I know I will become a famous actress!

Now this is why I am reaching out to you. In order to stay in the talent agency’s program for acting classes, my parents already paid $4,500 for me. I know I’m just a kid, but I know it’s a big chunk of change. My mom is not able to work right now, and my dad already pays for everything else. And I can only bake and sell so many cookies. For the iPOP event that will be held in Los Angeles in January 2025, we have to pay $9,000 to attend. And it is a huge event, see for yourself: https://www.ipopla.com/. There will be talent scouts from all over the world, from very famous agencies. And I know that when they see me performing, I will be among the selected. I am told all the time that I have the innate talent, the personality, and acting just comes so naturally.

My pledge is this: For your donation of any amount, I will do my best to personally make you one of my bracelets and I will mail it to you with a hand-written thank-you card. I am also pledging to practice my acting and take acting classes wherever I can find them for free.