Kaskaskia College Assistant Professor of Theatre & Communication Nathan Young recently won the Best Actor Award at the Bedford Independent Film Festival in Bedford, England.
Young received the honor for his role as the titular character in “Jonah,” a thought-provoking comedy short film shot in the United Kingdom.
Young started as a professor at KC in the summer of 2024 after moving back to the United States from the United Kingdom with his wife. “Jonah” was shot in 2022 and 2023, and Young said he was shocked to get a text from his producer he won the award for best Actor, not being able to attend the film festival himself. Young added the award is just another way to show that Kaskaskia College strives to hire faculty who are passionate and involved in the subjects they’re teaching.
Young spoke with his students at KC about the award, and told them it doesn’t matter if they’re from a smaller, rural area where opportunities in theatre are slimmer. He encouraged them to keep following their dreams, just like he did.
Moving forward, Young will continue to teach at Kaskaskia College and work on different acting projects, like Vagabond Shakespeare, where he co-directed an audio drama of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.”
