Yahoo Finance 'Luckiest Girl Alive' Star Chiara Aurelia on Finding Her Voice: 'It's Hard to Be Who You Are'
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Chiara Aurelia is on her own journey of self discovery.
The 20-year-old actress stars in the new Netflix movie Luckiest Girl Alive as the younger counterpart to Mila Kunis' Ani FaNelli in flashbacks. The character's story tracks a woman finding her own individual voice and independence after suffering traumas as a teen, and Aurelia tells PEOPLE she's actively working to find her own voice in the world.
"I can't say that at my age I've totally figured it out," says Aurelia, who received a Critics Choice Award nomination for her performance in Freeform's Cruel Summer. "I don't think people ever really totally figure it out. I think we're all getting older and taking little pieces, moment by moment. Every year I figure at least one thing out."
She adds, "I think it's hard to be who you are. We live in a world with so much judgment, and there's a lot of pressure to be what everybody else wants you to be. Coming to the realization that the only thing you can be authentically is yourself is something I think will take years for me and everyone around me to learn."
"Hopefully as time goes on I can continue to find my voice and continue to feel strong and empowered in the woman that I am," says Aurelia.
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Sabrina Lantos/Netflix Chiara Aurelia and Thomas Barbusca in Luckiest Girl Alive (2022)
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One person she's taking notes from is Kunis, 39, whom Aurelia calls "perfect" on and off-camera. While she was "definitely a fan of hers growing up," meeting and working with her in person showed her a whole new side of the star.
"She's an incredibly talented actress and beautiful and all of these things — but meeting her as a person and seeing she's smart and classy and elegant and holds herself at a very high standard and is warm and loving and just intelligent and has all of these characteristics as a human being.... There's a lot of actors out there who can be an incredibly talented and gorgeous and still not be a good person."
Gregory Pace/Shutterstock Mila Kunis and Chiara Aurelia
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When tackling a story that required her to act out scenes of sexual violence and gun violence, Aurelia had to prioritize her own mental health on set. The actress, who says she was "so invested in this story," explains that "having a support system made it really easy" to go to the darker places.
"You have to always be conscientious and make sure you're taking time to check in with yourself, especially when you're working on something with such dark and heavy material," says Aurelia. "That being said, I have an incredible support system; I'm honestly a very fortunate and lucky person. I have a mom who is like my best friend and she takes really good care of me, and I have great friends and a good team and a lot of people that are standing behind me to be there when I fall and when I need them."
She continues, "They help me check back in with reality and remind myself that I am Chiara and I know who I am. Also, on set, we were in an environment where I felt so safe and comfortable, and I know people say that [all the time], but it's the truth."
Aurelia hopes viewers walk away from Luckiest Girl Alive feeling "like it's OK to be who you are and that the shame and guilt a lot of women and a lot of people feel for a variety of different reasons is not unusual."
She also hopes the film serves as a "conversation-starter" that removes the stigma around issues like sexual assault, making it less "taboo" to discuss.
Luckiest Girl Alive is now streaming on Netflix.
