A Holly Hill 19-year-old wooed casting directors with his personality and "Florida look" and will appear as an extra on the CBS daytime soap opera, "Guiding Light."
Chris Via is in background scenes in the Wednesday show that airs on Channel 6 at 9 a.m. with two of the main characters, Bill and Lizzie, played by Daniel Cosgrove and Marcy Rylan.
The episode was filmed at Universal Studios in Orlando. Via and 19 others were picked as extras at an open casting call last month out of 350 people, according to Alan Locher, show publicist. Via's blond-hair, surfer-type, Florida look stood out, Locher said.
For Via, son of Holly Hill mayor, Roland Via, he said the best part was that his mom, Julie, has been a big fan since she was in high school.
"It was cool to get to see her come on set. When we were in the make-up room, she got to talk to all the stars," said Via, who is a singer and has acted in short films and a television pilot, SunSet Valley, expected to come out this summer.
Julie Via, 49, said "it was one of the best experiences of my life." She met eight of the actors, including some she had been watching for more than 10 years. She can't wait to see her son actually on the television. A teacher at Osceola Elementary in Ormond Beach, she said she may have to take a break from her classroom on Wednesday to see her son on television. She's not sure she can wait to watch the taped version when she gets home.
She said the actors were "so personable and so outgoing and so nice." "I was just in my glory," she said.
"Guiding Light" recently announced it would be going off the air in September, but Locher said the show is trying to find another "home" or network. "There is hope it will live on," Locher said.
In Wednesday's show, Chris Via has a pretend girlfriend in the scene, which involves Bill and Lizzie getting back together.
"It was awesome. It was such a fun learning experience and cool to be around such amazing actors," Via said.
He's currently working on two other feature films, called Explanation and Off the Hook.
His passion though is singing. He's been singing "my whole life" and writing lyrics since he was 8. He also recently finished a pop-rock CD and will perform at the Florida Music Festival in Orlando on May 16th. He has a YouTube video he did in February about Taylor Swift, called "Hey Taylor." He said the teen singer has "a lyrical ability that is unlike any other person her age." He hopes the video will help him meet her one day or "hopefully I'll get to tour with her."
The "Guiding Light" experience has the whole family watching more of the show. Via said he has seen some of the episodes with his mom since he knows more about the characters now. His father also admits he'll watch certain scenes. He said he has to since his wife tapes it every day and he's usually nearby at his computer.
Photos provided by Via family and Guiding Light.