Francis Kamara has achieved a lot since leaving West Africa at eight years old as a refugee.
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The Charles Sturt University student is paving his way in the film and modelling industry and now has his sights set on Hollywood.
"I think that is just a big goal, I don't want to sell myself too short; I want to aim high and that's where I'm looking towards," the 21-year-old said.
"It might be five or 10 years from now but it's something I hope to accomplish one day."
Mr Kamara is studying his final year of university but juggles his time building his portfolio, which often includes travelling to major cities twice a week and casual employment at the airport.
"There's a lot more opportunities in the major cities for film, theatre and modelling and I do most of my work in the cities, with the majority of the time spent in Sydney and Melbourne," he said.
"I work hard for it and for the past three to four years, I've been taking the train to Sydney or Melbourne to do a job or a casting and I'm getting home at ridiculous hours of the night.
"I guess I'm very ambitious in my goals and what I want to accomplish, but I think my work ethic is what sets me apart."
Mr Kamara said his passion for the screen and stage started in year 10 at a local theatre.
"I was born in Sierra Leone and I came here to Wagga when I was eight years old and I loved a bit of sport, but didn't get into acting until I got a lead role in a local production of Hairspray," he said.
"As a child I wanted to be a physiotherapist but when I got that role in Hairspray, I realised this is amazing and it wasn't so much the performance but rather the process of rehearsals, learning lines and dance routines which attracted me."
Mr Kamara said aspiring actors and actresses should never give up and constantly try to put themselves "out there".
"I always hear actors get to my age and give up because they're not getting the opportunities," he said.
"You have to keep going, even if it's just doing a local production or a short film for free.
"You want to build yourself as an actor, get yourself and your face out there as much as possible."
Mr Kamara has starred in The Merger, and most recently he landed his first television gig appearing in an episode on Channel 10's Mr Black, a TV series created by Adam Zwar.
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