Krysti DeMario, an actress and filmmaker who recently starred in the 2024 holiday romantic comedy “Christmas Overtime,” draws inspiration for her career in the entertainment industry from a rather unlikely source: Sylvester Stallone.
Despite their four-decade age difference, DeMario, 33, and Stallone, 78, have much in common. Both are actors of Italian heritage who overcame obstacles early on in their acting careers by writing their own movie scripts.
Stallone penned the screenplay for the 1976 film “Rocky,” refusing to sell it to producers unless he could play the lead role.
The film served as his breakout performance, earning him two Oscar nominations the following year for best actor in a leading role and best original screenplay. He went on to write and star in subsequent “Rocky” installments, among many other films.
“He didn’t sell ‘Rocky’ until he was the actor, and I was like, ‘Oh, well why don’t I just do that,’” DeMario told The Epoch Times in a recent interview, recalling her decision to create her own films.
“That’s how I got here. It was basically ambition and dreams, and I was just like, ‘Let’s go, let’s do it.’ I’m not going to wait for someone else.”
In 2022, DeMario co-founded her own production company, Viral Vision Productions. Not long after, the South Florida-based actress wrote her first script for a film called “Love Unlocked: A Christmas Time Capsule,” which is currently under contract. She is now set to star in the upcoming romantic drama “Secrets in the Sauce,” which she also wrote and stars in.
The film, which begins production next month, centers on Chandler—played by actor Richard Trotter—a man whose family-owned Italian restaurant is on the verge of closing after a competing eatery opens nearby.
Desperate to save his family’s struggling business, Chandler hatches a plan to steal the rival eatery’s coveted sauce recipe. However, he unexpectedly falls for the eatery’s manager, Kenna, played by DeMario, in the process.
“As their romance blossoms, Chandler finds himself torn between his growing love for Kenna and the guilt of his secret plan, leading to a dramatic conflict where buried secrets threaten to destroy their future together,” the film’s synopsis reads.
The movie pays homage to DeMario’s Italian roots. The family-owned restaurant featured in the film is based on a real-life mom-and-pop pizzeria her late grandparents owned when they were younger.
“It’s funny because my husband’s family and my family are Italian, and everyone always fights over whose sauce is better. So all of that plus my grandparents owning their own pizzeria inspired ‘Secrets in the Sauce,’” she said.
The plotline also centers on the importance of choosing the right path in life, even when faced with overwhelming challenges.
‘Secrets in the Sauce’
Like Stallone, who was forced to sell his dog, Butkus, in the early 1970s to make ends meet before making it big as an actor, DeMario’s path to becoming a filmmaker wasn’t without its challenges.The Florida native began acting when she was in elementary school. She went on to take drama classes throughout high school, auditioning for a variety of movie roles, including in the 2006 film “Bring It On: All or Nothing.”
However, she initially chose not to pursue an acting career as an adult, largely due to feelings of self-doubt.
“I moved away from acting because I felt like it was too big of a dream,” she said.
After graduating from Florida Atlantic University, DeMario opted to become a television reporter instead.
When her first child, Vinny, was born in May 2016, she left her job as a journalist to take on a 9-to-5 position so she could spend more time with her family. She and her husband, Chris DeMario, went on to welcome their second child, son Rocco, in January 2019.
“But it had always been deep in my heart a dream when I watched people on TV, I’m like, ‘I know I need to be there. That’s what I need to do,’” the actress recalled.
Like Stallone, who found success after selling his “Rocky” screenplay, allowing him to buy back his beloved bullmastiff, a silver lining emerged for DeMario’s career. The actress said her children played a role in helping her get to where she is today.
“I have to give them credit because they are a big reason why I’m doing this,” DeMario noted.
“My older son wants to go to the NFL; the younger one wanted to be an astronaut but now he wants to be a doctor. Every kid has a crazy dream.
“I wanted to prove to them that if you put the work in you can do anything you want to. You really can be and do anything in this world.”
According to DeMario, who’s already begun writing her third screenplay, the “secret sauce” to succeeding as a filmmaker boils down to one word: “Perseverance.”
“Anything that you dream of or feel that you want—go for it. Don’t wait for other people. I think that’s my greatest advice: Don’t wait on anyone else, go for it, and do it yourself,” she said.
“I’m very grateful for where I am and how far I’m going to go. I have a lot of faith that if we keep doing what we’re doing, we’re moving in the right direction.”
