Rising Stars 2024
Meet your rising stars of the vertical industry - emerging talents who have quickly captured the hearts of fans and are already making a significant impact in the industry. With their standout performances and undeniable screen presence, they represent the exciting future of vertical dramas.
Teig Sadhana
Teig is an Australian-English actor based out of New York City. He is a Graduate of the Conservatory Program at The Stella Adler Studio of Acting.
His career has spanned between London, New York and Australia, where he has worked across a multitude of levels; from international arts festivals (Talk Dirty To Me, Perth Fringe), to renowned Off-West End playhouses (Figures of Speech, Almeida Theatre), to full scale film productions (Better Man, Footloose Productions).
Teig received critical acclaim for his award-winning performance as Brick in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (Canberra Repertory) and has self-produced festival recognised short films (A Lonely Harvest, Claymates).
As the Vertical Drama market has exploded in the last year, Teig has fast established himself as a prominent figure on the vertical screen. He has amassed an impressive resume of critically and commercially successful films and worked with all the industry’s major platforms - ReelShort, ShortMax, DramaBox, Goodshort, DramaWave.
A student of the Adler method, having studied with esteemed artists such as Ron Burrus, Tom Oppenheim, Todd Thaler, Bill Bowers, Steve Jones, Melissa Maxwell and Carolyn McCormick, Teig has an acutely technical understanding of the artform and a strong connection to its greater purpose.
Alex Pychtin
Canadian-Australian actor Alex Pychtin has established himself as the go-to leading man for premium-performing vertical dramas, with global demand spanning North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia.
Alex’s vertical career is soaring, with over ten leading roles to his name, two of which are the most-viewed Australian-produced vertical dramas to date—"The Heiress Blacklisted Her Husband" (68M+ views) and "Pregnant By The Billionaire" (25M+ views) on ReelShort.
Beyond vertical dramas, Alex’s career includes credits in the Emmy-nominated Showtime series Yellowjackets, a Blumhouse feature film for Amazon Prime, and projects for Hallmark Channel. In Mainland Chinese cinema, he has shared the screen with some of the region’s biggest stars, appearing in The Captain (中国机长) alongside Zhang Hanyu (张涵予), The Golden Job (黄金兄弟) with Ekin Cheng (鄭伊健), and Love After Love (第一炉香) with Eddie Peng (彭于晏).
A NYFA graduate, Alex’s artistry extends beyond acting. His directorial debut, 714, earned a Grand Jury Award at the 2020 New York International Film Awards and an Outstanding Achievement Award at the Berlin Flash Film Festival. His follow-up, Black Pulse, won him Best Actor in a Drama – Platinum Award at the Best Actor Awards New York.
In addition to serving as the frontman for rock band LoveSix, he was invited to judge the 2019 TVB's Miss Hong Kong Beauty Pageant, proving that while he may be known for dramatic roles, he also knows a thing or two about spotting star potential.
With an ever-expanding international career and a strong foothold in vertical storytelling, Alex Pychtin continues to build an impressive body of work across multiple markets.
Rebecca Berg
Rebecca began her career in Copenhagen, Denmark. As a child, she booked her first professional acting job on an Emmy-winning series. Since then, she has acted in theatre, commercials, film, and television in Europe and America. Rebecca moved to LA upon acceptance into the acting conservatory at The Lee Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute, where she trained and upon completion started auditioning and booking commercials, film, television and - of course - verticals.
She is repped by Jillian West at Kit International Talent.
Fun facts:
Rebecca is bilingual English and Danish and understands and speaks some Swedish and Norwegian as well.
Apart from acting, she also produces, writes and models.
She loves horseback riding and used to train as a child
She used to work as a volunteer in Botswana, Africa, and lived in a tent in the Kalahari dessert
She’s a big brain cancer awareness advocate
Dante Ayala
Dante Ayala is a Cuban-American actor from Crystal River. Florida. Dante knew at a young age that acting was something that he wanted to do, but being from a small town he didn’t have many opportunities to pursue it. He was initially going to become an anesthesiologist, but after acting in a few plays and being the lead anchor for his high school’s morning show, he felt that he had to at least give acting a chance or he’d regret it forever. He worked two jobs, saving as much money as he could, before eventually moving to Los Angeles by himself with a dream.
Dante studied at many different classes around LA for comedy improv, Meisner technique, and on-camera acting. He has now been a full-time actor for 3 years and is definitely on the rise. Along with starring in multiple vertical series, he’s booked some major commercials and has several feature films slated to release between 2025 and 2028. As a creative writing major, he also has a TV show he’s co-writing and a short film he’s hoping to produce in the next year.
Chris Quartuccio
Chris is from Long Island, New York, where he grew up swimming and surfing, and working on his family's oyster farm. Chris is a screenwriter and an actor, and he loves classical film and living in LA.
Chris taught himself to play piano during the covid lockdowns, and is the lead singer in a pop-rock band. He also runs a traveling raw bar business for weddings and parties.
Chris also enjoys snowboarding, running marathons, and songwriting, and is proficient --and soon to be fluent -- in French.
Matteo Della Putta
Matteo Della Putta is an Italian actor based in Los Angeles. Born and raised in Cremona, Italy, he began acting at 16 in theater, performing in plays such as Antigone before expanding into film and new media. In 2019, he moved to the U.S. to train at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, graduating in 2022.
His work spans film, television, and digital storytelling. He starred in the internationally recognized short film Unbearable, which won awards at festivals such as the Berlin Film Festival, Cannes World Film Festival, and Paris Film Festival. With the rise of vertical storytelling, Matteo has collaborated with major platforms like DramaBox, ReelShort, and Dream Wave, taking on roles in mini-series such as Let Me Go! My Queen, Substitute Bride for the CEO, and I Can Never Be Yours, among others.
Fluent in English and Italian, with conversational proficiency in French, Matteo continues to explore diverse roles across international productions.
Meg Bush
I grew up in New York, acting and singing at local theatres. I knew at 7 years old that performing was my passion! I tried to deny it when I started going to college for Physics…that didn’t last long (sorry mom and dad). I took a gap year, becoming a company member at a regional theatre and performing 13 shows a week. I got to really see the difference we can make in the world by performing, expanding people’s compassion and all that good stuff. I then went back to school for theatre and political science, and since it’s been all film!
Verticals have been such a blessing, allowing me to do only what I love and to meet my best friends in the world. Aside from acting, I love playing/singing music, doing gymnastics, still geeking out over astrophysics, and eating lots of peanut butter :)