Featuring Alexys Sterling of Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, who is majoring in Mass Communication/Digital Film Production and Theory at Wayne State.
Being the assistant director for many plays at Sergeant Bluff-Luton High School and helping her brother make YouTube videos when they were growing up have helped propel Alexys (Baier) Sterling toward a career in the film industry.
Sterling, a senior from Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, who is majoring in Mass Communication/Digital Film Production and Theory at Wayne State, is the focus of a special segment of the Student Spotlight Series, which celebrates National Transfer Student Week on Oct. 20-24.
Sterling transferred to Wayne State for the Fall 2023 semester from Western Iowa Tech Community College in Sioux City, Iowa. She completed the majority of her general education requirements at Western Iowa Tech, and she said the transfer process between the two schools was very smooth.
“I chose to transfer to Wayne State because it has a great film program,” said Sterling, a 2020 graduate of Sergeant Bluff-Luton High School. “I knew that I wanted to pursue acting and going to school for film would probably get me closest to pursuing an acting career. I also knew that Wayne State had good film students since I had acted in Hot Attic films before enrolling at Wayne State. Everyone was so welcoming, which made me feel very comfortable. The way all of the students support each other’s projects is truly amazing.”
“There is a true sense of community at Wayne State,” continued Sterling. “All of the instructors, in every field of study, do whatever they can to help their students succeed. Before I enrolled at Wayne State, I reached out to a friend of mine, Shelby Hagerdon, who had been a film student at Wayne State. She guided me down the right path in getting started, and she’s now an adjunct faculty member at Wayne State.”
Wayne State’s film program offers the opportunities and resources to make short films that students can enter in regional film festivals, where Wayne State students often bring home top honors. Wayne State even sponsors its own film festival each spring, which hosts high school and undergraduate filmmakers from across Nebraska, Iowa, and South Dakota.
At Wayne State, Sterling participates in other student films as much as possible. She was involved with the Wayne State Film Club during her junior year. She’s playing the lead in “Cameron’s Secret,” which will be released during the Spring 2026 semester.
Sterling is scheduled to graduate from Wayne State in May 2026, and she intends to pursue an internship or career with a video production company or film studio.
Fun Fact: “My first paid acting job was working as a scare actor for a haunted car wash.”