It is often said that it is common for people, during their lives, to give up on their dreams and long-term goals far too early.
That certainly wasn't the case for Rayden Walker, an ambitious and hard-working actor, filmmaker, makeup artist and Quinlan resident who died at the age of 32 last month.
Having a strong interest and background in acting and acting since high school and being an alumnus of the KD Institute and the Conservatory College of Film and Dramatic Arts in Dallas, Walker was further inspired to pursue his pursuits when His heart problems intensified when he was just 7 years old. 21 years old.
He told the Herald-Banner in a 2022 interview, “I have heart problems, and at one point my heart was only working at 5 percent. It got so bad that I was in hospice care and feeling flat, but I survived and started to improve.
I always loved acting, but it was after that that I decided to really get into this profession, he added. After leaving hospice, I prepared a monologue and auditioned for a casting agency (Katz Kasting) and immediately started receiving offers.
During his career, he participated in 11 films and two music videos. On his resume, his most high-profile projects include a small speaking role in the 2019 Disney film Send It, which starred Kevin Quinn, and an episode of The Price of Fame in which he played a paparazzi harassing Reese Witherspoon.
In addition to acting, Walker also tried his hand at directing with his independent film, The 7th, which relied on a special effects-heavy premise.
“It's based on the concept of the story of the seventh son of a seventh son, except I changed it to be the seventh grandchild of a seventh grandchild, and the families each had certain (super)powers that ran through their lineage,” Walker said in the 2022 interview.
It was a challenge, because there were 12 characters, six good and six evil, who all had different powers, like astral projection and telekinesis. But it was great.
The last feature film Walker worked on was acting and working as a makeup artist for the independent film The Diamond Texter, produced by Dallas-based director Shardan Duuby Bee Evans through IRM Films and recently released on Netflix.
In the film, Walker played a zombie dwelling in an abandoned hospital where many other characters were searching for a secret stash of diamonds rumored to be there.
During the filming of The Diamond Texter, Walker worked extensively with Duuby Bee in post-production and promotion of the film.
Rest in peace to my good friend Rayden Walker. “We worked so hard on this project and I thank God for putting you here to play an important role in this mission,” Duuby Bee said in response to Walker's passing. We love you, from the cast of The Diamond Texter movie.
A celebration of the Walkers' lives is planned for Wednesday from 6 to 8 p.m. at Ingram Funeral Home in Quinlan.
A GoFundMe campaign has also been launched to help Walker's family cover funeral costs. The direct link to the campaign is https://tinyurl.com/5y6ajhdy.
