The Yes Bus Acting Camp -- no actual buses involved -- is a free camp from Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr.
They helmed the 2024 film adaptation of the "Mean Girls" Broadway musical (which was in turn based on the 2004 "Mean Girls" film).
Perez and Jayne, who hails from Cherry Hill, filmed the movie in New Jersey.
They started the Yes Bus Acting Camp with 15 students last summer in Los Angeles, but this is their first time bringing it to high school students from New Jersey and New York.
The directors want to reach teens from immigrant and underserved communities who are interested in acting in film and TV.
"I immigrated when I was 8 years old," says Perez, who grew up in Ottawa, Canada. "I immigrated twice, from Mexico to Canada, and then from Canada to the U.S. ... So I know how hard it can be and how intimidating that can be. High School was extra hard, but you're also challenged with all the different challenges that immigrants face every single day."
Perez and Jayne, who are married, spoke to NJ Advance Media from their home in California in the company of their own child, who is 11 months old.
Perez notes that for many children of immigrant parents, a career in the arts can be a tough sell.
"Saying, like, 'Hey, I want to be an actor,' or 'Hey, I want to go into the arts' is, like, almost funny to them. Like, you're here to work ... But for me, specifically, and also for Sam, our Venn diagram is an acting class. Our life kind of changed because of it."
They want to build confidence in aspiring actors and also open the door to acting as a viable career, giving the surge in film and TV opportunities in New Jersey.
"They can have a career here," Perez says. "They can do it. There is the next superstar, it's gonna be in the tri-state area. They're gonna be from here because the productions need to shoot local so they're casting here. Let's give you the skills so that you can make this a sustainable career."
The two-week camp will be in New York City from July 7 to July 18. Attendees just have to figure out their transportation to Midtown Manhattan, the rest is free.
The camp includes professional headshots for the young actors as well as meals. As with other acting-minded camps (like theater camps), campers will put on a show as part of the experience.
"New York and New Jersey is where the talent is gonna come from," Perez says, speaking of the next generation of great actors.
"In these neighborhoods, the talent is here. We're searching for them, and we're trying to give them the right skills and teach them things that we wish we would've known beforehand," Perez says.
His own parents thought an acting class would be good for him because he was "a little bit hyperactive," he says.
"I didn't really have the confidence to speak out because English wasn't my first language," he says. "I was very confident in Spanish, but I wasn't confident in English."
Jayne, who created "Quarter Life Poetry," which became a short form series (co-created and directed by Perez) that aired as part of "Cake" on FX/Hulu in 2019, says they want to provide all the tools students will need to start auditioning.
During the first half of the day, campers will have movement exercises for a warmup and the second half includes a workshop. There will be seminars in acting and writing.
Perez and Jayne filmed "Mean Girls," their feature directorial debut, in 2023 at Jersey locations including Mater Dei Prep, the Middletown Catholic high school that closed in 2022, and Delbarton School in Morristown.
"It was like this summer camp in the dead of winter in New Jersey," Jayne says, with the actors becoming the best of friends. "It was really cool."
"There's a lot of talent in New Jersey," Perez says. "There's a lot of energy in the tri-state area, there's a lot of energy for Hollywood, which is really, really special and really exciting to be a part of.
"If we could just reach out to kids who are watching films and TV shows and, like, all this different kind of entertainment that we're watching, and they're sitting back and they're saying 'I could do that,' if they're saying that, then apply right now. We're gonna give you everything that you need so that by the end of it, you can do that."
Students interested in applying to the Yes Bus Acting Camp can do so by submitting a 1 to 3-minute monologue at theyesbus.com/camp. The deadline to apply is June 15.
Perez and Jayne encourage local high school drama and English teachers and principals to spread the word about the camp.
Schools can request virtual classroom visits from the directors to talk about the opportunity (those interested can email [email protected]).