Rada Owen ’03 sits in a dark and empty Los Angeles movie theater. Flashing across the screen, Annette Bening swims with the grace and technique of a trained professional.

“I’m sitting in the theatre by myself watching the movie and when I saw that shot, I was like, ‘Oh my God! She looks so good!’ I was so proud. And I think that’s the shot where a lot of swimmers are like, ‘Holy Moly, she looks like a swimmer.’”

When Owen got a call from a production office in 2021 asking her to train an actor who would be playing a swimmer in an upcoming movie, her interest was piqued. After a few simple Google searches, Owen quickly realized who she would be working with.

Swimming Through the Plains

Before she started coaching Hollywood’s A-Listers, Owen began her professional swimming career at Auburn University. She had never heard of Auburn when she began the recruitment process in 1994. Owen arrived on campus as a senior in high school for the 1995 U.S. Open Swimming Championships, which Auburn was hosting that year, and she quickly fell in love with Auburn’s indisputable charm.

“The coach there, David Marsh, just happened to see me swim in lane one right next to where the Auburn team was swimming, and he was like, ‘Find out who that girl is,’” said Owen. “And it was just serendipitous. That’s where I was going to go.”

Her time at Auburn was consumed by swimming. With the team moving up in the NCAA rankings each season, they grew closer to becoming championship contenders each year. Throughout her career at Auburn, Owen won six SEC Championships and earned 14 All-American titles.

“I didn’t have time to be into other stuff at Auburn, but that was OK,” said Owen. “That was my life, and I loved it. That’s part of the reason why I love [my teammates] so much, because I had such a great experience being part of that team.”

Outside of a national championship, Owen had other goals. She was training to earn a spot on the 2000 USA Olympic Team. In July of 2000, as a fully enrolled Auburn student, Owen qualified for Team USA in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

“Making the U.S. Team is probably the hardest athletic achievement in swimming anyone can do. The U.S. is the fastest by far, so to make the Olympic team, I can say that’s quite an accomplishment.”

She swam the 200-meter freestyle in the Olympic Games, earning the second fastest time by an American in the event. She spent the following three years on the Plains wrapping up her mass communications degree in radio, television and film.

Owen moved to Los Angeles after graduation where she briefly worked in the entertainment industry, but when the opportunity arose for her to get back to doing what she loves most and work as a swim coach full time, she dove right in.

Diving into Hollywood

After her phone call with Bening in 2021, Owen spent months in the backyard pool at Bening’s residence preparing her for the role. They worked largely on technique as Owen helped Bening transform into a convincing swimmer for the big screen.

The film follows Diana Nyad, played by Annette Bening alongside her coach and best friend Bonnie Stoll, played by Jodie Foster. Bening’s character aims to swim from Cuba to Florida at age 64, finishing a challenge she started nearly 40 years prior.

“Anytime swimming is shown on screen, to swimmers, there are just little details of the technique that we’d be like, ‘that person is not a swimmer,’ said Owen. “We know if that person had zero training.”

That is what Bening worked tirelessly to avoid.

The goal was to make Bening look like she’s been a swimmer her whole life. They worked on stamina, endurance and technique while they were together and Bening often worked on applying Owen’s teachings in her own time.

From Underwater to Onscreen

When they started training, Bening couldn’t do the technical things that separated real swimmers from actors, like side-breathing or hand placement. She had little rhythm and moved her arms and legs however she could to complete the strokes.

After months of work, Bening left L.A. for the Dominican Republic for filming. “They didn’t need me on set because she is super capable. [Bening] knew what she was doing, and she trusted our training and herself.”

When the film was released, Netflix rented a theater near Owen’s house and screened the movie for her privately.

“There’s one shot in the movie where she’s in a pool, and the camera is at the water level, and she swims in front of it. She’s got this nice open arm over top, and that arm out front is nice and straight. I mean, that is a trained form. That’s not something the average person just does.”

Making Waves

Owen transformed Bening into a completely capable swimmer, helping her nail her role as Diana Nyad and earn an Oscar nomination for Best Actress. In the wake of an Academy Award nomination, Bening has received a lot of press, and she doesn’t hesitate to bring Owen into the spotlight with her.

“Most actors talk about themselves and their preparation. They don’t mention the people that helped them. That’s not Annette. Annette has been saying my name in every single interview she’s done because she wants to give credit to the person that helped her do this. And I just think that is incredible.”

The Oscars will air on March 10 this year and Owen will be watching to cheer on Bening and the cast of “Nyad.” Her competitive nature goes far beyond the swimming pool, and Owen is eager for the winner to be revealed.

“The Academy tends to recognize the actors that go above and beyond just the acting role, and I think she nailed it,” said Owen. “Maybe the swimming had a little bit to do with it, but she was incredible. Take the swimming out of it, and it’s still an award-winning performance. So yeah—I’m hoping for a win.”