By Johnathan Kroncke
CSU Fullerton Daily Titan

FULLERTON (U-WIRE) – Actor and director Kevin Costner addressed a capacity crowd at California State University at Fullerton on Wednesday with a single message in mind: Believe in yourself.

“There is a lot of noise out there [in the world],” Costner said. “The signals are all wrong. You have to listen to the ticking of your own heart.”

Costner spoke at the Little Theater in the old Performing Arts building to a boisterous crowd, made up of theater, business and communications majors anxious to see the Oscar winner.

“I thought it would be an interesting experience to see Kevin Costner,” said Dan Duran, a 22-year-old Radio/TV/Film major.

Students were notified of the event by their professors, who took time during their classes to hand out tickets.

Costner, a CSUF alumnus, was contacted by Anil Puri, dean of the College of Business and Economics, who collaborated with the Arts department, to speak.

“He has a longtime relation with the university,” said Jerry Samuelson, dean of the College of the Arts, adding that Costner has spoken at the campus before.

Costner was very personable with the students, receiving a tearful thank you from an ex-Coast Guard for his film “The Guardian.”

Most showered Costner with questions about his career and the ups and downs it has taken.

“It was hard for me to find my way,” Costner said. “My road to try and understand who I was was a hard one.”

Costner began his college career as business major. But after ranking near the bottom of his class, he knew his future lay somewhere else.

“I was overmatched, I knew it,” Costner said.