Acting students at The Joanne Baron & D.W. Brown Studio got a treat this weekend when Tom Cruise made an impromptu appearance at their graduation.

The 51-year-old star regaled the graduates with tales of his early life in the entertainment industry.

“I liked to make people laugh,” he said of his childhood. “I really enjoyed making my mother laugh and my sister laugh.” Check it out:

Tom used to see tons of movies — and he worked odd jobs cutting lawns, delivering papers and even selling Christmas cards as a kid to earn enough money to go.

He also recalled his first film job, Taps, which also starred Timothy Hutton, George C. Scott and Sean Penn.

“It was an incredible experience,” he said. “I remember at night I couldn’t sleep because I thought: ‘This is my dream. I love it so much being part of this group and seeing what this process is like.”

“I thought, well, if I never have a chance to make another movie I’m just going to learn as much as I can,” he continued. “So I went to every single department and spent time there … I drove [cinematographer Owen] Roizman crazy asking about lenses and film … I didn’t even know what a mark was!”

Students were thrilled to see such a big star and successful actor at their graduation — and even more impressed that he was so “authentic.”

“That he took time out of his incredibly busy schedule to speak to a graduation class of 60 students was overwhelming,” student Greice Santo told the New York Post.

Bruno Lima tweeted about the event:

Very impressed by Mr. Cruise speech! @TomCruise #starpower #joannebaronstudio #acting #moviestar pic.twitter.com/ETW5SGg2VL

— Bruno Lima (@stylusdevice) July 14, 2013

Say what you will about Tom Cruise, but you can’t deny his passion for and positivity about acting.