Meet Lynna Yee | Actor & Voice Talent

We had the good fortune of connecting with Lynna Yee and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Lynna, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?
When I first started, I did not allow myself to have life outside of acting. My life was all about classes, volunteering and rehearsing for my theater company, and casting-director workshops and mailing marketing materials. I didn’t really date, I didn’t travel, I had no hobbies, I barely kept a job. And whatever little money I had, it went to acting classes, theater company due, headshots, and casting workshops. It was good to experience such laser-sharp focus with my career, but it was not working very well, and it was not very sustainable. Because besides the volunteer opportunities in theaters and acting in classes, I wasn’t getting many auditions, and I wasn’t booking acting jobs. When I began to put myself first: getting my finance in order, developing hobbies, having down time, and taking time off to travel or just to have social time with friends with no agenda, and when I stopped paying for opportunities, that was when I started getting more auditions and booking more jobs. It’s funny how that works. And more than once, when I was about to go on a trip or just after a trip, I received a big unexpected check from acting jobs (residuals or contract renewal). It’s like the universe really wants me to take time off to travel!

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

I am an actor and a voice talent first and foremost. I’ve also dabbled in writing, directing, filmmaking, and performance art. You can currently see me in the hit indie feature Take Out Girl on Hulu and Amazon. You can also listen to my performance in a few Netflix Asian dramas (He’s Expecting, Girl from Nowhere, etc) and as the villain Fang in the animated feature Swan Princess: Kingdom of Music (Amazon, iTunes). I’ll also make an appearance in the upcoming Amazon TV show Expats.

My bilingual ability in Chinese Mandarin is one way that sets me apart from other performers. Also, with my height, high cheekbones, and lower vocal register, I tend to attract strong-woman roles. Having grown up in Asia and devoured Asian literature and cinema, I feel that I bring a different kind of sensibility and viewpoint to my performance and artistic expressions.

I have done films, TV, commercials, voiceovers, and even travel show hosting. When I got started, there were not a lot of opportunities for Asian-American actors, so I was not very discriminating, which turned out to be a very good thing. Because no amount of class time compares to the learning you do on the job. You pick up a lot more in a very short amount of time. And work begets work, and work begets more confidence too.

I got to be where I am today by just showing up to every opportunity and taking next indicated actions, and just by sticking around long enough. And because I have stuck around long enough, I have been fortunate to witness the changing landscape of the entertainment industry. I am proud and excited about how diverse the industry has become and continues to be even more so. The auditions stream in these days, and the kinds of auditions and roles I get are night and day from when I first started. It’s really exciting to get to play meaty and juicy roles (At the same time, I am still grateful for the utility acting parts that help pay the bills!).

One thing I had to overcome was my own narrow-minded idea of what my acting career is supposed to look like. I thought I could be an ingénue, but people saw me as a character actor. I have come to embrace that label now, because that means a longer career span, and a lot more interesting and diverse characters to embody. And I certainly did not realize that I did not need to become a household name to have a bona fide career.

Another key thing for me is adaptability. For example, adapting to self-taping auditions at home and setting up a home recording studio. I had so much resistance to both, but now it’s just part of doing business, and I appreciate the opportunities I get from around the world with the remote setup.

I of course have had tremendous support from coaches, teachers, my agents and managers, and friends and colleagues that have been in my accountability and action groups, or just have been there through it all with me: the teary phone calls, reading and rehearsing with me for auditions, and providing another perspective on things. Career paths in the arts and entertainment fields are ever straightforward, and the work can be sporadic, and having support and surrounding myself with like-minded communities has been crucial in sustaining me through all the ups and downs.

I have also learned to not rely on external validations for my art. It’s important to focus on the joy of doing the art itself. The doing of it was what brought me to Los Angeles in the first place, and no one can take the doing of it from me. Whether I am being paid or not, how my work is seen and reviewed, I can be present and fully enjoy the process of doing my art. Turning inward and maintaining a good relationship with my inner being (or higher power or God or the Tao or the universe or higher self, whatever you wanna call it) has helped me tremendously to maintain some sort of equilibrium and inner calm, regardless of how my career is manifesting at the moment.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.

Tour the famed VDL House on Silver Lake Blvd

Silverlake Meadows on Sunday for yoga and outdoor Jazz

and walk around the reservoir
Vietnamese lunch or dinner at Gingergrass Silverlake

Window shopping and gallery browsing in Beverly Hills.
Coffee break at Chaumont Bakery on Beverly Drive for vegan French pastries
Crossroads Kitchen in West Hollywood for fine vegan dining

Shopping, trolley, and lunch at the Grove and & Original Farmers Market
Catch a movie at Braindead Studios on Fairfax and have a drink at Slammers Cafe in their backyard

Angels Flight Railway (Los Angeles’ funicular)
Stroll, ice cream, and dinner at Arts District
Walk around in Little Tokyo and taste Japanese snacks

Warner Brothers Studio Tour in Burbank
Followed by Tony’s Darts Away on Magnolia

Walk around Venice Canals
Bike along Santa Monica Beach
Vegan dinner at Margo’s Santa Monica

Breakfast at Spoke Bicycle Cafe followed by biking, coffee, and artwalk in Frog Town.

Abalone Cove Trail in Palo Verdes
Lunch at Earle’s on Crenshaw

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?

First of all, the Asian-American community of performers and artists and writers and creatives. Your success and dedication and commitment and artistry inspire me.

My wonderful managers Jacque Pedersen-Schrimscher and Bob Blume at the bicoastal Step Forward Entertainment. Especially Jacque who’s been by my side for more than a decade. Also my long-time agent
Daniel Mulheran at dpm Talent and Maureen Rose at the Osbrink Agency.

The dance department at Santa Monica Community College. I spent a year taking dance classes and dance film classes from them both remotely and in person during the pandemic. It was a creatively enriching experience, and the educational experience they offer is world-class.

Website: www.LynnaYee.com

Instagram: @lynnayee

Image Credits
Headshot by Alan Weissman Photography

Screenshots from the feature “Take Out Girl” (Hulu/Amazon)