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

Hi Matt, how do you think about risk?
Growing up, I’ve always been a risky kid. From jumping off the roof of my neighbor’s shed with a bedsheet trying to make a parachute, to hopping fences and sneaking around abandoned places for a sense of adventure, it’s very clear I like taking risks. I even went skydiving for my 18th birthday as a gift to myself. So, when I approached my folks about wanting to be an actor professionally when I was 13, they dismissed it as one of the “crazy ideas in my head” but they let me take film and tv classes anyway. I discovered super quickly I LOVE film and tv acting. I did school plays a lot and dabbled in musical theatre, but this was my first hands on experience of learning how to act for the camera. I signed with my first manager shortly after I started testosterone and that jumpstarted my career. I moved to LA in 2020 to continue my career, and I’m so glad I made that leap because I’ve made so many new friends, learned to skateboard, and healed a bunch of trauma I endured on the East Coast. I truly believe that you cannot get anything done unless you push yourself out of your comfort zone and that’s what I’m constantly doing. I try my best to better myself and ask “Why?” gently to myself when I’m dragging my feet on a decision, career move, or even a new skateboard trick.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
I’ve always been an adventure seeker and adrenaline chaser, but moving to Los Angeles was the most challenging thing in my career so far. I initially came to Los Angeles on a business trip to audition for my now agent and manager. On my way home back to NYC I got offers from both, and I was so excited! So I made plans to move to L.A. in August 2020.

Now, here is the issue: I went to L.A. at the end of February 2020, right before the world locked down. So of course at the time the idea of moving in August was fine and exciting! But, thanks to COVID, I had NO idea if I could even make the move as August drew closer and closer, especially with the film industry being shut down. I decided to take that leap of faith and come anyway but there were so many stressful factors and obstacles.

For one, I’m a high-risk individual for COVID-19. I have an auto-immune disease and I was so terrified of catching something from the airport. That was extremely stressful to navigate and I also didn’t anticipate how hard it would be to get new doctors during that time. I am on medication for my disorder and so many clinics, doctors, and even emergency rooms painted me as drug seeking, ignoring my diagnosis even though I brought heaps of paperwork. It was also so difficult to find an apartment. Due to the pandemic, so many landlords added even more stipulations to rent and I was getting rejected left and right. I am so blessed to have had friends who helped me navigate apartment hunting as I jumped from AirBnB to AirBnB until I found stable housing. But career-wise, everything regained normalcy once things opened back up again. I booked 3 things in early 2021, giving me that burst of confidence that I will be absolutely fine here.

Since living here, I definitely have experienced a bit of imposter syndrome. While I have over a decade of experience under my belt, the NYC film industry can in some ways be very different from L.A.. That said, at the core, both are basically the exact same, and I’m thriving and surviving!

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I am a SUCKER for theme parks. They make me so happy. So of course every friend that visits me I take to Disneyland and Universal Studios. But other than that, because I have a lot of skater friends, I take them to my favorite skateparks around East L.A. One of my favorite parks is Belvedere skatepark because I love transition skating so much!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I want to shout out my very first manager Herb Rothman. He unfortunately passed away in 2019. Herb saw potential in me. Even though I put my heart and soul into acting, I had NO idea what I was doing beyond learning lines and going for auditions. I’m Autistic, so a lot of social cues fly over my head, and I can seem rude or off-putting sometimes when I don’t mean to. He always sat down with me and would talk to me about any social worries I had, especially with being transgender. I miss him dearly and I wouldn’t be here without him. Josh Brown as well. He took over after Herb died and helped me loads until we parted ways. I’m so happy to have worked with them both.

Chris Wells was my first long term Acting teacher at The Barrow Group. I think he was the first teacher EVER to really understand me on a deeper level, and target parts of my craft that I was weak on that other teachers overlooked. It’s thanks to him I was able to secure so many acting jobs by using what he taught me. On the note of The Barrow Group, Seth Barrish and Lee Brock have been so supportive and helpful and so wonderful in opening up their arms when I needed emotional support while homeless and balancing classes. They also were excellent in seeing me for me and helping me use my strengths in class to blossom. Oh also Belinda Mello who taught me Alexander Technique. when I first took that class I thought it was weird, but it has come in handy so much for auditions and is the reason for me signing with my reps here in Los Angeles! Robert Serrell too. He helped me rebuild my voice after stress damaged my vocal chords while I was in the early years of Testosterone.

I also want to shoutout my film mentor Janet Urban. She helped me get back on my feet by introducing me to work crew for Film and TV. As a result, I made so many lifelong connections with creatives of all sorts and even got a bunch of acting work from that too!

Peri Gilpin and Henry Winkler I want to thank as well for always supporting me and giving me advice when I came to them for it. I appreciate y’all so much!

Rain Valdez also helped me SO much this year in bettering my craft. 2023 has been hard and I took a lot of hits to my self confidence. When I came back to her classes, I confided in her about the situation I was in, and how I got knocked off my horse. She helped me get right back on track to rebuilding my confidence. Michael D. Cohen too. He has been so understanding on how my Autism affects my acting work and teaches me in a way that makes sense to my brain

On the friend side I want to shout out Luis Vega, Orion Elis, Christina Lee, Finn Jankowska, Ryan Drew, and Baz Stirling. All of them helped me realize through their own way how to heal myself and put myself back together over the years. Thank you for your endless support.

And of course my LOVELY Los Angeles team. Paul Caplan-Bennett, who is my manager, has been my rock. He understands me and makes me feel safe in the industry and I’m so grateful. Same for my agent Carrie Park. She has been so validating of every single part of my identity and has never made me feel unwelcome!

Website: mattpasini.com

Instagram: @mattpasiniofficial

Twitter: @mattpasini

Image Credits
A Klass Sara Jackson

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