Meet Veronica Mannion | Actress & Filmmaker

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

Hi Veronica, can you share a quote or affirmation with us?
The words: “I AM” are the two most powerful words I live by. With these two words you can change your life by either talking yourself up or talking yourself down. You can say “I AM… not good enough, I’m never gonna book that part” and you won’t. You can say to yourself “I AM good enough, the perfect part is coming to me, I can do it” and instantly elevate your mood, and get that much closer to booking your dream part. My mom taught me this as a little girl and I swear that is my ultimate secret to my success is just believing it is possible. I read that JLo looks in the mirror every morning and says to herself “I am timeless and youthful”. I think it’s working for her so might as well try it for yourself!

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

Most people recognize me as playing Kitty in the first three seasons of HBO’s “Insecure”. I booked one line off of the pilot episode as the annoying coworker asking “hey Issa, what’s on fleek?” This was a year and a half after my first TV credit from “Masters of Sex” on Showtime, and five years after making the move to LA. I can’t tell you how thrilled I was when I heard “Insecure” got picked up and Issa Rae wrote me into the season and gave me a character name! When I told my parents they jumped up and down with joy because they knew it’s been my dream to be onscreen since I was a little girl.

I’ve acted opposite four Academy Award winning actors including Jessica Lange, Jeremy Renner, and Lady Gaga. Susan Sarandon said our scene together (#fuckoffsylvia) was her favorite scene in FX’s “FEUD: Bette and Joan”. I’ve been on ABC’s “Dr. Ken”, and CBS’ “Wisdom of the Crowd” acting with Emmy Award and Golden Globe winner Jeremy Pivon. Right now you can catch me in the latest Geico commercial where I play the FBI woman in the van.

What I’d like people to take away from my story is that you really have to believe in yourself and continue to pave your own way. My true success and happiness I’ve found comes from expressing my own creativity and making my own movies. I turned my one woman show “Booze Boys & Brownies” into a feature film musical that enjoyed an independent film festival run in 2015 and racked up numerous awards. My second feature film “The Blonde Experiment”, starring cult classic queen E.G.Daily, just won best director and best film at Austin Revolution Film Festival and I won best actress at Hollywood Reel Independent Film Festival. Hopefully coming to streaming service near you.

To all the actors reading this–All those times you thought that one line was your “big break” or it all depends on this one scene or this one meeting— it doesn’t. This weird and exciting actor journey all unfolds in the little stuff. Do what makes you happy, make time for your passion projects, brush yourself off from the rejections, look yourself in the mirror and believe you can. It’s up to you to keep writing your own story.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I love LA! So many good spots to check out and each neighborhood has a different energy and style to it. You can’t come to Los Angeles without checking out the beach. There’s some great gems in Malibu where you can stop at Country Mart and get some lunch before heading out to Lake Shrine for some serenity. Stop in it at Duke’s for happy hour, end the night with some karaoke at Boardwalk 11 in Culver City. The Hotel Roosevelt has one of the best out door pools with a delicious menu. I’ve spent many a hot summer day taking a swim there, or sneaking into Sky Bar’s pool top oasis. A rooftop bar is a must, some of the best views are at Perch in downtown, or E.P. & L.P. in West Hollywood, or Mama Shelter in Hollywood.

Be an audience member at the Price is Right and maybe win big! I recently saw a show at the El Capitan Theater in Hollywood where an organ player serenaded us on their world famous historic organ. Sing it out with some karaoke at Big Foot Lodge in Eagle Rock on a Monday night.

Don’t forget to see a hilarious stand up show at the World Famous Comedy Store or go for a different kind of show at Tramp Stamp Granny’s. Have a night cap at the Tiki Bar Lounge in Silverlake. End the night at karaoke again at R Bar in Koreatown… did I mention I like karaoke?

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Shoutout to all the females making their own work! Shoutout to my mother for instilling me the power of positive affirmations and manifestation. She was my first mentor and marker for success. I would not be living my dreams in Los Angeles without her help and belief in me. I am incredibly grateful to Issa Rae and Melina Matsoukas for casting me in “Insecure”. They changed my life by saying yes to my face from one line off tape. I am constantly impressed and inspired by Sujata Day who is taking Hollywood by storm and rocking every red carpet in the process. She is always so encouraging and supportive of my films– If you haven’t seen her film “Definition, Please”- you are missing out! My other “Insecure” costar, Kathleen Khavari is also making her own way in the industry and creating her own work representing her Iranian heritage. She thought of me and gave me a part in her pilot “Embrace” that premiered at Sundance in 2020.

My bestie and co writer/ director of our film “The Blonde Experiment”, Ariel Hart, deserves a heartfelt shoutout for many a night reminding me of my passion for acting, and making me laugh in the process.

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/veronicamann/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/veronica-mannion-1371601a3/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/veronicaman

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/veronicamann/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/veronicamannion

Image Credits
Photography by Ann Marie Fox.
Photos also include red carpet events,  stills from Insecure, The Blonde Experiment, Remy Martin Commercial, Booze Boys and Brownies and Embrace.