#NerdsUnite: The Ramblings of a Raconteuse (The Face of Hollywood's America)
<editorsnote> Nerds, meet my buddy Helenna. We met on twitter not too long ao, and she's totes mcgotes one rad chiquita banana with a flare for all things flair! That's right, Helenna here is what we call an artsy fartsy nerd. She's a poet, into all things dramatic arts, and she's going to come on board to write each week about her love of said drama. Well not like actual drama drama, like some cat fight shit - but you get the idea. I only have one thing left to say ... HIT IT HELENNA!!! </editorsnote>
#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @Helslevy
One of my favorite things about awards season is The Hollywood Reporter’s interviews with the Emmy frontrunners. They put together these fantastic roundtable discussions with some of the Drama Actress, Drama Actor, Comedy Actress, and Comedy Actor nominees.
I always get such an incredible education just from listening to them all talk about their experiences, and I really look forward to it every year.
That being said, there was something that bothered me a lot this year. For some reason, I didn’t notice so much in the past, but the only minority face out of all twenty four nominees interviewed, was Don Cheadle’s. In fact, only a handful of the one hundred or so nominees are visible ethnic minorities.
I’ve talked in the past about wondering where the Asians are in Hollywood, and how much of I am a fan of Jon Hurwitz and Hayden Schlossberg for opening the floodgates with “Harold and Kumar,” but I would really love to see a much more inclusive representation of the “face” of America.
I think about this a lot because, as an actor who is very strong in the comedy genre, the types of lead comedic roles that I am best suited for are ones that aren’t usually played by ethnic minorities, which is the reason that I produced, directed, wrote, and starred in the web pilot The Day Player a number of years ago. The idea was to showcase myself as a comedic actress who just happens to be”ethnically diverse.” It worked, and ultimately got the attention of the Hayden/Schlossberg team which lead to my being able to audition for “American Reunion.”
In the last decade or so opportunities in television have definitely gotten better, and ethnic minorities are increasingly shown as well rounded complex characters versus the sterotypes that have been prevalent in the past. Last season and this fall season have made me pretty excited for the shift that has been happening and I’m hoping is going to continue. Shows like “The Mindy Project” starring Mindy Kaling, “Elementary” starring Lucy Liu, and “Beauty and the Beast” with Kristen Kreuk are high up there on my DVR this fall.
Other older shows like “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Hawaii 5-0,” and “Lost” (R.I.P.), have all done a great job, as has this years’ “Sullivan and Son” on TBS. In addition, there are some fantastic supporting characters that are gracing our TV sets including Hannah Simone on “New Girl” and Liza Lapria on “Don’t Trust the B” (sidebar: Liza Lapria currently has the type of career I would love to experience myself, from the types or roles she plays to the projects she is in). However that being said, minorities are still a small percentage of the faces that we see on TV, and even less so in big budget Hollywood features.
In this fantastic piece by Carina Adly MacKenzie, she states that
“We’re also not suggesting that every show should include “token” minority casting. If a white actor is the best person for a role, then by all means, that actor should get the role. But if every role on a show is most suited to a white actor, perhaps there’s a larger issue that needs to be addressed, be it in the writing, the development, or in our conditioning as a society.”
I definitely agree with this, and obviously this is a much larger conversation, one that should surround the fact that we need more diversity among the writers/directors/and producers. It’s a bit too much to delve into in today’s post, but overall I am definitely feeling hopeful that things will continue to progress. In fact, I hope that in a couple of years my face is one of the ones that graces your television sets as a series regular.
Until then, I’m going to continue plugging away and doing my best to break down societal stereotypes by producing my own projects, and being cast because I’m a good actor who just happens to be a visible minority.
Until next time,
#xoxo hels
tweet me at: @helslevy
browse me at: helennasantoslevy.com
email me at: contacthelenna@gmail.com