Inspirational Women In Hollywood: How Actress Laura Niemi Is Helping To Shake Up The Entertainment Industry

An Interview With Ming Zhao

… Wait for the right one. The right one loves the things you think no one would love about you. The right one is the script that you don’t have to compromise on. The right one is the manager who believes in you and is ready to work their ass off to get you both “there”.

As a part of our series about Inspirational Women In Hollywood, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Laura Niemi is a stage, film and TV actress.

Best known for her performance as “Marilyn Pearson” on the NBC series “This Is Us(2016)”. As the mother in Jack’s (Milo Ventimiglia) struggling and dysfunctional working class family, her character has gained critical recognition which has currently landed Niemi an FYC Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series.

A native Angelino, she started studying at The Academy of Performing Arts in Los Angeles at a young age.

The daughter of a movie producer and an insurance salesman, the family then moved to the east coast where she studied piano at the prestigious Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY.

She spent her teens and early 20s back in California, where she swapped her piano for a bass guitar playing in many L.A. based bands.

As a trained theater actress she has performed at The Geffen Playhouse, South Coast Rep and The Taper and is the Artistic Director and founder of the multi-award winning Lost Angels Theatre Company (which landed her awards both as a producer and an actor).

She landed her first TV credit in Joss Whedon’s “Firefly (2002)” and has been continuously working in television and film ever since.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

I am native Angelino, third generation, so my roots are deep. I ran with the LA 80’s crowd, most of us in or around the movie or music industry. I not only remember Tower Records, I worked there. I use the word “worked” loosely.

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

I started in the music industry as a bass player. for a few different bands, but acting had always been a passion of mine. I realized music, though I loved it, didn’t fulfill me as much as acting. I like pretending to be other people.

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

It happened recently. I had a scene where I had to “talk dirty” to my scene partner. I’d never had to do this before, and understanding boundaries become of the utmost importance. We had an intimacy coach to help us, but it felt like a minefield of potential offense. I think it was even harder for my scene partner. They gave me license to say whatever I wanted, but you can’t really talk about problems in the Dodgers' bullpen when trying to film a love scene. We found a way through it, but it taught me how essential it is that we are honest with each other and that we discuss difficult issues before we start labelling each other.

It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

My first big job was a small role in Firefly. I was so self-conscious, and for some reason I felt it was imperative that nobody know this was my first job, so I told no one and said very little throughout the shoot. Now I know that I should have told everyone. Actors want to help. They want their triobe to succeed. We look after our own. Share that vulnerability not just in your character, but in yourself. You’ll find people that are there to love and support you.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

My mom. She’s an industry veteran (a producer) so she knows how tough the business is for a woman. Whenever I would call her after getting as “no” she would tell me “that doesn’t matter, just keep getting in there. Just keep moving.” She has always been a force of positivity and confidence. I believed she could do anything, and she believed that in me. Plus, she lent me money to pay rent a few times…

You have been blessed with great success in a career path that can be challenging. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?

Failure is an essential part of success. This is not news, but it cannot be overstated. As much as that failure hurst, you will, without a doubt, look back on it and realize it made you who you are. In some ways, we don’t learn how to walk, we learn how not to fall. To do that, we have to fall.

What drives you to get up every day and work in TV and Film? What change do you want to see in the industry going forward?

As tough as it is when you haven’t booked anything, or you finish a big job and realize you have to do it all over again — that first day on set, when the cast and crew are vibing and the set is humming — it’s so worth it. There is no experience on earth like it.

I’d like to see more roles for women over 50. Our 50’s are an extraordinary time in a woman’s life. There are so many changes, both internal and external, and I think in some ways it’s terrifying for men to address and acknowledge the changes we go through. Many of us find our true voice in our 50’s. I want to see movies about that. We have hundreds of movies about the mid-life crisis of men, and they are fascinating stories and well worth telling. Why we haven’t yet realized the same is true for women in their 50’s is odd. It’s a treasure trove of stories waiting to be told.

You have such impressive work. What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? Where do you see yourself heading from here?

A Taylor Sheridan western. I worked with him on Those Who Wish Me Dead last year and I want to work with him again. Something about his pace and lingering shots makes your heart yearn for the worlds he creates. Even in the darkest moments, he manages to make us yearn for it.

We are very interested in looking at diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture and our youth growing up today?

Role models. We need an abundance of positive influences to make sure the negative influences don’t shape our culture. It’s not just role models for people of color, or women, or of non-binary people — it’s about creating heroes from a different perspective. Nothing is going to make a young white kid less racist than delivering them a role model from outside their comfort zone.

Quality. Imagine how boring the Marvel universe would be if there was only one superhero. The most interesting world is one you haven’t seen before.

Truth. Our society IS diverse, our media should reflect our society, and not be a bubble that caters to one demographic. The content we create should reflect the world our children will be living in — otherwise we’re selling them an impossible reality.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.

• Make more mistakes. Get in there, get messy, that’s how you really grow.
• Everyone feels like an imposter, it’s not just you. Learn to act as if you feel confident, and eventually, you will. I’m still working on this one…
• Keep your business list up to date. This is a business and you need contacts. Make notes. Whatever software you use to track your contacts, learn it fully!
• Get an airmiles credit card. Seriously, you’re spending the money make it work for you. You also never know when you’re going to need those airmiles to fly to Georgia for an in person audition just because you have a ferocious desire to get that role. Be prepared to go to the ends of the earth to get what you want. Airmiles help get you there.
• Wait for the right one. The right one loves the things you think no one would love about you. The right one is the script that you don’t have to compromise on. The right one is the manager who believes in you and is ready to work their ass off to get you both “there”.

Can you share with our readers any selfcare routines, practices or treatments that you do to help your body, mind or heart to thrive? Please share a story for each one if you can.

Accountability Groups. This is a self-made business (at least in the beginning) so you HAVE to be hitting the books, working the auditions, creating the buzz, and walking the block. To do that, it really helps if you have a group of peers to make sure you’re holding uip your end of the bargain. If you’re not doing the work, don’t see that as a failing in you, solve the issue! Find an accountability group, preferably one that has to overcome the same problems as you, so you can swap strategies.

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

“Tell me who your friends are, I’ll tell you who you are.” Get rid fo the naysayers, and fill your life with positive people who believe in you. This doesn’t mean people who will say anything to make you happy — you need honesty — but you need people who when they critique you it’s to get you to a higher place.

You are a person of huge influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I hope that we start to address the homelessness in Los Angeles. My heart breaks when I drive around my beloved city and see thousands and thousands of people who have just been forgotten by the rest of us. It makes me question our value as a society when we are willing to let so many of our fellow humans disappear into despair. I hope as a society, we can remember what it felt like to be proud of ourselves. A few hours in Los Angeles will give you a sharp reminder of where we are failing.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

Emma Thompson. I just watched Leo Grande and that was one of the best performances I have ever seen. I have admired her for decades. She’s a wonderful writer, she speaks her voice, she seems like a delightful person, and there’s so much joy in her. She rocks.

Are you on social media? How can our readers follow you online?

I mostly active on Instagram @lauraniemi

This was so informative, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!