We recently connected with Chase Yi and have shared our conversation below.
Chase , we’re thrilled to have you sharing your thoughts and lessons with our community. So, for folks who are at a stage in their life or career where they are trying to be more resilient, can you share where you get your resilience from?
The word Rejection has become synonymous with my life.
I’ve been an actor since I was 15 years old, and although my career started out with many blessings, the majority of it has found nothing but doors slammed in my face. I have always been on the outside looking in, and as the years passed, rather than standing around in the cold, I’ve learned how to build my own house. I think rejection teaches you that you don’t really need anyone else’s approval to be true to yourself. You don’t need the acceptance of others to express who you are and share that with the world. For a long time, I had that confused with fame and money and adulation, but now, I feel nothing but gratitude. All those disappointments have taught me how to be myself, and to know how to greet success or failure with the same level of appreciation. In acting (especially in life), all you can do is focus on what’s in your control–your attitude, perspective, patience, bravery, determination. Nobody can take those things away from you, and that’s what you have to protect. It’s what makes you indestructible.
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
I’ve been a professional actor for over half my life, but my journey has taken me down so many different roads. I’ve worked as a professional chef, a food delivery driver, a caterer, a bicycle mechanic, a book publisher, a freelance writer, a counterperson at a deli, a poet, an oil painter, a photographer, a filmmaker, a picture framer, a used car salesman, and the list goes on. However, over the past year, I’ve refocused entirely on my acting career. I had a huge realization that I never truly committed myself to it when I was younger. I had passion and ambition, but my level of preparation was nowhere close to what was needed. So I wandered around and only did things by half. Then in my early twenties, my mother died. Losing her really showed me that time is fleeting, and that it doesn’t really matter what the outcome of a decision is, but it’s the decision itself that matters–you sticking to it and seeing it through to a result. I enrolled in college after she passed and got a degree from UCLA in Poetry. Poetry taught me how to see the world differently, and that life and creativity can be achieved in endless ways that you never quite expect. While I was in school, I fell in love with a young woman named Mandy who showed me what true care and support looks like. She helped me let go of all my old ways of thinking and embrace who I truly am. She always believed in me, no matter what ideas or goals I set for myself, she never turned them down or questioned my ability to achieve them. So slowly, I started to make progress. I signed with another agent in Venice after rounds of grueling, bottom-of-the-barrel auditions, and 6 years later, I’ve had the good fortune of working on dozens of shows as co-star and guest star roles. I’ve been able to make a living as an actor, earning enough to qualify for health insurance and put some money away for a rainy day. Acting has taken me to different countries around the world, and I’ve made some incredible friendships with other talented, creative people. However, even now, I still haven’t fully realized my dreams of portraying complex characters and connecting with audiences on a global scale. So rather than wasting time spreading myself thin with too many projects or even people who don’t respect my time or energy, I’ve learned that I have to save it for myself. I have to conserve my spirit and channel it into who I am and what I’m trying to accomplish, because no one is going to do it for me. No one is going to prioritize my life the way I will, and to achieve great things, it takes a great amount of focus and dedication. Lately, I’ve been spending more time shooting and self-producing all the projects that I’ve written or creative ideas I have for scenes or films. The landscape for film and acting has changed significantly over the past 15 years. Now, people are making movies on their phones with their friends, and the opportunity for showcasing one’s work is ubiquitous. Now is the perfect time to go after what you want, and the best part is that you don’t have to ask permission for it. Those who are ready and willing only have to start, and keep going.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
One of my biggest problems in life was never finishing what I started, so making a clear decision on what you want and sticking to it is my first piece of advice. Now, that doesn’t mean that you have to stay in a miserable situation, but it’s important to carry out a decision to its full extent. Allow yourself to have the experience and don’t just quit if it’s too hard or challenging. More often than not, the reward you seek is right on the other side of that struggle, and if you quit before reaching it, then you’ll never get anywhere–this was the case for me for a very long time. There is a poem by Robert W. Service called “The Men Who Don’t Fit In.” After reading that poem, the truth of what I was became clear. And coming to terms with one’s shortcomings is the first step in making a change.
Along with making a decision, the other important lesson to learn is that there are no “wrong choices.” Of course there’s doing harmful things like drugs or drinking or violence or whatever, but that’s not what I’m referring to. I’m referring to a crossroads in one’s life. For example, if you’re torn between going to one college over another, and both seem like solid options, then guess what, that means that they are! You’re going to have different experiences at each one, and each place will shape who you are in a different way that isn’t any better or worse. The same goes for whether you want to leave the relationship you’re in or quit the job that you hate or move across the country to a new state. All they represent are choices, and what gives them the opportunity to influence your life is what you decide to do. There are no wrong choices, and that’s what I see a lot of people struggle with in life–they’re so worried about making the “wrong” choice when, really, that doesn’t exist. What matters is that you made a choice, and now you can move forward with your life instead of standing still with indecision.
Lastly, the very real presence of death has taught me that time is precious. We do not live forever, and losing the people I love reaffirms to me that I have to make the most of my life. I have to focus on what I want to accomplish–who I want to be before my time is up. I’m 31 years old now, and soon, I’ll wake up and be 80 if I’m lucky. Maybe i’ll make it to 100, and if I do, I certainly don’t want to look back and realize that I never did what I wanted to do. I never really tried. I never really took a risk. I never really loved someone. I never really gave myself to a greater purpose. I didn’t honor my mother’s life and the sacrifices she made for me. I didn’t spend enough time with my family. I never really understood why I was here. I don’t want to die with any of those regrets, so all I can do now is live and keep trying.
Bonus tip: It’s better to get it done than to have it be perfect. You’ll learn and get better along the way.
Alright so to wrap up, who deserves credit for helping you overcome challenges or build some of the essential skills you’ve needed?
I’ve been lucky enough to love and share my life with an amazing woman named Amanda Ortiz for nearly the past decade. When I met her, I was a lost soul trying to rediscover who I was and what I wanted in life, and being with her, she taught me how to be present and happy with where I am. She taught me how to focus on what’s in front of me, and to not second-guess myself with an idea I have or a goal I want to achieve. Whenever I share something with her, a fear I have or a dream deep inside my heart, the first thing she always says to me is “You can do it. Give it a try. It doesn’t hurt to try.” And suddenly, whatever hesitation I have goes away. The love she has in her heart and the conviction of her beliefs is an act of God that has blessed my life in so many unbelievable ways. And in the same ways she’s helped me, that understanding and belief in myself has allowed me to take care of her–to be able to work as an artist in so many mediums and provide a wonderful life for us and our dog, Scuba. That rhythm of love and support only creates more opportunities for success, and like the seasons, it changes and shifts over time. It leads us down new directions and keeps possibilities open in ways we never expect. Above all, Mandy has taught me the meaning of faith. She’s helped this broken soul find a way to mend–to be strong enough to carry the weight of my dreams and to help lift them up for others. All I want to do is lift them up for her, too, and to love and support her any way that I can. In this life and the next.
Contact Info:
- Website:imdb.me/chaseyi
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/chaseyi_
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Yi.Chase/
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chaseyi/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/chaseyi_?lang=en
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@chaseyi_
- Other: www.filmpoetics.com
Image Credits
All photos taken by Chase Yi (filmpoetics.com)
