Meet Rachel Mathieu

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Mathieu.

So, before we jump into specific questions, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started in the performing arts when I was three with ballet, and I quickly incorporated music into the mix with piano lessons, then choir, then guitar lessons. Ironically acting was the last thing I tried and definitely the most accidental. I loved a lot of YouTube comedians (Jake and Amir, Natalie Tran, Ryan Higa) and started making my own videos, which was the basis of my first experimentation in creating characters. I eventually started writing more complex sketches and began performing characters at a local talent show. I most often performed as The Frussian General, who was an angry little dictator determined to take over the world with an army of small pets (a plot point that gave both my cat and my toy poodle their stage debuts). As I got more serious about acting, I commuted into Atlanta for private coaching and classes at the Alliance Theatre, which prepared me for my college auditions.

I ultimately decided to go to USC and pursue acting, which was absolutely the right decision for me even though I didn’t always realize it. My freshman year was really hard. I wasn’t sure of my place in the entertainment industry and LA as a whole, and I was nervous about the reality of living the life of an actor but more than anything I was terrified of failing. At the end of freshman year, I confirmed to transfer to the fashion design program at SCAD and spent the whole summer agonizing over who I was, what I wanted to do, and how to figure it out. It took a lot of soul searching to realize that my reservations with acting had much more to do with fearing what other people would think of me than actually being afraid of acting itself. About a month before the semester started, I backed out of SCAD, re-committed to USC, and added a double major in graphic design. I’ve definitely had hiccups of self-doubt along the way since then, but generally going through that (horrid) experience of being lost and directionless allowed me to fully realize just how deep my love of performance is. Bit by bit I’ve gotten more comfortable in my identity as an actor, and now being several years into pursuing it full time I can’t imagine doing anything else.

Has it been a smooth road?
I think one of the hardest things for actors, especially when you’re first starting out, is figuring out how to balance your acting career goals and your day job(s). This was definitely one of the most difficult things I dealt with after graduation, and it took me a while to realize that it was good for me as an artist, and more importantly, simply as a human being, to put myself in situations that didn’t make me miserable. There was a time when I was working three jobs, two of which were really soul sucking. I had no time for a social life, I felt really down on myself, and I spent my days in a constant state of crisis trying to accommodate everything. Obviously as an actor your inevitable goal is to become sufficient enough that you no longer need a day job, but in the meantime, I think it’s a great idea to find a day job that can bring you happiness and fulfillment outside of acting. I think in an ambitious, go-getter society it’s easy to champion phrases like ‘no pain no gain’ and ‘stay on your grind,’ but I think, at least for me, it can lead to almost masochistic ideas of how much stress you have to endure. Your day job isn’t even your focus. Make it something you can enjoy.

We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I recently wrapped production on a short called “Older Posts,” written and directed by Brian Firks, which delves into the effects of social media on its users in a Twilight Zone style. I’m also mid-production on a short called “Ride or Die,” written and directed by Stevo Chang, which explores the ways rideshare technology can be exploited for more sinister motives. My current comedy/writing outlet is through a sketch group called Elephant Department, comprised of six other USC acting alums. We’re gearing up for an ambitious 2020 production schedule to film some of our best sketches of 2019 for digital release, as well as write new material for upcoming live shows.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.rachelmathieu.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: @rachel__mathieu
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ElephantDepartment/

Image Credit:
Nils Decker, Kayvon Esmaili, Jack Lue, Aleksandar Sekulic, Daniel A. Vallejo

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