Today we’d like to introduce you to Marisa Bertani.
Hi Marisa, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hi! My name’s Marisa – I am originally from central Pennsylvania where I grew up being involved in community theater and musical arts. After attending Penn State University for Theater & Vocal Performance, I moved to New York City where I spent the next 7 years.
Those 7 years in the city were extremely transformative for me – I found success as a commercial model and actor and worked for brands like Blistex, Conair, Ferrero Rocher, and KIND Bar, I found friends that I’ve now known for a decade and couldn’t imagine my life without, and I started my venture into writing and directing with my creative partner and dear friend, Leah Voysey. Leah and I met at a serving job where we would spend our shifts dreaming up stories. Eventually, we put pen to paper and wrote a web series that we brought to life. This was my first venture into filmmaking and I absolutely fell in love.
From there, we formed Late Bloomer Pictures, a production company that focuses on queer-led stories. As members of the LGBTQIA+ community, we realized we were seeing something in our stories that wasn’t happening much in other work: LGBTQIA+ leads whose objective was not coming out or overcoming a queer-specific struggle. Our hope is to continue telling stories that fill this gap. Our first official LBP short film, When It Pays, took home “Best Direction” at the LGBTQ+ Los Angeles Film Festival, and was a selection for multiple festivals across the country.
Since then, I’ve moved to LA and have spent the last 4 years continuing my adventure as an actor, director, photographer, and content producer. I currently live in Silverlake with my wonderful partner, Silver, and our pup Rosie.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Struggles I personally faced along the way were rooted mostly in trying to juggle financial stability while making myself fully available for castings – all in hopes of booking work. I found myself working as a personal assistant, a dog walker, and a server at a multitude of restaurants along the way, and by sheer luck and a little hustle, I always made it work. To me, there is nothing more fulfilling than seeing your artistic vision come to life, which makes the adventure so much more worth it.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
Currently I am an actor, lifestyle model, and photographer/social content producer. You can see me on TV for a Chewy commercial which is currently airing, as well as in Terrifier 2! Additionally, I’m working on a new project for Late Bloomer Pictures to continue telling LGBTQIA+ stories.
I’m really proud of all the work I do, but I’m most proud of When It Pays, which is Late Bloomer Pictures’ first short film. We crowd-funded the money to produce it, and it was such an incredible feeling when everything came to fruition. It was a LOT of work, and I’m so grateful to have had my creative partner, Leah, and our incredibly talented cast & crew alongside me! The end result was such a beautiful piece of art and I can’t wait to continue working on more projects like this one.
A very close second proud moment for me was being cast in the short film, Euphoric, directed by the insanely talented Cam Killion. It was the first time I was cast in an LGBTQIA+ role, which meant SO much to me as a queer person. I had an absolutely incredible time working on this project. It’s currently making its festival run so if you get the chance to see it, run – don’t walk!
Commercial Rep: Bicoastal Mgmt
Tv/Film Rep: Malissa Young Mgmt
What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
Like most people in the tv/film industry, I’m not 100% sure where the industry is headed. The post-pandemic world has changed so much – actors are doing a majority of self-tapes instead of going into casting offices, we’ve had multiple industry strikes, jobs have been more scarce, and networks/streaming services are continually trying to adjust tactics due to short-form social content changing the way people view their entertainment. I’m in such awe of the resiliency of artists during this strange time. No matter what, I’m staying hopeful & will always be along for the ride!
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.marisabertani.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marisa.bertani
- Other: https://www.instagram.com/latebloomerpictures
Image Credits
Huebner Headshots
@EuphoricShortFilm
La Vida Mia Productions
