Lindsay Lamb has spent the past several years establishing herself as a true star on the rise in Hollywood. Along the way, continued to challenge herself with a plethora of unique roles. 2016 has been a big year for this multifaceted actress. First, she took on the horror genre with “Hide In The Light,” where she plays Becca who tries to help friends escape an abandoned orphanage while fighting supernatural forces. In addition to bringing her top-notch acting chops to the table for the project, she also did her own stunts in the film. Following “Hide In The Light,” she was featured in “Arlo: The Burping Pig” as Samantha, a bookworm trying to make friends at her new school. The film, also featuring Drake Bell and Joey Lawrence, was released by Lionsgate in November of 2016. She will soon be seen alongside Amy Smart and Burt Reynolds in Sony Entertainment’s “Apple Of My Eye” which is slated to be released in the coming weeks.
The best is yet to come! In 2017, Lamb will be seen in Lionsgate’s “Blue Line.” Lamb plays Bunny Abbott, a cheerleading captain who is kidnapped and held hostage during a heist. The film, also starring Jordan Ladd and Tom Sizemore, will be released worldwide March 17, 2017. As you can see, she is clearly one to watch in the years to come!
Jason Price of Icon Vs. Icon recently sat down with Lindsay Lamb to discuss her blossoming career, the challenges she faced along the way, her exciting new roles and what the future holds for this star on the rise!
Let’s go back to the beginning. How did you get involved with the arts early on in life?
I got started when I was about 10 years old. I did local theater in Fort Myers, Florida. I was pretty much hooked from that point on. I performed at a professional theater in the area. I was doing 50 to 75 performances of any given show from the time I was 10 years old to 18 years old. Later on, I moved to Boston and I was an intern at the Boston Casting. I wanted to get a well-rounded idea of the industry, so I was a PA on a bunch of sets and interned with the casting agency. From there, I moved to New York and I continued to do theater and commercials out there. I also went to Pace University for a few years. Then I transferred to USC and moved to Los Angeles. I have been graduated for two years now and I have been out here ever since!
What is the biggest thing you took from your experience behind the scenes and applied to the craft of acting?
I think there is so much. I feel working in casting has helped me a ton. For example, I have been able to see all the audition tapes for a particular role and I understand what catches your eye versus something that may get passed over. That has helped me acting wise to know more about what producers and directors might be looking for. It has also helped me with patience. It’s very eye-opening! As an actor, you might be on set for a week, two weeks or even three weeks if you’re one of the main roles in a feature. Knowing how much time actually goes into creating a project gives you an entirely new perspective and appreciation for the people involved on that side of things.
You could have gone many different routes when it comes to a career in the entertainment industry. Did you have reservations about pursuing acting as your profession?
I have heard so many times, “Oh, so you’re doing the whole acting thing.” [laughs] I think that everybody has their insecurities every now and then with any career that they have chosen. In 2016, even if you passed the bar and go to law school there’s no guarantee you’re going to get a great job as a lawyer. It’s a tough time for any career. Acting is tough and there’s a lot of rejection involved. There are a lot of highs and lows. I think I had my reservations but, at the end of the day, I always keep telling myself that this is what I chose to do. It all comes together and makes sense to me as to why I am doing this when I am on set performing. All the hard work makes it totally worth it!
Where do you look for creative inspiration these days?
Actually, I have been doing quite a few videos for Instagram. That has been a great creative outlet. I met my good friend Sterling Jones on the set of “Hide In The Light,” which was the film I did over a year ago now. Once we wrapped that film, it was so hard to wait for the next project. You go on 1 million auditions and most of them don’t pan out. I think it’s important to keep creating and keep your mind fresh in the meantime. We have been creating these little funny videos for social media to keep us sharp. Our last few videos have had over 2 million views, so I think we’re going to keep going on that and see where it takes us. Social media is so important today and it’s helping us develop a name on the Internet in addition to keeping our brains working creatively. It’s been really cool!
Let’s talk about “Hide In The Light.” How did you get involved with the project?
For this project, the producer was kind of a friend of a friend of a friend. [laughs] I found out that they were casting for the film and I got my hands on the script. I basically begged for an audition after I read it! [laughs] After the audition, I got a call back. What drew me to it initially was how it deals with the paranormal, which is really interesting and fun. It’s also an ensemble cast and I had never really been a part of something like that in the past. I’ve had smaller roles and some lead roles but working with a bunch of people my age in an ensemble cast was something that really peaked my interest. It sounded like a great opportunity, so when I booked it I was beyond excited! It was definitely one of the most fun times I’ve ever had on set. I know we were all getting there an hour before our call times just to hang out, have breakfast and talk! It almost felt like summer camp! [laughs]
It sounds like a blast but I am sure the project had its fair share of challenges.
Oh yeah! We were shooting in an abandoned building downtown. It’s been a lot of different things through the last 100 years and it’s a really cool place. What comes from that is that you have to be very careful walking around because there’s glass everywhere and we are shooting mostly in the dark, so there are a lot of safety precautions. I also do my own stunts so I was able to do two stunts in the film. One of them was a wiring stunt that I had never done before. It was nerve-racking at the time! We also had some really, really hot days where we were all sweaty and disgusting but we also had days where it was freezing. You don’t often think about the weather playing a big role when you were shooting in Los Angeles but it definitely acted up for us! Overall, it was a very cool experience!
What did you bring to the character that was not on the original script?
I think we brought something collectively. I think that hanging out so much really allowed us to develop as an ensemble cast. We were all friends and since we were playing friends, I think that brought something very organic to the characters. We had developed a strong bond as a group and I think that authenticity shows through in the work. As characters started to die off, you could really feel a sense of loss. Obviously, that is good acting but it does help that we were so tightknit as a group. That’s something I don’t think you can necessarily predict when you are casting a film. When you get a group of people together, you just hope for the best. It’s all about chemistry! I think we got really lucky with the group we had and that relationship brought a lot of new colors and elements to it that we might not have expected.
How do you flesh out a character before you step on set?
I always read the script anywhere from five to seven times. Then I usually meet with the coach. What is most important to me is that I’m not thinking about the words on the page. I think it’s challenging to bring any character to life and it’s hard to bring authenticity to it when you’re thinking about what dialog comes next. Generally, that is my first step. I like to get completely off book where I’m not thinking about the words and can only focus on the character. I usually meet with the coach and try to do a complete innovation of the character on my own beforehand. I think it’s always important to get someone else’s take on things and there’s always value in getting someone else’s point of view.
You have plenty of irons in the fire. Which projects are you most excited about at the moment?
I’m excited about “Apple Of My Eye.” We shot that in Florida and I was on the producing side as well as acting in it. It’s something that I was able to be a part of from the start to the finish. It’s such a good story! It was a great opportunity to work with Burt Reynolds and Amy Smart. It’s a phenomenal cast. I have such a good feeling about it and I feel like it’s going to be a film that people want to watch again and again. That comes out on January 10, 2017! On March 17, I have a film called “Blue Line” coming out. That film is really special to me because it’s the first film that I booked after I graduated from USC. You get to the point where you graduate and think, “OK, I have this diploma. What do I do now?! Where are all my jobs?!” [laughs] When I booked that, they flew me out to Connecticut and I really felt like, “OK! I’m doing this! I’m a professional actress! I can do this!” [laughs] I’m really excited to see how the film turns out. It’s funny because the last film I did and the first film that I did are both coming out within a month-and-a-half or two months of each other. It will be cool to see how I have changed as an actress. It will definitely be a good time for reflection! A New Year’s resolution of mine is to take a step back and reflect on what I’ve accomplished. Two-and-a-half years ago I had pretty much nothing on my resume. I had no IMDB credits. Now, I’m doing everything I’m doing, so I think that would be a nice little reminder of how I am working towards something and at least I’m taking baby steps in that direction! [laughs]
How have you most evolved at your craft since first starting?
Craft-wise, I think I’ve gotten better about getting out of my own head. At first, I was very hyper-aware of everything I was doing and I’m sure that came from the insecurity from just starting out. It was all in my head! Now, I’m able to let go and let the work speak for itself. I tried to think about anything other than the character I’m portraying. I think when I started getting out of that overthinking phase, I got a lot better. Another thing I have realized is how important listening is. I think that is something people don’t stress enough! Acting isn’t really about what you’re saying as much as it is about how are you are reacting to what other people are saying. It took me awhile to get that through my head! [laughs] Everything is making sense now!
Looking to the future, is there a genre you’re anxious to take on?
Yeah! I do my own stunts and I’ve been continuing to train in order to keep having those opportunities come up. I really want to play a badass chick who fights bad guys! When people look at me, I think, sometimes all they see is a little blonde chick and they don’t see the other side of me. That’s fine but I’m looking forward to proving people wrong! I would love to continue doing stunts and continue to train with martial arts and eventually take on a roll where I can show off my skill set.
A project where you unleash your inner badass! [laughs]
Exactly! That’s all I want! [laughs]
We can look to you as an inspiration with everything you accomplished. What’s the best lesson we can take from your journey so far?
I think the best lesson you can take from me is to just keep going. I’ve had a lot of people say to me, “Oh my gosh, you are booking so much right now!” What you don’t see, which no one advertises, is all the roles that I didn’t get. If people saw that, they might be like, “Wow! Geez! Take a step back!” [laughs] I think the best advice I can give is that if you really, really want this then just keep going. I feel like if you keep working at something and you’re putting everything into it that it’s only a matter of time until the universe acknowledges that. It may take a couple years or it may take more, you just never know. There’s no such thing as an overnight sensation. Everyone who’s had that said about them has been working for years and years. You just need that one film, show or role to take you to the next level. Just keep pushing forward and eventually you will achieve your goals!
Absolutely! Thank you for your time, Lindsay! We wish you continued success and can’t wait to see where the journey takes you.
Thank you, Jason!
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