We recently connected with Sadie Lipomanis and have shared our conversation below.

Sadie , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

I love this question. When you find a career path that brings you such immense and indescribable purpose. It’s very hard not to be happy. Although I may not be where I hope to someday be in my career. The fact that the question “ what do you want to be” is no longer unanswerable. I now know, and I know with true unwavering confidence, that I have found an industry I can pour my soul into, and every ounce of energy my body and mind can give to this beautiful craft. I remind myself of the feeling I felt when I left the movie theater after a movie such as Twilight or Everything Everywhere all at once. The euphoric and compelling adrenaline those films gave my body, and how for days I was locked into an unknown world, the world of the film, and how deeply I enjoyed being in that small unique universe. The exercise it gives your imagination beholds such a strong rush of so many emotions. It’s not just captivating but it’s positively addictive. I’m not just happy, I’m so deeply grateful that I can die knowing I found a career I’m so fond of and admirable of. No matter how far I personally get, I feel I’ve made peace with the lifetime achievement of finding purpose.

Sadie , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Getting started in the acting and modeling world is a tremendously hard effort in itself. When I turned 20 I very much shifted my focus into both worlds full time. The hardest part of it in my personal journey has been patience. When you want something so vigorously, it can be very hard to have a big picture perspective. I battled against my eagerness to do well almost every day. Sometimes you find yourself punishing your own opinion of your ability to do your craft well, if you fall victim to comparing yourself to how well others in your industry are doing in comparison to you. For me, background work was a huge stepping stone I was able to use to obtain some of my goals. I find goals, small to large, super helpful in terms of balancing your expectations. I found the reboot of Gossip girl on HBO Max to be a wonderful opportunity to gain set experience, learn about the industry, while having the in person motivation to do better. I met incredible people on that set I still cherish to this day. I then began to focus on collaborating with as many indie projects that were non union until I was able to earn all of my sag vouchers through working on the show for two years. Joining the union was a huge deal for me, and I still sometimes struggle understanding what a true accomplishment it is to call yourself a professional actor. After a few smaller movies were made that I am fortunate enough to be a part of, I was able to focus on representation. I felt reps really cared about your current energy levels constantly wanting to improve. Classes and coaches became more important, and after a lot of re adjusting my brand, meeting with industry professionals who had more experience than I did and learning how to evolve myself to a marketable version I scored great agents. When it came to modeling, being able to enjoy working with different photographers to build your portfolio was not just challenging, but a great way to practice and improve. I spent some time in LA before covid, and being on my own in a new town was something I didn’t think I could do, but I let myself celebrate small wins, like a meeting with a big agency. Even if these agents did not want to represent me, I was able to get into that room on my own accord with my own materials, which took me a few years to establish. I think the reason I was able to create these opportunities relied heavily on my ability to bring fun into a set. Making people feel good and enjoy their craft is indeed a skill, and I think it is a very valuable one. Make someone’s day better, they will want to work with you again. If you’re enjoying the general task of being creative, and you let people around you know that this is an activity you’ve not just chosen, but are enjoying, is a beautiful trait.

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

A conversation I find very interesting is the conversation about nepotism. It was a pretty big story a year or so ago seen in huge publications, about the advantages of nepotism in the acting world. I can’t fathom any other industry shaming children who look up to their parents and wish to pursue the same career. I think about a medically successful family of doctors, or military families. There would never be backlash from a parent giving guidance or help to their child for something professionally both generations are professionally serious about. I think it’s beautiful, and if I had the opportunity to work closely with my parents in the entertainment field, I would be overjoyed. However, on the reverse I can absolutely understand the struggles actors who do not have family involved in the industry face in comparison. I think society can do a better job of giving chances to new faces. I mean by this, do not be stuck in habitual ways of only wanting to see faces you already know. I believe big directors, producers, and agents can all do better by this in regards to giving new performers opportunities that perhaps names you know already get. I understand it’s an industry of networking. Which i support, you should want to work with the people you have on your set. But the amount of unknown talent in the world would surprise you. I think so many performers are so discouraged by this that they inevitably give up. But I see this as tremendous motivation. You can let something make you or break you. To any performers who struggle with these comparisons, do not be discouraged. You can do this.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

One story from a real life experience I enjoy sharing is from one of my first runway New York fashion weeks. I had this wonderful friend I had met from a casting about a year earlier. We managed to stay in touch and stay supportive of one another. She would fly into NY with her mother and they would stay in hotels during important casting weeks. They were so kind and generous with me that they let me stay with them on numerous occasions to help my commute from New Jersey. We would practice our walks together, share advice about social media, photographers one of us would work with and we would get in touch with the other. I had booked a smaller runway show. She had nothing to do that day and she decided to tag along with me, being the supportive friend she always was. When we were in dress rehearsals, finalizing which outfits were to be worn and the order and such, the director of the show came up to us chatting. They instantly fell in love with her. The fashion show was later that day, and the director had a problematic model who was having difficulties with another big show runner. Through the arguments, the model was given my outfit to wear for the show. Importantly, I was trying to be extremely unprobomatic because the stress in the room was noticeable and uncomfortable due to the drama occurring. The new dress I was given, was not the best fit for my complexion and my body type. Its vitale to remember your job as a model is to bring a designers vision to life, not to make it about yourself. IN the hours that followed, we were all aware of the distress the fashion team was enduring. Somehow, someone remembered my friend who was respectfully watching from the studio sidelines. They asked if she would try on the dress I was wearing for the fitting. She looked incredible. Speechlessly, we all were aware of what was about to happen. Now I am going to fast forward a few hours. I’m standing at the end of the runway, in the audience. Screaming as loud as socially appropriate in applause for my dear friend who now took my spot in the show. Was there jealousy? I do not think that is the right word. Sure I could have seen this as a deficit on my part, but instead I chose to appreciate the designers wishes, support my incredibly wonderful talented friend, and go with it. This is the kind of skill you need to succeed. Do not wonder why didnt is happen to you, but be a part of history in a positive way. I absolutely get credit in the show, maybe I didn’t walk it myself, but I contributed to my friend looking wonderful in a dress I wasn’t meant to ever wear down the runway. Accept things like this, it shows incredible strengths to your character and your ability to be a team player. I’m glad the day happened how it did, and it’s a memory that I’m dearly fond of.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sadielipomanis.com/
• Instagram: https://www.sadielipomanis.com/

Image Credits
Instagram @alvintran.photography @levgorn