Alessandra Mai Vinh: an Italian-Vietnamese in LA

Being a creative has already its ups and downs. Imagine being an immigrant and a creative: how hard can it be to live, work, and embrace a creative life in the USA?

Immigration is a complicated process that a person must go through when they leave the country they were born in. Not all countries deal with immigration and immigrants in the same ways. There’s no global recipe and for every single person, the immigration journey is different. The journeys differ from each other due to age, ethnic background, academic performances, career choices, family, and political situations. There are different types of immigrants with myriads of situations. When it comes to the creative community based in the USA, a sub-category of creatives that is sometimes overlooked is international creatives.

International creatives are those non-American individuals who are required to have and demonstrate a Visa in order to work and live in the USA. Generally, these creatives are immigrants who studied and forged their skills in their native country and moved to the USA with the intention to craft and perform their talents. Sometimes, these creatives started their American journey as international students and through a degree, they got a job in the entertainment business. The specifics can be intricate and multiple all at once, and that is why being a creative as an immigrant can be complicated. There are certain rules that these creatives must follow, for example accepting jobs that only fall under certain categories (depending on the field the immigrant is pursuing) and not being able to be as flexible and earn the same amount of money as their American peers. Sometimes the artistic timing is dictated by bureaucracy and the single can’t simply allow nor afford to wait for the best chance, gig, or opportunity. Visas are hard to get and maintain, as they come at a cost and they are not abundant pieces of documents that everyone can easily afford. Flexibility and the power of manifesting the perfect position or job can be a luxury for immigrants in the creative industries.

However, the beauty of being an immigrant is that you allow yourself to explore and live life to the fullest. Despite the difficulties, an immigrant enhances their cultural and personal experiences in a rich way. It is up to the individual to do the most out of the circumstances, try to live the present moment as much as possible, and be realistic about their strengths.

On my digital platforms I always try to create a space where creatives from all over the world can learn and share stories of the community, filled with innovative creatives and creativity enthusiasts. Alessandra Mai Vinh is an Italian-Vietnamese actress, dancer, and creative based in Los Angeles. We’ve interviewed her and discovered bits of her journey on how is it like to be an immigrant and a creative in the USA: a rewarding blessing.

I bet this is a question you hear all the time. How does it feel to be half-Italian and half-Vietnamese? What part of your heritage do you like best?

It feels great! I get to combine the best things of my Asian heritage with the heritage of one of the most beautiful countries in the world, Italy. Discipline, the importance of studying and respect for the ancestors from my Asian side, and the concept of "dolce vita" and appreciation of beautiful things from the Italian side. And now, since I've been living in the States for 10 years, I incorporated the American idealism and value for hard work into my life.

How was your life in Italy and how would you compare with the lifestyle that you have right now in LA?

Living in Italy was amazing, I got to study dance, fulfill so many dreams in my dance career, and make so many lifelong friends. Compared to Italy, I feel that LA gives me the freedom to aim for bigger things in life. LA's light and the fact that the city is so spread out give me the idea of infinite possibilities. People in Los Angeles are optimists and work hard for their goals, and this inspires me to keep going.

As a non-American person living in the USA, what are the most frustrating things that you've had to endure for your job and your career as a creative?

To work in the US as a creative, you need an O1 Visa. The O1 visa is granted to "aliens with extraordinary ability" in their fields. It took me so much hard work to achieve the goal to obtain this visa but I couldn't see it any other way.

What are the most amazing projects you've worked on?

There are so many! I'm gonna mention some that happened in the last few months. I recently shot a national campaign as a dancer for Oculus by Facebook, the billboard is in cities across the United States and I got to model for the COACH Spring/Summer 2022 campaign with a huge A-list star.

You lived in NYC and now you're in LA. What's the best city for you to be in as a creative person right now? Do you see any prospects in LA within the creative scene?

The best city for me right now is definitely Los Angeles but the dream is to be bi-coastal. So many commercials, campaigns and, music videos are being shot here in LA so I do see a lot of opportunities coming my way.

Do you miss home?

I miss my mum, father, brother, and aunt that live in Italy. When I go back to Italy I feel a little bit like a tourist. I've been spending my most defining decade here (my twenties), I feel at home here in the States.

Do you have any suggestions or thoughts you'd like to share with the creative who's reading this piece that happens to be an immigrant, an international student, or an ex-pat who's creative and just arrived in this country?

Don't be afraid to ask for help and don't hesitate to reach out to people. So many people are actually very nice people that are willing to help.

Keep an open mind because you never know what life could bring you.