My True Love For Film And Acting by Lillee Jean
- Lillee Jean Trueman
- Dec 11, 2023
- 7 min read
Updated: Feb 25
My true passion for filmmaking began as a young child, through hands-on storytelling with stop-motion, and school performances, which I feel almost destiny-like, naturally led to professional acting and directing training. I loved to be dramatic and be a part of something big! From an early age, I had an inherent joy in embodying characters and commanding "presence."
My love of the arts goes way back, and I am quite grateful for the opportunities that have presented themselves in my path to guide me where I am today.
Every experience, from memorable performances to producing my inaugural stop-motion film at 17 years old (written at 16 years old), meticulously paved the way to my current professional endeavors as an actress and director.
Written in 2023, Edited in 2025. For more about Lillee Jean Trueman visit: https://www.lilleejean.com/about
Early Stop Motion Film and Education
It's widely known by now that my passion for acting and film took root at a young age. As early as eight, I was enamored by the ambition to film, direct, and produce, embarking on this journey by animating intricate stop-motion narratives. It was my dream to film, direct, and produce segments - I knew this was "it", the "a-hah" moment of what made me feel quite happy, and lit up inside.
These were the exact moments I experienced an overwhelming sense of fulfillment, like an engine ignited. I recall vividly creating an ice skating competition scenario for the girls, and I even had an intense competition between them, too. They were unstoppable! Every carefully pieced-together photographic stop-motion segment, layered with my voice-over, represented a huge dive into filmmaking.
My training in film began during high school at Bayside High School (9th grade), and The Keystone School (starting in 10th grade), where I completed specialized coursework in Video Development and Production, Fine Arts, Marketing, and an Honors Environmental Engineering CTE Program. These classes, now, I realize, built my technical skills in visual storytelling, production design, and sustainable workflows. I also had, for several years, taken a dance class, with a year of learning the Korean Buchaechum dance, and thus had a great understanding of production value theatrically. The Korean dance, for example, was both beautiful and rigorous in timing and elegant expression.
Point being, growing up as a Gen Z native and having been on set, and around props, since I was a child, I've always been self-studying behind-the-scenes. It's just in my DNA.
Techniques from films like The Nightmare Before Christmas, further deepened my insight into the filmmaking process long before my professional acting training at T. Schreiber Studio in 2023.
My Early On-Stage Theatre Performances
Growing up, I performed in many theatrical shows, including a show of The Nutcracker and a dance show inspired by The Wizard of Oz. It was inspiring for me to see modern dance, jazz, and storytelling through movement in the performances. I had the opportunity to learn so much, and I seized it! Performing a traditional Korean Fan Dance in flowing hanbok silk, or harmonizing in a Mary Poppins chorus that soared, had me savoring every pulse-racing second. These moments honed my dramatic core, teaching me that true presence isn't performed. Presence is forged in shared stories and, vision.
My First Short Film Ever
As a teenager, a shift occurred within me, a tidal wave.
Encouraged by close friends, I publicly screened a short film I had written at 16 years old. I began actively submitting myself as an actress on professional casting platforms such as Backstage and Voice123, and began "setting" myself up for CINEMA.
The original film, titled Women Throughout History (2017), was conceived as a silent documentary juxtaposing societal perceptions of women against their historical realities, a true ode to women.
By age 17, my sense of identity deepened profoundly.
I chose cinema.
I chose film.
That is my dream, I had realized.
This clarity reshaped my everything. The worlds of theatre and film felt inherently authentic and natural to me. My formal education, as well as upbringing from my mom's work on film sets such as Mad Men, and Public Enemies, as well as, my great-uncle-in-law's legacy work, reinforced this direction.
It's vital to mention again, in 10th grade at The Keystone School, I took courses in Video Development and Production, as well as Art & Music Appreciation. However, the previous year, in 9th grade, besides the CTE honors STEM program, I took a Shakespeare Sonnets class, which had already ignited my passion for narrative storytelling, making everything just fall in line, and click.
These classes marked my full-circle return to film!
By 17, I participated in Mandy Actors' monologue challenge, performing a comedic segment from the You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown stage production, and I also built a demo reel to put myself out there professionally. By that age, I knew my path and committed 100% to pursuing acting as my career.
Lillee Jean TALKS! Webseries
I started experimenting with series when I was just 19 years old, and it was loads of meticulously done work! From posters, loglines, to pilots, this experience gave me a deeper understanding of how films work from an "all hands on board" perspective. It began to develop my auteur approach.
It's great to know acting, but having knowledge of what goes on behind the scenes and understanding what to look for while wearing the director's hat was invaluable.
Despite fully airing and branding Lillee Jean Talks at 20, 19 years old is actually when I came up with my show Lillee Jean TALKS! live.
Lillee Jean Talks was born out of casual conversations with industry professionals. From Don Most on Happy Days, to Neil D'Monte, Shelley Wade, Staci Layne Wilson, and Chick Allan, it was just wonderful.
There was no script, just friends talking to friends! Through this show, I was fortunate enough to have conversations with many people in the Hollywood circle. I’ve now taken the opportunity to expand the show into Season 4, with Donny Most once more amazingly coming back on my show, Neil D’Monte awesomely back on, with new talents such as Charlie Allan, Chara Allan, John Callas, and more.
I went on from 2024 onwards to win two awards at indie film festivals for Best Series (Pageant Int. Film Festival 2024), and Best Podcast (Gothamite Film Festival 2024), which was amazing.
Down to the branding, everything is me. I designed the logo, the concept, the format - it’s extremely rewarding to have your friends feel comfortable on (we all know how some interviews can be, and knowing that I think I excel), and for fans to enjoy on a different level.
The Now: Acting & Training
Acting has allowed every facet of my expression. From dramatic, to comedic, vulnerable to bold...it allowed me to flourish fully.
Acting and film have been a very powerful tool for me in overcoming personal challenges, which is why this piece serves as my heartfelt ode to the craft.
At the age of 20, I made a decisive shift to fully commit to my lifelong passion for filmmaking and true performance, stepping away from earlier commercial work that no longer aligned with my vision of myself "now".
In 2023, at the age of 22, I deepened my professional learning with intensive training at the prestigious T. Schreiber Studio here in Chelsea, NYC. There, I immersed myself in the Meisner Technique under Nick Landry, and I specialized in British RP dialects with the renowned Page Clements, honing the tools for authentic, truthful performances.
As an award-winning filmmaker and actress, my work always centers on truthfulness, and staying keyed in to my vision. From Project: Bullyish resonating in France, and debuting in California, to my series Lillee Jean TALKS! Live, having earned accolades while featuring meaningful discussions with Hollywood talents such as Don Most, Chick Allan, Emmy nominee John Callas - it all adds up to a masterful experience through hard work, training, and passion for the craft.
Now 24 (having celebrated my birthday on April 18, 2025), the past year has been an exhilarating period of growth: global festival screenings and awards for my features, continued expansion of my episodic work, and on-set experiences including HBO's The Gilded Age Season 3.
I am deeply grateful every day for these opportunities and the chance to produce stories that resonate.
-- Official Lillee Jean Trueman --
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