TGIF FEATURE: Tess Paras spoofs stereotypes in 'Typecast'

Tess Paras

BEFORE the recent brouhaha over "whitewashing" of Asian roles because - heaven knows  there isn't enough work for downtrodden Euro/American actors - there was (and continues to be) the practice of casting actors of color in stereotypical roles.

RELATED: Asian/Americans decry 'whitewashing' of Asian roles

The dilemma for actors of color is between accepting the roll that perpetuates a racist stereotype because writers are too lazy to go beyond the stereotype and because producers continue to insist on the narrow depiction of people of color from the viewpoint of the dominant Eurocentric culture - or, they could reject the role and die of starvation.

Tess Paras, a Filipina/American actress, depicts this delimma in her delightful video Typecast, a parody of Lorde's "Royal."

If Paras looks familiar, it's because she is currently in the recurring role of Jayma Chan, sister of Josh Chan on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend on the CW Network. The show made history this season when it depicted the Chan family, American television's first depiction of a Filipino/American family.

Thankfully, Jayma and Josh, portrayed by Fil/Am actor Vincent Rodriguez III, don't speak with Filipino accents. The Chan children are as American as apple pie and mango ice cream.

RELATED: TV's first Filipino/American family debuts on Crazy Ex-Girlfriend

Paras said she has auditioned for numerous roles that called for accents. In an interview with Glamour, Paras said:  "I'm sure I've lost a lot of auditions (where producers are seeking an Asian actress) because I haven't changed my Filipino last name to something that sounds more East Asian, which some Filipino/American actors have done. And I don't look East Asian—Filipinos don't have the same eye shape or facial features. So, 'What's your ethnicity?' is a common question. And I've had casting people ask me if I'm 'full Asian.'"

Let's hope that the musical romantic comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend, which got renewed for a second season, will expand Jayma's character and let Paras display her singing and dancing talent.

Have a great weekend!

###
For more news about Asian/Americans and Pacific Islanders, read AsAm News.

Visits of foreign leaders raises the age-old questions for Asian/Americans

Indian Prime Minister Nerandra Modi is visiting Silicon Valley this week.

IF YOU'RE Chinese/American or Indian/American - have you been asked your opinion about the visits of Indian Prime Minister Nerandra Modi or Chinese President Xi Jinping?

Xi is in the U.S. on an official state visit and Modi is visiting Silicon Valley to try and get more assistance for his country's exploding tech industry.

Now, their visits are important, don't get me wrong, it's important for us to maintain and acknowledge our roots, especially for our families back home or if we have business ties to the original countries, but many of us have been here for generations. We're Americans.

We should be interested in international relations and trade agreements as they might affect our country - the good ol' U.S.A. 

But at the same time, non-Asians generally view us as foreigners, no matter how long we've lived here, no matter if we speak with a southern accent or grew up in Brooklyn, no matter if we root for our favorite baseball team by wearing their colors and painting out faces, no matter if we're grew up with the Partridge Family as our role models (that's another post all-together), no matter if we served in the U.S. military in Iraq or Afghanistan or even fought against the citizens of other Asian nations on behalf of "Our Country." No matter! 

Being asked our opinions of Xi or Modi is akin to being asked, "Where are you from?" and you answer, "San Francisco" or fill-in-the-blank, and are asked again, "No, really! Where are you REALLY from?"

Because of the color of our skin, the shape of our eyes, the color of our hair, people (the non-Asian/Americans) still tend to view us as "others," "exotic" "strangers," "aliens" or "foreigners."

###