Jessie Kane Gill is a “multi-hyphenated millen-Z creative wizard,” as stated on her website. She is an accomplished voiceover artist, writer, actor, graphic designer and producer currently based out of Los Angeles.
Jessie knew she wanted to work in the arts and entertainment world from a young age, crafting her first shows as early as preschool.
“I wrote plays in preschool, and my teacher helped me put one on with my classmates,” she says.
She graduated from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in drama and film/TV in 2017. She began writing scripts in college to better understand how to make films. Writing is an essential part of filmmaking — the script is essentially a film’s blueprint. Jessie wanted to not only act in films, but also be part of a film’s crew behind the scenes.
She started her career performing in theater production and has migrated toward the realm of film and television.
“I really like being a part of a film crew,” Jessie says. “Everyone has to work together as a team on a shoot. It’s a really cohesive group experience, and it’s so fun.”
After college, she began writing for the popular American YouTube sketch-comedy group Smosh after sending their team scripts she had written.
She has submitted films to film festivals, receiving accolades and winning the Austin Film Festival with one of her scripts. She is currently in the process of making her script into a feature film.
She won a Best Actress Award at the 2022 Indiefest film festival for her starring role in the film “Delivery.”
As an actor and producer, one of Jessie’s many ambitions is to simultaneously produce and star in film productions.
“The pandemic has really forced my hand into making things that I want to be in while everything is shut down,” she says. “I have to make them myself.”
She stars in a series on Broadstream, which is a free streaming service that makes Broadway content accessible to everyone. During the pandemic, she wrote, produced and sold her series called “Miss Jordan’s Spring 2020 Production,” which was filmed in her friend’s high school.
When people ask Jessie how to get into a TV writer’s room, she emphasizes that you need to create pieces that make you proud to send in.
“Something about writing is if you would like to do it, you just can,” Jessie says. “You just need to.”
It can be difficult to beat writer’s block and the imposter syndrome that many writers and creative people experience, but Jessie says that in order for someone to hire you to do a job, you need to not be afraid of failing.
Jessie is a successful voice actor who has voiced characters such as Nina in Netflix’s Pokémon series as well as audiobooks. Something many people may not know about voiceover acting is that many voice artists record their audio at home in a soundproof closet/small home studio space. Nowadays, shows will send equipment to voiceover artists and do a live session over the internet.
Jessie says that if she had a tagline for her life, it would be “talking in a closet.”
“I mainly do young adult [books], and I get to do all of the voices in the books,” she says. “It’s cool to be in a studio, and there are a bunch of people reading along and marking down when you mess things up. You have to remember all of the voices.”
Among the many jobs Jessie does, she is a self-taught graphic designer. She discovered she had a knack for designing pitch decks — visual communication tools used in many industries to present ideas for television shows.
She has created pitch materials that have been sent directly to streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, working with renowned directors such as Joey Soloway, who directed the popular comedy show “Transparent.”
Jessie primarily works in comedy, which happens to be a male-dominated industry. She has often struggled with people not taking her as seriously as they should.
“I feel like I’ve had to prove myself a lot extra because of being a woman,” she says.
Jessie is working against sexism in comedy by producing her own comedy shows with a close friend of hers in LA. Their shows aim to primarily include comics who are female, non-binary, transgender or “whoever is not getting seen.” Creating a safe space for comics and artists is important to Jessie, and all of the proceeds from these shows go to various charities.
I feel like I’ve had to prove myself a lot extra because of being a woman.
Jessie Kane Gill
Jessie has also faced challenges because she did not start out with the connections that many other people in the entertainment industry have. Success in the entertainment industry is often linked to family connections, and a lot of nepotism takes place. As a result, Jessie was at a disadvantage.
“But I feel good about it because I feel like I know I’ve earned everything that I’ve done,” she says.
For Jessie it can be difficult to give herself a break, especially since she loves all of her passions. Keeping a balance between all of Jessie’s creative endeavors has been a challenge, but she finds that being able to get outside with her dog Bruce helps her take a breather.
Jessie emphasizes that having a good support system is key to keep moving forward, and she emphasizes boundaries between work and other aspects of life.
“There were definitely times when I worked instead of going home or visiting family, and every time I’m like, ‘I should’ve visited or I should’ve taken a moment,” she says.
Looking into the future, Jessie would like to write an animated series as well as a horror movie that features women and people in the LGBTQIA+ community.
“Everyone contains multitudes,” Jessie says. “Some women don’t even think that they can be one thing. It’s amazing to have a community of women who encourage each other to be both or be all of the things. There are no lanes that we need to stay in.”
Check out Jessie’s TikTok, Instagram and Linktr.ee to stay updated on what she is doing next!
