Paulina Lule: Exploring Race & Identity Through Film
Actor and filmmaker Paulina Lule talks about their tole on the series “Emperor of Ocean Park”, a recent visit to Miami, and challenges of working in Hollywood industry.
Non-binary, genderfluid, pan-sexual actor, filmmaker, and conservationist Paulina Lule is a Ugandan-American actor and filmmaker quickly gaining traction in the Hollywood industry.
Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Paulina began their career studying at the Baron Brown Studio in Santa Monica, California. They were then accepted into the inaugural class of the Los Angeles branch of the award-winning Identity School of Acting.
Since then, Paulina has appeared in several television shows including recurring roles on Marvel’s “Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D”, Netflix’s “LOVE”, NBC’s “The Good Place” ABC’s “Scandal”, “For the People”, and “General Hospital”. They have also appeared in the festival hit feature film “HONEY BOY” opposite Shia LaBeouf and Noah Jupe.
Most recently, Paulina starred opposite Academy Award “Best Actor” winner Forest Whitaker in the MGM+ series “Emperor of Ocean Park”, from the executive producers of the Emmy and SAG Award-winning series “Shameless,” which premiered on Sunday, July 14th.
Based on the best-selling novel by Stephen Carter, “Emperor of Ocean Park” follows ‘Talcott Garland’ (Grantham Coleman, “The Americans”), whose tranquil existence is upended by the death of his father ‘Judge Oliver Garland’ (Forest Whitaker). His sister ‘Mariah Garland’ (Tiffany Mack, “Jessica Jones”), a former journalist and ardent conspiracy theorist, questions the manner of his death and thinks he was the victim of foul play. Paulina Lule plays Tal’s wife, ‘Kimmer Garland’, a high-powered lawyer on the verge of being appointed a federal judgeship who sometimes neglects the feelings of those around her, including her husband, and who becomes a suspect in Mariah’s twisted conspiracy.
Paulina also studied film directing and screenwriting at the Academy for Creative Media at the University of Hawaii-Manoa. They received a Master of Fine Arts from Chapman University in Orange County, California. Their films have played at several festivals such as the Austin Film Festival, Pan African Film Festival, and Milwaukee Film Festival as well as winning awards at the Bronze Lens Film Festival and Women in Film Festival. As a filmmaker, Paulina focuses on thought-provoking projects that delve into race and identity. They are currently working on a project that hits close to home, with ties to their brother who sadly passed away in 2022 due to gun violence.
When they are not acting or creating new film projects, they are focused on building up their local Milwaukee community through conservationism, spending the entirety of 2023 working with the non-profit Zoological Society of Milwaukee and the Milwaukee County Zoo in arts education programming. They ran the Kohl’s Wild Theater Program which provides theater for children centered around wildlife conservation and teaching audiences how to show empathy for and protect wildlife species around the world. They have also worked with the non-profit Milwaukee Film teaching filmmaking, screenwriting, and acting to local up-and-coming filmmakers in their Focus Finder accelerator lab.
After their recent visit to Miami for the American Black Film Festival, Miami Living talked with Paulina about their role in “Emperor Of Ocean Park”, their experience in Miami, upcoming projects, and what it’s like to work in the Hollywood industry as a part of the LGBTQ+ community.
Miami Living: What drew you to the character of Kimmer Garland, and how do you relate to them personally?
Paulina Lule: Kimmer is a smart, powerful, formidable person. I think I could say I have all of those qualities as well ha! But what drew me to playing the character was more what we didn’t have in common. As an actor, you sometimes get to play characters that are outside yourself, and it’s always a blast. As someone dealing with their people-pleasing tendencies, it was fun to play a character who doesn’t agonize over the effects of their choices on everyone else before making them; she just acts and then deals with the aftermath. I think I’ve taken some of that into my own life. I think what Kimmer goes through in the show is a situation that many of us go through in real life, but we don’t always see played out in this way: here she is receiving the biggest once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that she should be celebrating alongside her husband, while he is going through one of the worst experiences in life — losing a parent. Anyone in a relationship knows that having to balance the excitement and joy of one’s life work coming to fruition with supporting your spouse through the worst kind of grief is a tough situation, but it also is a great space for lots of drama.
Miami Living: Can you share any memorable experiences working alongside Academy Award winner Forest Whitaker on this series?
Paulina Lule: I did not work as extensively with Forest as my casemates who play his children, but on the occasions I did, it was such an honor and a gift to work with someone so incredibly talented. I do have one memory that is such a good one, even though I’m only a side character in the event. Dyllan Yelverton plays my son Bentley in the show. I remember the very first day, we filmed the funeral scene, and Dyllan sat next to me in the pew. He said to me: “I can’t believe I get to work with the coolest guy in the world.” I thought he meant Grantham because he was sitting on the other side of me. I said, “Who, Grantham?” And Dyllan said, “No, this guy.” And he points to a picture of Forest on the program in his hand. I chuckled a bit, but soon stopped when Dyllan started rattling off Forest’s filmography! “He’s in Jingle Jangle, Black Panther, etc…” He talked about Forest non-stop through filming, hoping he’d get to meet him.
Flash forward to about halfway through filming and I’m sitting in the makeup trailer with Forest. Dyllan comes in for the day, but walks right past Forest, not even noticing him. At that point, everyone was aware of Dyllan’s fandom, so Jessica (the head of makeup) said “Dyllan, look who’s in my chair!” Dyllan’s face dropped. He was speechless! Forest gave him the biggest hug, took pictures with him, and gave him so many encouraging words. Everyone in the trailer was misty-eyed!
Miami Living: The series also explores the theme of conspiracy, which is quite relevant today. What are your thoughts on conspiracy theories?
Paulina Lule: I think that a healthy amount of skepticism is appropriate to maintain a level of critical thinking on important issues, but I worry about the ability for conspiracy theories to be misrepresented as fact in our current climate. Social media, propaganda, and the willingness to believe the things that fit a narrative you subscribe to while rejecting others is a dangerous road to travel.
Miami Living: Do you have any challenging moments worth sharing while filming “Emperor of Ocean Park”?
Paulina Lule: Filming in minus 30-degree wind chill weather is probably one of the most challenging moments in my career so far. I remember one day we had our trailers set up alongside the lake, so it was just frigid gusty winds coming off the lake, and all of the toilets in our trailers froze! The coldest I have ever been was while filming the cemetery scene in the first episode of the series — hopefully, you can’t tell!
Miami Living: You recently attended the American Black Film Festival in Miami. How was that experience for you?
Paulina Lule: The American Black Film Festival was such a fun time! It was my first time going, but it still somehow felt like a family reunion. I got to meet so many filmmakers and fellow actors from all over the country.
Miami Living: What takeaways stood out to you during your visit to Miami?
Paulina Lule: I’m not sure if it’s normal or not, but I arrived during the historic rainfall and flooding that occurred in June. I was wading through calf-deep water to get to Walgreens! Some of my drivers told me this was normal for Miami, but is it? I’m not so sure! I didn’t get the classic sunny beach weather that most people expect when coming to South Beach, but the food more than made up for it! I could eat Cuban food every day until I die ha! I also got to take in some shopping.
Miami Living: What is it like working in the acting and filmmaking industries as a non-binary, genderfluid, and pansexual person? What kind of challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them?
Paulina Lule: I think there is a misconception that Hollywood is this super progressive industry when in fact it is very reflective of our society in that it has a ways to go. On the one hand, we are seeing more gender non-conforming, non-binary, and trans representation in lead roles than ever (e.g. Emma Darcy in House of the Dragon, Bella Ramsey in The Last of Us, Nava Mau in Baby Reindeer, and so on), and I am so grateful for the opportunity to join those ranks and pave the way. On the other hand, in the day-to-day work of it all, I am often the first non-binary person someone has encountered (that they are aware of), and they often have a lot of questions or need guidance and grace as they adjust to a new way of thinking. As far as we’ve come in awareness, there is still a lot of responsibility on myself and those like me to educate and in some cases defend my identity, which is taxing. Still, I am so grateful that in my experience on Emperor of Ocean Park, I met so many advocates in my fellow cast mates, our showrunner Sherman Payne, and our executive producers and directors. They truly set the tone for creating an inclusive environment on set.
Miami Living: What advice do you have to give to aspiring actors and filmmakers in the LGBTQ+ community?
Paulina Lule: I would say again, don’t be fooled by how progressive our industry appears to be. The politics and values of the individuals that make up Hollywood are as varied as they are in the world around us. There are beautiful people and you can make beautiful art and connections and friendships, but you can just as likely run into people who want nothing to do with you based on who you are. That said, I’ve sort of developed a scale for myself that helps me stay sane. In work (and in life, honestly), you are going to be met with four different types of people: 1) people who reject you based on your identity, 2) people who merely tolerate your presence, 3) people who accept you when you’re around, but nothing much more, and 4) people who advocate for you always. You may not always get to choose to be around people who fit in bucket number 4. You find yourself working on set with someone who falls in bucket number 1. You may find that over the course of doing a show, someone who falls in bucket number 2 at the beginning, ends up in bucket number 4 by the time you wrap filming. Either way, I always base how much of myself to give on which bucket the person I’m with falls into. If I’m forced to work with someone who rejects and disrespects me, I act accordingly. The people in my inner circle (personally and professionally) had better be advocates, or they are out of the inner circle. And most importantly, which is the hardest to do, I constantly ask myself “Am I falling in my own advocate bucket in this situation? In this decision? In this indecision?” You must first and foremost learn to be your own advocate, which can be hard when you are chasing after something so difficult to achieve.
Miami Living: As an actor, filmmaker, and conservationist, what does your future look like?
Paulina Lule: There are studies that show that one of the most effective defenses to climate anxiety (anxiety induced by climate change), is community-building. As someone who highly values the conservation of our wildlife and environment, I continue to build awareness of environmental issues faced by my local community in Milwaukee, WI. As a filmmaker, I am currently working on a proof of concept for my feature film Sherman Park. It is a zombie horror film allegory about how people re-entering society from incarceration are treated, and the obstacles they face in leading a “good life.” As an actor, I hope that people watch and enjoy “Emperor of Ocean Park”, and that I am able to play Kimmer again in a season 2!
You can watch “Emperor of Ocean Park” every Sunday on MGM+.
Follow @paulinnium on Instagram to stay up to date.
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