Mike Yang (Wenjie Yang), the New York-based Chinese actor, who recently received plaudits for his starring in plays like The Last Boarding Call, has been cast in the upcoming film ‘Nothing, Except Everything’, produced by multi-award-winning producer Scott Aharoni. Yang stars as the character of Spencer opposite David Mazouz, who garnered extensive recognition in Hollywood for his portrayal of Bruce Wayne in FOX’s TV series ‘Gotham.’
‘Nothing, Except Everything’ is a coming-of-age story about going to college and the struggle of leaving behind friends and family for the first time. The film seeks to examine Gen Z and their interpersonal relationships through an intimate, exploratory lens. Joining Yang is a diverse, star-studded cast composed of talents like David Mazouz and celebrity model Lily Chee. The team behind the project plans to screen the film at Sundance, SXSW, and Tribeca, among other major festivals.
Excerpts:
How did you get cast in this film?
Our director Wesley told me that he’d considered many stage and screen actors before landing on me. He was drawn to the fact that I’m experienced both on stage and on the screen, and so am able to bring a harmonic medium between the two by delivering both the intensity of stage acting and the high degree of intimacy the camera requires. With this in mind, I made sure that my audition was emotionally gripping while simultaneously delivering a convincing portrayal of the kind of naturalism you see on-screen. In addition, I believe that my proficiency with the violin was a key factor in Wesley’s decision to give me the role. Since my character is a violinist, it helps to have an actor who is familiar with the instrument, and is therefore, able to infuse the rhythm of the violin with the character’s idiosyncratic mannerisms. For each scene my character is in, Wesley wanted me to prepare an accompanying piece of violin music and incorporate it into my character’s emotional journey. This really helped me bring the character to life.
What is your character’s relationship with David Mazouz’s character?
My character Spencer is a close friend of David’s character Miles. In the film, as Miles attempts to discover the meaning of life, he continually asks people to pick a number between 1 and 10, hoping to discern something deeper in the apparent randomness of the selection. In one of my scenes, my character Spencer gives his answer to Miles and provides his unique reasoning for it, and thereby serves as a key guiding figure in Miles’ personal and intellectual journey.
How do you bring your diverse set of acting techniques to projects like this?
After years of studying at the Atlantic Acting School and, later, The Lee Strasberg Film & Theater Institute, I always attempt to select the best approach for any given scene. It’s like having a toolkit and picking what’s best for the job. Before I came on set, I spent a lot of time deeply analyzing the script and my character’s arc in order to discover Spencer’s feelings, beliefs, and motivations. After ascertaining his various behavioral dispositions, I developed a personal connection to each through implementing several of Strasberg’s techniques.
As an example, Spencer is extremely enthusiastic about science, and I used Strasberg’s Sense Memory to tap into my own latent enthusiasm to better relate to the character. In order to effectively break down scenes, I used Practical Aesthetics and translated my visceral connections into concrete actions. All of these steps enabled me to step on set and live in my character’s world with ease.