Analesa Fisher: Actor, Voice Actor and Writer, on Rise and Shine and Telling Hard Stories

Who is Analesa Fisher? Analesa Fisher is an actor, voice actor and writer. They play Amanda in the Angel Studios film Rise and Shine, in theaters nationwide October 23, and voice Omi in Netflix’s Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2, which premiered October 20. On camera they starred as Clara in Tubi’s Saving Buddy Charles and as Kendall in Netflix’s Metal Lords. Their voice credits include Honkai: Star Rail, DC: Dark Legion, CookieRun: Kingdom, Craig of the Creek, Monster High, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir and Rainbow High.

Rise and Shine is a coming-of-age story based on a true story. It follows Terri, a young woman with cerebral palsy played by newcomer Ana Sharp in her feature debut, as she pursues friendship with Fisher’s Amanda, independence and her dream of attending public high school and going to prom. Tony Award winners Rachel Bay Jones and Danny Burstein co-star, and more than a dozen speaking roles are played by children and adults with disabilities.

Fisher is a disability rights advocate and a member of the autism community who lives with juvenile idiopathic arthritis. They sit on the Environmental Media Association’s Young Hollywood Board and campaign for shark conservation. For this LA Note digital cover, Fisher talks about the moments they almost quit, playing their first authentically autistic character, the lucid-dreaming thriller script that got them signed to UTA, and why Spider-Gwen is still the dream role.

Please introduce yourself, what you do, why you do it, and what you want people to know about you.

Hi! My name’s Analesa Fisher! I’m an actor, voice actor, and writer who loves sharks, drumming, and Dungeons & Dragons.

Describe THAT moment when you realized you wanted to do what you do now. Who did you tell first? What has it been like since that moment?

I don’t know that it was really one moment… so much as a collection of moments. I’ve been doing it since I was a kid, and I was always told that classic line: “If there’s anything else you want to do, if there’s anything else that brings you joy, do that, because this won’t be easy.” And there were a lot of times I almost gave up. A lot of “almosts” that made me question why I was still doing this, or if there was some cosmic force telling me I just wasn’t cut out for it. But every time, without fail, I’d be right back to it a few days later like nothing happened. Like I was on autopilot. Once I realized that was my body’s way of telling me this is all I want to do, I just kind of gave into it and was full steam ahead. My mentors call me relentless. I still haven’t figured out if that’s a compliment or an insult, haha.

What qualities make you different and unique from everyone else in the industry?

Oh gosh, I don’t know. Everyone’s unique, you know? That’s what makes humans so special. Everyone has a different way of seeing conflict, romance, and art. I think once you stop trying to “be something that Hollywood wants,” that’s when it finally takes notice. It took me a while to figure that out. I was hiding the very things that made me who I am. I was hiding that I was an autistic actor, hiding my disabilities, and even trying to dress like everyone else at auditions. All those things were secretly holding me back. As soon as I opened those floodgates and just let myself exist, that’s when the industry took notice.

What has been the biggest challenge you’ve had to face and how did you overcome it?

My health. I was practically paralyzed at twelve years old when I was diagnosed with juvenile idiopathic arthritis, stuck in the hospital for months at a time. I’ve been on immunosuppressants and on and off crutches ever since. I almost lost my vision once, almost lost joints a few times, and earlier this year, I almost died from medication complications.

I have a lot of really good days. And that’s weird sometimes. Because on the good days, I feel like I could run a marathon. I feel normal. And I do everything in my power to have a lot of good days. I eat right, I exercise, I sleep, and I keep myself in top shape so I can still show up to sets and get in the VO booth when I’m needed. But on the really bad days, when I’m flaring or stuck at the ER, I can’t help but wonder how much more I’d be able to get done if I didn’t have to deal with this.

I often wonder if it’s stunted my career at all, but then I remind myself that everyone’s working with whatever cards they’ve been dealt, and we’re all doing the best we can. So, I just have to keep doing that. The best I can.

You starred as Clara in Tubi’s Saving Buddy Charles and as Kendall in Netflix’s Metal Lords, while also building an extensive voice-acting career with projects including Honkai: Star Rail, Craig of the Creek, CookieRun: Kingdom, and more. How does performing on camera compare with stepping into the recording booth, and do you find that one informs the other?

Oh, absolutely. They inform each other. Voice acting is all about instincts, which you hone when you’ve been doing on-camera work for so many years. When I get a twelve-page self-tape and there’s a huge, deeply moving monologue on page two, your instinct the first time you read it is to cry. It’s sad. It affects us as humans. The hardest thing is learning that you have to find ways to access those emotions over and over again without the element of surprise. Once you’ve done the scene ten times from ten different camera angles, that instinct isn’t there anymore.

With voice-over, we’re often reading the scripts for the first time inside the booth. It’s all emotions, all instincts! In doing that, I learn new triggers that I didn’t know I had and am able to apply those to on-camera work! It’s like a weird little messed-up math equation, and I’m still learning new things on every set I step foot on and in every booth I step into.

You will next be seen as Amanda in the Angel Studios film Rise and Shine, which follows Terri as she enters public school for the first time after being homeschooled and explores themes of family, independence, and finding your place in the world. What was the biggest challenge for you personally while filming the movie, and was there a particular scene that pushed you as an actor?

I’m autistic, and so is Amanda in the movie, which was such an honor for me. It’s the first authentically autistic character I’ve gotten to play. I’m usually playing neurotypicals, haha, but my biggest challenge was doing her justice. I wanted to play her as true to me as possible. I didn’t want to lean into any stereotypes about us. Autism is a spectrum, and we are not a “one size fits all” kind of neurodiversity.

Our director, Laura Somers, gave me as much liberty as possible to make Amanda as much like me as possible. If any lines felt off or like something I wouldn’t say, she wanted to hear them in my voice. But still, every day leaving set, I wondered, “Am I doing my community justice?” I just hope so!

What can you tell us about the YA thriller you wrote, Wake Up?

I coin it as my “gay, autistic, lucid dreaming thriller,” and it means the world to me. You liked Talk to Me and Backrooms? This is both those movies on crack. I’ve been lucky enough to scare the pants off a few of my mentors, who read the script and then called me days later to say, “Analesa, this isn’t a joke. I was standing at work today wondering if I was awake or still asleep because of your script!” Hahaha, I find it funny.

r/LucidDreaming on Reddit is a hugely popular subreddit, and I think fans of real-world horror are going to love it. It’s the script that got me signed to UTA (United Talent Agency), so it really changed my whole career. I can’t wait for people to see it. We’re going to make it next year, so hopefully soon!

Looking at your work thus far across acting, voiceover, and writing, what kind of stories are you most excited to tell at this point in your career?

I’ve been particularly drawn to stories of grief in the last few years. Between Saving Buddy Charles, Honkai: Star Rail, and a few secret projects in the works, I’ve had my limits tested on that front. More than anything, I want to continue to tell hard stories for young people. Whether that’s a Superbad-type film or something darker like The Hunger Games, I love a gritty coming-of-age movie that unearths the harder parts of growing up. Maybe that’s just me wanting to work through my own trauma. Both those scripts have been my favorites of late.

As your career continues to evolve, are there certain kinds of stories or characters you’re hoping to explore more of?

I’m honestly really lucky. I don’t know how, but I’ve been lucky enough to not be put in a box. I’ve gotten to play the nerd, the cheerleader, the awkward outcast, the road trip buddy comedy lead, the neurotypical, the neurodivergent, the dying? The list goes on. I think the one thing I’d still love to check off my bucket list is playing a girl out for revenge. Like in Do Revenge or Ready or Not. Or maybe even in a zombie movie. I want my character to have a gun or a crossbow and go crazy, haha!

What would your dream role be?

I have not been shy about this. I think I talk about it in every interview I’ve done in the last seven years, but it’s Spider-Gwen. I would jump at the chance, you know? Portraying her would give me the chance to show people what I can really do. I’m a drummer, I have the stunt training, and I’ve read every comic she’s EVER appeared in. She’s my superhero.

It’s gotten to the point that I’ll be sitting in the green room at conventions, and random actors will come up to me and say, “You look like Gwen Stacy. Have you ever cosplayed her?” I’m like, okay, what do I have to do to make this happen? And my fans know, haha. I’ve been given so much fan art of me as Gwen Stacy that it feels like I’ve already gotten the chance to play her. I’m not sure what they have planned for her character, but maybe, if I’m lucky, I’ll get the chance!

You’ve had the opportunity to work with many actors and voiceover artists throughout your career. Is there anyone you haven’t crossed paths with yet that would be a dream for you to work with?

Okay, on the actor front? I’d have to say Hayden Christensen. Working with him on anything would be a dream, but obviously, Star Wars would be… oh man, a dream come true for little Analesa. I would also have to say Florence Pugh. I mean, she’s iconic, and I feel like we could play family members of some kind. But really, the list is so long. Again, there have been so many almosts that were heartbreaking to lose, mainly because of who they would have been opposite. So many talented icons out there.

Can you tell us about any other current projects our readers can look forward to?

Cyberpunk: Edgerunners S2 on Netflix, which was such a dream to work on. That team demands excellence, and it was an incredibly fun acting challenge getting to play Omi.

Other than that, I am the lead in two new video games that will come out, though I don’t know when. They’re both really cool! I think people are going to love them, and I can’t wait for the world to play them.

If you had to pick the TOP 3 people you’d want to meet that could take your career to the next level… who would those 3 people be?

Okay, I have to go with filmmakers here, but I’m breaking the rules because some of these are TEAMS of two, so I’m counting them as one person. Daveed Diggs and Rafael Casal would be a dream to work with. I look up to those two SO much. I would also love to work with Chris Miller and Phil Lord someday. I’m a huge fan of their work, from animation to live action. There are zero misses. I’m going as Rocky from Project Hail Mary this year for Halloween, haha!

And lastly, Greta Gerwig. I mean, what young girl doesn’t want to work with Greta? She’s an icon, and she’s giving a voice to so many girls in this industry. I think everyone my age dreams of being in one of her projects.

Where can readers follow Analesa Fisher?

Instagram: @analesafisher
X: @AnalesaFisher
TikTok: @analesafisher

Credits: Photography: Grace Wethor (@graeinc)
Styling: Styled by LMC (@styledbylmc)