For a long time I really thought that I would become a journalist, Maki tellsGlamour.
I just love stories; I love psychology and understanding people.
Would she want to know what her lifes potential was?
In any case, itd be hard to pin down just one life potential for her.
Glamour: Youre also a founder in addition to an actor.
How would you describe the concept of Asian American Girl Club?
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It was a very glass-shattering moment for me of, like, Wow, this is actually possible.
We have this movie, and we have all of this support.
So I just instantly thought, Where can I lend support and what can I do?
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What kind of stories are you looking to produce?
Another one is documenting the lives of my grandparents [while] incarcerated in the camps.
You mentioned starting Asian American Girl Club afterCrazy Rich Asians.
Crazy Rich Asiansjust opened the door of that understanding that there is more beyond.
What is one of your favorite things about running Asian American Girl Club?
One of my favorite things is witnessing the people’s lives that have been touched or impacted by it.
It makes the work not feel like work.
What is something youve learned from running this club?
I feel like I’ve learned so much from being a founder, first of all.
Creativity and leadership, it takes a bit of both.
Earlier you mentioned wanting to be a journalist.
What was your childhood dream job?
Did you always want to be an actor as well?
I wanted to be a writer; I would sit around and start all of these stories.
My mom would always be like, You start 10 different stories; maybe you should just finish one.
What was your actual first job?
My actual first job was when I was probably eight years old.
I was one of the voices.
I had so much fun doing that.
I was a voracious reader, so I think for me it was the merging of all the things.
I loved to do voices and do characters.
What made you feel like acting was for you?
I was in Brownies, Girl Scouts, French club.
I was in all of them, and I would quit all these clubs.
But she put me in musical theaterI did my first show; it was calledThe Magical Story Circusin Seattle.
I think I was maybe eight or nine years old, and I was an extraordinarily shy person.
I would not really speak to anyone.
I had a really hard time vocalizing anything.
How do you deal with rejection?
I feel like rejection, at least in acting, is really 80% of it.
That’s probably true for so many people and people of color.
Whats the best career advice you ever received?
The best career advice I’ve ever received is probably from my mom.
She would always tell me, Ally, your time will come.
