Miami Living Magazine features the best Miami has to offer. Click on any magazine below and enjoy. You can download our free app on iTunes. Ideal for iPad and iPhone users.
Issue link: https://digital.miamilivingmagazine.com/i/1102090
"You have to be able to respect the no's and believe that there will be a yes at the end." The natural blonde with striking cheekbones still recalls the first time she visited a modeling agency with her mother, Patty Hearst. "These are the girls who want to make it," said Patty pointing to the wall of headshots featuring beautiful young women. Then, she turns around and points to a much smaller group, only three cards,"These are the ones who have made it." Eight years later, Lydia was discovered by photographer Steven Meisel. Vogue Italia was her first magazine cover. "It was a dream come true. It was the first set that I ever had the opportunity to be on that was for myself," she says. "It was a surreal and magical experience." The magazine, which was shot in November 2003, didn't hit stands until April 2004, once it did, her life changed overnight. Lydia become internationally known on the runway for all the fashion shows she had done for Chanel, Fendi, and many other designers. Four years after her big break in 2008, she was recognized as "Model of the Year" at the Michael Awards. Throughout her entire modeling career, Lydia never gave up, and waited until she was the one for the job. "You have to be able to respect the no's and believe that there will be a yes at the end." Since she has experienced the realities of the modeling industry and how hard it can be to deal with rejection, she has nothing but respect for models. Casting isn't always based on appearances. "There is so much more to it," she explains. "I think what people don't realize is that in the industry, whether it's fashion or film, there is rejection. And you have to understand that that rejection isn't personal. It's based on whether or not they are looking for someone with a different eye color or different height or how the clothes fit on you. Sometimes it is hard not to take rejection personally. At the same time, there is something else out there —just because one person says no, another person might say yes. You just have to keep working at it and putting yourself out there." Recently, Lydia transitioned from modeling into acting. The switch was motivated by her passion for acting and the film industry, specifically her love of horror films. "I think I was in preschool watching The Evil Dead with my dad. I've always been obsessed with films, especially horror. I love anything and everything horror." This obsession began with her love of fairy tales, which she realized operates under similar guidelines as horror films. "There are these basic rules of the genres, where there is always an absolute evil and the characters are punished for their carelessness, their lust, and their pride —that takes you back to the Grimms' Fairy Tales," she explains. It's this concept that captivated her, even as a child. "There was always a moral lesson to the story." Lydia has appeared on TV shows, including, Gossip Girl, Mistresses, South of Hell, and most recently Z Nation, where she had a lot of fun with her character, Pandora. "She was a bit of a borderline sociopathic personality," she laughs. She has played very different roles, which have only made her a better actress. "I love to change myself, and I love to challenge myself. I think it's really important as an actor to transform into your characters and roles." In her latest film, The Haunting of Sharon Tate, she plays Abigail Folger —one of the most challenging and exciting roles of her career. She tells me the film is based on an interview that Sharon Tate (played by Hilary Duff in the film) gave to Fate Magazine a couple years prior to her death. In this alleged interview, Sharon revealed her prophetic dream in which she saw her own death at the hands of a cult. But this film dives into much more than just the facts, it explores relationships and friendships—which is what made Lydia want to be part of this project. "It's interesting, in fact, she [Abigail Folger] was good friends with one of my aunts. She was very outspoken, very passionate civil rights activist. She loved her family, and