BIO

Tess Paras is a Los Angeles–based actor and director.  

As a director, her brand is “coming of age, at any age” and she loves female-forward comedies with inclusive casts. Tess has directed and produced over 40 short films and is a Women In Film (WIF) Directing Fellow. She has directed branded content for Roku and is a two-time director of the ViacomCBS SHOWCASE, an hour-long streaming sketch comedy variety show featuring diverse performers. She previously served as a content creator and producer for Fusion (ABC/Univision), developing political comedy that generated multiple viral videos. Her short film Perry and a Pause was created under the Powderkeg:FUSE Director’s Incubator and executive produced by Paul Feig (Bridesmaids) and Laura Fischer (A Simple Favor). Her most recent directorial work, Rock Paper Destiny, is a coming-of-age sports comedy set in the high-stakes world of rock, paper, scissors. Her work has triumphed on the festival circuit with official selections at Newport Beach Film Festival, Outfest, Salute Your Shorts, Micheaux Film Festival, BendFilm, Dances With Films, Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival, and CAAMFest, among others.

Her musical sketch Typecast, which she wrote and performed, is currently on exhibit at the Smithsonian National Museum of American History in the “What’s So Funny?” program, highlighting comedy that challenges cultural stereotypes and demonstrating her flair for comedic satire.

As an actress, Tess brings brings grounded intelligence, dry humor, and warm confidence to every role. After recurring as the secretive “Erin Chua” on the Daytime Emmy–nominated Just Add Magic, Tess was upped to series regular on its spinoff, Just Add Magic: Mystery City (Amazon). She is best known for her recurring role as “Jayma Chan” on the Emmy Award–winning musical comedy Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (The CW). In 2022, she starred opposite Jo Koy in Joseph (ABC), the first sitcom pilot centered on a Filipino-American family. Additional screen credits include Good on Paper, Reno 911!, Grimm, Girl Meets World, The Good Wife, and the indie feature The Blackout (Dir. Daniela De Carlo). Most recently, Tess was a top of show guest star on DOC (Fox) as “Dawn Murphy,” a headstrong woman struggling with her marriage and a secret eating disorder.

Her performance background spans theater, dance, musicals, and sketch comedy. She graduated magna cum laude from New York University with a B.A. in Culture and Communications and a minor in Journalism. Tess trained in improv and sketch at Upright Citizens Brigade NY and became a mainstage performer at UCB Los Angeles with Quick & Funny Musicals. She has performed with Asian AF and Filipino AF and was selected for the prestigious CBS Diversity Showcase in 2014.

When she’s not performing or directing, Tess enjoys cooking, working out, singing, beach days with her spouse and dog, and tackling DIY home projects with her steadily advancing carpentry skills.

She is repped by Gersh and Haven Entertainment.