We had a fantastic time interviewing Maria and learning about her latest projects. Check out the interview below.
Hi, Maria! Thank you for granting the interview. It is a pleasure to speak with you about your career.” Tell us what inspired you to become an actress?
Hey, thank you for having me! Well, I can’t really pinpoint at one specific thing, but I will tell you that my passion for art is what drove me into the acting direction. As an artist, I love storytelling, it’s a channel for creativity and vulnerability, I think people should give themselves a moment in life where they can experience this kind of freedom.
How did you prepare for auditions?
I take my time with the sides, you really need to be prepared otherwise the amount of work you put into it will be reflected at the time of the audition. I first like to memorize my script without including any emotion in the lines, so then when I have my lines down I can study what each line means and how it will affect not only my character but also the other character. I also research into who my character is and what’s their objective in the scene.
Do you look for specific roles to play?
Not really, I’m ready for anything that comes my way. I think when you play different characters, specifically the ones that are not similar to who you are as a person, you face a challenging task that not only expands your knowledge as an actor but it gives you an ability to adapt to new characters and new creations. And I love that about acting, that’s why I don’t want to focus on specific roles to play.
What do you do to stand out as an actress?
One of the things that make me stand out more is how I can play younger roles. My age range is usually from 16-22, I consider this a blessing because it broadens the number of roles I can play, therefore, allows me to work more haha! Also as a proud Latina, I can say that I stand out by not only being booked as a Latina, but also as a Caucasian and European because of my appearance, and a plus side of this is that I speak both Spanish and English, so everything fits perfectly into each category.
One more thing that has made me stand out, not only in the business but also in school, is that if you know me, then you know as far as learning and studying I love to always be prepared, and I like to incorporate that discipline in my acting by constantly improving my craft.
What has been your biggest takeaway in acting, thus far?
Hmm, there’s a lot of things I could answer this question, but probably the biggest takeaway that I have personally experienced is that the one who is prepared not only with their lines but as far as their acting and arriving early to set etc., is the person who will stand out the most and get further in this business. Another thing is, how you as an actor might be the protagonist in a certain film, but as far as a project; EVERYONE is the protagonist! I’ve seen many actors disregard the fact that there’s always a great team working really hard to make us look good, it is because of them that we can make films possible, and we can’t ever forget that.
You recently filmed “Juxtaposed.” Tell us about the film.
Yes! Thank you for bringing that up! Juxtaposed started as a thesis project, it is a short film about a young woman that faces an unconventional relationship she holds with her father. After being an absent father; Tom comes back to claim a very valuable object he gave to Victoria in her childhood. This was the only happy memory she holds from him and he comes to take it away, just like he has with everything else in her life. it’s a film about disappointment, grudges and overcoming false pretenses. I play the role of Victoria, she is always in the clouds, careless, messy, disoriented. She feels an emptiness in her life and soul, and I think that comes from Tom, his absence in her life gave her that missing piece she longs for. Victoria is a naïve girl who keeps trusting her father and always forgives his faults despite the fact that he neglected her all these years. I’m very proud of this film, we created it with a great team of people who put their all into it. Juxtaposed has also won several film awards for Best Actress and recognition from festivals such as IndieFEST, Top Shorts and Actors Awards Los Angeles, among others.
If you could choose a role you would like to play, what would it be and why?
I would love to play an antagonist role, as far as today I haven’t got the chance to play one but I’d be so much fun to do! It would definitely be a little more challenging getting into the role but it’s a great experience to have. I would love to be that character that always brings a conflict to every situation and the one that the audience always hates, because if the audience hates your evilness and you as a character I think you did a good job.
Thus far, what has been the best experience working in the industry?
I was booked one day as a background actress for a web-series called Homecoming with Julia Roberts. You can imagine how freaked and excited I was when I found out I was going to be on the same set as her! She is one of my all-time favorite actresses and I have a fond admiration for her and her work. It was a great experience because I wasn’t only shooting at Universal Studios with one of my favorite actresses but because I met Remi Malek, who plays Freddy Mercury in the upcoming movie Bohemian Rhapsody. It was an outstanding day on set, not to mention they had one of the best crews I’ve ever worked with.
Do you have any upcoming projects that we haven’t mentioned?
A few months ago, I got the chance to be part of a film called We Shall Overcome, it was a great experience to have and I got to meet awesome people for the 5 days that we were shooting. Also, it was a little different from other films I’ve been before because they hired great makeup artists to use prosthetics on us and show some gruesome content, the storyline set is in a conservative school, but it experiments with the irony towards the educational system and society ripping and consuming the ideal dream. But I don’t want to give too much away, it comes out around September-October. I also have other projects in the making, but that one I can’t talk about, but you will shortly find out about it!
Complete this sentence, if I had an opportunity to do anything I want, I would do ___________.
If I had an opportunity to do anything I want, I would stay living and be working here in Los Angeles. The U.S has welcomed me for the past 4 years, making me call this place my home. I have basically built my network, my career and my life here in LA, but shortly it will be time for me to go back to Colombia. I love living here, I love acting here, I started my adult life here in the U.S! That’s why I know it’s going to be hard to adjust to change once more, but I’m not sad about it, because I learned so much during my stay, and I know I will be coming back very soon!
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