Being half Jewish, we grew up with Christmas trees but had Jewish ornaments.
— Gina Rodriguez
I was a salsa dancer for the majority of my life, from, like, 7 to 17, and did the World Salsa Congresses. I realized that I wanted to continue obviously to be a performer. But in my household, being an actor and jumping into acting is not really accepted.
I do not devalue the role of a maid or nanny, or the stereotypical roles that some members of our family have actually done to feed our families in real life.
'Filly Brown' gave me the wings to fly, but red carpets are still very uncomfortable.
I am not going to take a role because there's money. It might extend my checkbook, but not my integrity.
Acting is how I'll be able to change how Latinos are viewed in media and change how little girls see and talk about themselves.
I went to college at NYU for acting, since acting was my dream from very young. I did a lot of hip-hop courses while I was there. I helped co-write a hip-hop production for the main stage of NYU, but I never touched rap.
I like to peel it and share it with friends. You can spread the love with an orange.
I will play the characters with last names like Sanchez and Gonzalez until the day I die, but I also want to play the 'Michelle Smiths.'
I don't want the Latino community to think I think the reason Latino films are not doing well is because of us. It is not fully our responsibility.
I started performing very young as a salsa dancer, and every time I was on that stage dancing, all I knew was that I wanted to speak. I wanted the music to stop, and I wanted to speak.
I started salsa dancing with a few different companies and started touring the country. It was fantastic, but I realized that I really wanted to talk every time we were performing. That's a problem because when you're dancing, if you stop to talk, that's not really cool to the other dancers.
Being an actress wasn't realistic. I knew that I was going to have to do it in a way that would speak to my parents. So I went to NYU Tisch School of the Arts for theater, and I studied at the conservatory.
I started small with commercials and print.
I learned a lot from Ana Ortiz, who plays my sister in 'Sleeping with the Fishes'.
I try to keep in mind that it's a long journey. It's not a race. It's about staying focused, continuing to do good work, make my family and community proud; that's all I really want to do... and pay my bills.
I've specifically decided to say no to projects that weren't advancing Latinos, that weren't showing us in a positive light, roles that were gratuitous and spreading untruths.
I'm not messing with skiing. You can't get this Puerto Rican on the slope. Uh-uh.
I grew up in Chicago, so hip-hop has always been a part of my life.
I can live in L.A. as a struggling artist. I cannot live in New York as a struggling artist.
I think all Latino actors want to be storytellers first. I want to be an actor first, and then I want to be Latina.
This industry is all about work, and just because Sundance exposed me to the world, it is my job to stay deserving in that world. The work never ends; the hustle just get harder, and you get stronger!
With each dream accomplished, bigger ones are put in their place.
I love relatable stories.
When I got out of college, I booked a movie called 'Go for It!' with Lionsgate, came out here, and I've been acting ever since - or trying, constantly trying.
What I will not do is continue to perpetuate stereotypes. I'm the daughter of a maid; why do I have to also play a maid? My mom was a maid so I didn't have to be a maid.
I felt very vulnerable after 'Sleeping with the Fishes'; I gained weight for the role. I felt a bit out of my skin in the movie, and it was hard to watch.
Every morning, my dad would have me looking in the mirror and repeat, 'Today is going to be a great day; I can, and I will.'
I think when you work really hard and you help others, God helps you get what you want.
I've been very lucky; God has done amazing things for me.
I grew up dancing salsa - you know, a traditional Puerto Rican dance.
I dream big, baby. I want to do thrillers, I want to do smart David Lynch-type mysteries.
Latinos don't go out and support their own films, but at the same time, it's not their responsibility.
I've learned a lot about what kind of actor I want or do not want to be while being on set. I sit back and observe how other actors treat the totem pole of set politics.
What makes characters real are details, and if you're crafting a person from scratch, you're probably not going to pay as much attention to a question like, 'Does this person bite their nails?'
I love telling stories that allow people to be less afraid to tell theirs.
