Today we’d like to introduce you to Maria Cid.
Hi Maria, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
I was ten years old and visiting a family friend’s house with my family. They also had a daughter who was about two years older than me. Trying to pass the time, she showed me her diary, which was more like a notebook for kids full of questions and stickers, really. On it, it posed the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” To what she had replied: “Actress.” I remember asking her, “Do you really want to be an actress?” and she confidently replying that yes, she wanted to do acting for a living. That opened a door that I immediately entered. I had to make my decision: I wanted to be an “Actress.”
It was clear even before that moment that I loved being on stage… For my birthday parties, my mom and I would go the fabric store and buy a bunch of the most glittery and weird fabric we could find so me and my friends could dress up and make our own little plays. What I never thought is that I would end up doing that in Atlanta, of all places. Heck, before living here, I thought Atlanta didn’t have much of an acting and arts scene going on… Clearly, I was wrong.
I first came here during the chaotic year of 2020. We had just started rehearsing for our final play, the one we were supposed to graduate with from our 4-year bachelor acting program when IT hit us. We said, “See you in two weeks,” with smiles on our faces and jokes about our unexpected vacations. But then those two weeks became two months, and two became four. It came to the point where I was desperate to generate some income. My mom is a freelance writer for telenovelas, and at that point, there weren’t many telenovelas being filmed. Plus, I was in debt with school and wanted to pay it off as quickly as possible so I could get my degree when done. So, I started reaching out to people… and luckily for me, a family member needed help with her kids and their new homeschooling mode. Thing is, they lived in Atlanta.
“And the rest is history,” I would say. I met my now husband and started dating him. Went back to Mexico City to finish school once everything opened up and came back after a couple of months to officially settle here. Since then, my life, as well as my career, have had its ups and downs. But whose hasn’t?
I’ve just recently finished the running season of my first play in the U.S., and even though it might not be much for some, it means a great deal to me. Moving to the U.S. has been a journey, and not an easy one, I would say. So, every win counts, even if it appears little to my own expectations of what “it should be.” But I keep choosing it, I chose to live here, and I keep doing so, there’s so much of this world that I haven’t yet explored…
And for my fellow migrants, I would say: It does get easier, and know that you’re not alone.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back, would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
One of the biggest struggles was moving here from Mexico City. The immigration process was tiring and nerve-wracking. We didn’t hire a lawyer to help us with the application process, which made things a little more stressful. Plus, being unable to work or leave the country isolated me and made it even harder to find community and purpose in this new environment. Thankfully, that all ended when my residency got approved, not only was now able to work and travel to my country, I felt more confident with myself and like I finally belonged.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m mostly an actress, but I like to consider myself a creator. Lately, I’ve been playing with writing and directing and would like to keep exploring those art forms more, but definitely, I would say that I’m most known for my acting and modeling work. One of my biggest accomplishments was receiving the “Best Actress” award at the “Love and Hope International Film Festival” in Barcelona back in 2022. I was also featured in the fashion magazine “Elle Mexico” in July of 2020.
Receiving that award and being featured in one of my favorite magazines are two of my career’s proudest moments.
What identifies me in work is that I prioritize respect above all else. Beginning with respect for oneself’s values, as well as others. I find it hard to work in environments where we don’t respect each other and treat accordingly.
We all have a different way of looking at and defining success. How do you define success?
Success for me is being able to create and live a fulfilling, creative life without financial worries. This doesn’t mean to only earn your income via your art. It could also mean working a 9 to 5 and doing your art “on the side,” owning a business that is or isn’t related to your creative projects, being a full-time parent (what parent isn’t, but you get the idea), or whatever works for you and your life.
This is what I’m working on at the moment; I’m trying to release my art from the expectation to sustain me financially by finding something that I enjoy doing and is easier to monetize. Though it would be amazing if eventually I could fully live off my creations, I can’t hold my creative side hostage to that very out-of-my-control thing.
Contact Info:
- Website: imdb.me/mariacid
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mariacid09/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@mariacid09
Image Credits
Almendra Fuentes
