Today, we’d like to introduce you to Monica Martinez.
Thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’m an actress, writer, and filmmaker from Colombia. I have always been creative and artistic; since I was a little girl, I could tell everybody around me what was gonna be my path in life.
However, when you’re growing up, I stepped away from the acting or dancing path and kind of just focused on being a “normal” high school girl playing sports and just trying to be good at school. When I moved to New York after I graduated from high school, it took me about a year to realize that I rather try to do it than live with the question of what if, which took me to start at the Conservatory, The Lee Strasberg Theater and Film. I found people who filled my soul with passion and love for art and the media industry as if I were a little girl again. People who pushed me to be the best version of myself.
Since I started my career in the media industry, I have done projects that show real problems in the world, stories that people can relate to. I have won a few awards with them as the Social Justice with Accolade film competition or Best Short with Best Short competition among others, but the most important one was winning my confidence again and doing what I feel passionate about doing.
We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
I wouldn’t say it was a smooth road because I don’t think that nobody has a smooth road at the end of the day; however, I feel blessed and happy that I always met people who pushed me and believed in me as to the people that do not believe in me because all that makes a combination that pushes you to be the best version of yourself.
I do think that your road and how you drive through it is what defines you as a person and shows your character. When I came to the States, I didn’t know any English, and I felt I couldn’t achieve what I wanted because this was not my country.
But I couldn’t just let myself be drowned, so I fought back and started to learn English; I stopped making myself don’t belong, and instead, I took myself out of my comfort zone and proved to myself that it doesn’t matter how rocky the road gets, you always need to move along.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I recently added to my portfolio the film of a Boxer who is struggling with the death of his father and starts to get into trouble. I played the main character, which put a lot of responsibility for the story above me; for me, it was important to show where the character was coming from and why her story was important. The journey I made with the character took me beyond what I thought it could take me. Physically, it took me out of my comfort zone because I had to learn how to box. Mentally, I felt I had to do my best to connect and show the reality of the character and how to tell her story in the best way I could so people could relate to her and her struggles.
Part of what I do is show stories that you feel related to, something that, at the end of the day, you feel you’re watching something meaningful; I always say that film was made to take people into another reality, and that’s what I want to do as an actress, writer, and filmmaker. Transport people into another world where they feel connected with the characters, no matter what position I’m working, since wiring with the sense of connection to the narrative to film with the sense of doing something that adds to society. This makes me proud of what I have done so far; every time I write, act, or direct, I look through the lens of why it is important to tell this story and how it will be the best way to do it.
Another example I can tell was the film “Behind the Curtain,” which talks about depression and suicide, which is a hard topic but an important topic to talk about, and that’s what I feel the most proud of. Whatever I do, I would like to feel the sensation of doing something meaningful, and probably that’s why I take myself constantly out of my comfort zone, the details I put into things, and the dedication to tell stories that connect with people.
What do you think about happiness?
Spend quality time with the people I love; when you stop feeling the notion of time because you are sharing time with your family or friends, that’s something that fills my heart completely.
I have always been a person who appreciates people around me, and when I can reciprocate that love and appreciation, it makes me happy, from just being at the dining table talking with my family to having a road trip with my friends. To me, it is not the material things or places that are more the people you are sharing those things with.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monicamartiinez4
Image Credits
Pam Torres
