Your new movie Rumba
Love - in a few words, what is it about, and what can you tell us
about your character in it?
Rumba Love is the story of a Cuban American musician who after living in Cuba
for many years, decides to come back to New York to bring his and his best
friend's music and make it in the Big Apple. Beyond that, it is a story of
perseverance, love, and faith. It tells how passion and commitment can
bring you anywhere you want. It is the American dream journey told in a
real yet unconventional way.
Of
course, you also have to talk about the music in Rumba Love
for a bit, and
what does music as such, and Cuban music at that, mean to you, personally?
As
a Latina born and raised in Venezuela, with Colombian roots and a strong
influence from the Caribbean, music like rumba, salsa, and latin music in
general plays an important role in my life. It is ingrained in our
culture, and not only do we learn to live with it, but it's part of who we
are. The way we interact socially, the way we confront our fears, or we
celebrate our successes, everything is through these rhythms, through
music and musicality, and as such, participating in a movie in which music
plays such an important role, like another movie character itself, was not
only was exciting… it was very inspiring.
Do talk about the shoot as such, and the on-set atmosphere!
We
shot in Havana and New York. The atmosphere on set was fantastic both in
New York and Havana. The Cuban experience was incredible for me, not only
as an actress but also as a producer. I was challenged in ways I never
imagined. We had to deal with sorting out power outages, lack of gasoline,
and absence of internet and printers just to mention a few things, but on
the other side, we were blessed with the Cuban people. Locals would notice
we were filming and out of the blue, they would come to set with colada
(Cuban coffee) for everybody. They opened their homes, helped in any shape
or form and we became part of a community that embraced us and made us
feel accepted and blessed. The fact that we were able to shoot a movie
with no internet made the process so special. We had no other option than
being in the present, and only live the present moment. For an actor,
that’s priceless.
The
$64-question of course, where can Rumba Love
be seen?
We
premiere in selected theaters in the US and on VOD platforms in the US and
Canada on September 24th. If you are based in LA, we will premiere at
Laemmle Glendale. For our community in New York, The City Center Village
East is the theater to go. We will also be in theaters in Miami at Dolphin
24, and you can check our website rumbalovemovie.com
for the full list of
cities and platforms.
Anything
you can tell us about audience and critical reception of Rumba Love?
Rumba Love is a tribute to our heritage, therefore we are pretty excited to
celebrate the Hispanic Heritage Month with the premiere of Rumba Love. We
latinos are a big community that want to be acknowledged and celebrated,
and as such, we believe that Latinos and other ethnicities will be able to
get a sense of who we are, and celebrate our tenacity, our determination,
our faith and our joy with Rumba Love.
Any
future projects you'd like to share? I
will be back on set pretty soon, this time playing the lead in a
psychological drama that will be shot on location in Orlando. I’m not
allowed to say more at this time, but it will be officially announced
soon. What got you into
acting in the first place, and did you receive any formal training on the
subject? I
started my career as an actress in Venezuela where I did a lot of
telenovelas, and also participated in some films and theater plays. Then,
I moved to Colombia where I did films and TV series merely as an actress
until I had the opportunity to produce my first movie in which I also
acted. That movie, Habana Instant, won several awards including the
Montreal World Film Festival. After that experience, I knew I wanted to
continue growing as an actress and producer, and I have been doing both
ever since. Recently, I started writing as well. My first TV show as a
writer is called The Flowers, and you can find it on Amazon
Prime.
In recent years, you've also picked up
producing, sometimes even writing, in addition to acting - why is that
then? I
consider myself primarily an actress who has had the blessing of learning
a lot about the craft by being a producer. And the more I produce the more
I love it ,and my producer hat is always present even in projects where
I’m merely an actress. That is not to say that doing both things is
easy. On the contrary, it is quite a challenge, and if you add writing to
the equation, it gets way more complicated. But the journey has been
beautiful and I take one project at a time. There have been times where
I’ve only produced, and others where I’ve only acted, and others where
I do both, such as in Rumba Love. In any case, it is rewarding and I learn
a lot. What can you tell us about your filmwork prior to
Rumba Love, in whatever position? You
can watch my work as an actress and producer in movies like Habana Instant
and Welcome to Acapulco with Paul Sorvino, William Baldwin and Michael
Madsen. You can also watch The Flowers, a series I wrote, produced and
played the lead. Actresses (and indeed actors) who
inspire you?
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Reese
Witherspoon inspires me because she produces her own shows and gives
opportunities to women in a male-oriented industry. I identify with it,
and I hope I can be an inspiration and a bridge for other latinas to
pursue their dreams and go after them. Young
actresses like Ana de Armas, Natalie Portman, Jennifer Lawrence and
Zendaya will always be a reference. And institutions like Meryl Streep,
Viola Davis and Nicole Kidman always amaze me and inspire me.
Your/your
movie's website, social media, whatever else?
rumbalovemovie.com
Instagram:
@rumbalove
My
personal Instagram: @zairmontes
Thanks
for the interview! THANK YOUUUU!!!!!
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