00:00From the minute we read the script, but especially when we both met Ben, Ben Gravos on set,
00:06and he was like, I need you guys.
00:09You know, like, I really need you.
00:10This movie is half Mexico, half the U.S., and you are the Mexicans in the movie,
00:16so anything you want to change about the script, anything you feel that it doesn't feel accurate or whatever,
00:24like, just come to me and let's please talk.
00:27And he wasn't bluffing.
00:28Like, it was like a really beautiful collaboration process, and I think that's why, I mean,
00:33I hope these characters feel very specific, you know, like, they have such, like, a dignity, you know,
00:42like, the way Ceci talks to her boss, you know, like, she's not like, oh, yes, ma'am, whatever you
00:47say.
00:47No, she's not like that.
00:48She's like, yeah, I'm working for you, but I have these needs and I have these concerns, you know,
00:53and that's very refreshing because we never see that, and we are like that.
00:57Like, Latins in the U.S., especially in Los Angeles, we're very hardworking people that we just want to do
01:03our job
01:04and we pay taxes and we do our stuff, you know, like, and I think it's very important to see
01:11that representation as well,
01:13which is very rare.
01:15Yeah, I think we are very privileged of that, and for me, it was one of the most important aspects
01:22of this, you know,
01:23this story because, as you said, like, representation of the Latin community is not always positive.
01:32So it was great, you know, having the opportunity to portray these characters that are, that have dignity,
01:41that are honest, that are hardworking, and it's great.
01:44You know what?
01:45I think there's something that is key that is the curiosity of the filmmaker, you know?
01:53I've been working in Hollywood for the past seven years, and one of the things that I see the most
01:58when someone from the U.S. wants to tell a story about Latins is that they think they know, you
02:07know?
02:07Like, they're like, yeah, I know Mexico.
02:09I've been to Cancun a couple of times, and I went to Mexico City once with my girlfriend.
02:15Like, I know what I'm talking about, and it's like, no, you don't.
02:18You know, like, it's way deeper, and it's very complex, and you need to have people...
02:25To understand that.
02:26Yeah, people by your side that are actually from that place and that understand that place,
02:31and I think that's why Ben's curiosity in this movie pays off so well, because it's not very common,
02:37and I think that's very important for us as Latins, not just to be actors in movies, you know?
02:43Like, we need to be in control of the narratives, too, you know?
02:47Like, we need to be a part of the conversation of when you're developing a project, you know?
02:53Like, I think that's fundamental, especially in the moment we are right now where authenticity is king, you know?
03:00Like, if it doesn't feel authentic, it's not going to fly.
03:03So, I think it's worth to have these deep conversations with the people that are actually making the movies.
03:13It was great watching him, like, switching from acting to directing,
03:19because it was like two persons, you know, in the same person.
03:24When he was with us, like, acting, and he had to go in front of the monitor,
03:30and you could see, you know, the transition and how his mind was in a different thing,
03:39and just watching the monitor very concentrated,
03:41and then after he saw what he had to see, he turned back and he was like,
03:47okay, let's go, we have it, or we are going to take another one.
03:51He has a lot of energy, he's always talking, he's always like,
03:55like, you could see his mind working, and I was amazed about that,
04:01but also about his generosity.
04:06He's a great leader, but not a tyrant, you know?
04:10He's very kind, very close to you, and that makes you feel so good.
04:21I have to say, for me, it was a very, it was so weird and meta and crazy
04:28to be working with him, because at the beginning of the movie,
04:31he was like, hey, dude, I'm going to be speaking a lot of Spanish,
04:34so I need you to be my Spanish dialect coach, okay?
04:38And I was like, yeah, yeah, whatever.
04:40And we had all these scenes when he's speaking Spanish.
04:44So I'm there with Ben Affleck directing me in a movie
04:48where I'm acting with Ben Affleck,
04:50and I'm watching Ben Affleck speaking Spanish,
04:53and if he says a word in a weird way,
04:57I need to keep acting the scene and not fuck it up,
05:01and then at the end of the scene, be like,
05:03Ben, that word you said was very weird.
05:06But, you know, like, it was such a weird exercise,
05:09but it was beautiful.
05:10It was beautiful.
