We recently connected with Jody Mortara and have shared our conversation below.

Jody, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Can you talk to us about a project that’s meant a lot to you?

My ability to stop trying to control my destiny was the beginning to my success. It started with a reality show I feel God laid on my heart. That show led to the establishment of a non profit for the special needs community. Which produced a tv show, pod cast and a future for that community to be seen and heard through media. With an underserved community of 56 Million, this group of eager Americans want to be included in the story of American workers. They have dreams, goals, and want the chance to enact those on a daily basis.

The second moment where I was able to create and enact the kind of project I felt was important and achieved a message to uplift, inspire and entertain through comedy, was my feature film, “Cocoa”. Again, this story, this project felt miraculous. That by my letting go of how or why my career should manifest, I felt God stepped in to take the reins. It was an out pouring of fun, of comedy, of creativity with such ease that I wondered why I had made things so difficult for myself for so many years! By doing what I felt was a co-authorship between myself and God, I was not only rewarded with a wonderful script, but the money to produce this film and to be able to co-direct and star in a film I wrote! But, then to be blessed with 7 (so far) film awards in categories for best film, best comedy, best female film as well as best script and best actress with the Cannes Arts Film Fest.
This was all beyond what I had expected.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I always knew I loved entertainment. I started the piano at age 7 and learned classical piano. Soon I was accompanying for the choir at my school and performing at various school functions, etc. When I got into high school, I fell in love with musicals. That’s when I knew I couldn’t do a ‘regular’ job with my life. The art of acting, singing, creating became more important than the stability of a ‘normal’ job. Though I had many interests in a lot of different non entertainment things, such as alternative medicine (with which I received a BS degree), and business in general, I looked at anything other than entertainment as a side interest. Most of my time pursuing my career was spent as an actress. I quickly knew I loved being in front of a camera. There was something intoxicating about the notion of permanently capturing a performance, a moment in time. Even though the immediate accolade of a live performance is fulfilling, it is only a fleeting moment in time. I had always been a singer, but around this same time I I got an opportunity to record for a song writer. That led to my recording cd’s for myself. The next step was to start writing my own songs. I had never written anything and up to this point, it was absolutely daunting! But, I started playing random chords and melody lines on the piano, then started writing these ideas down. I wanted to tell a story too, so I started writing lyrics (which was completely out of my wheel house after a third grade teacher said I had no abilities in this area). But, I persisted. And, the more I wrote, the easier it became. It was the catalyst to my realizing that I actually had talent as a writer, not just with music, but with lyrics, which led to scripts.

Somewhere along the line though, I realized there were many things I would not do to achieve my goals as an actress and knew I needed to create my own destiny. That’s when I got into financing films. It started with other people’s projects, but projects I could act in. I was successful in funding a few of those, but I still didn’t have the creative vision safely in my control. So, I started creating tv content and then I wrote my film, “Cocoa”. Which has been the pinnacle of my career so far.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I remember being quite young and trying to ‘make’ it as an actress. I was whisked off in a limousine to some event by people I don’t even know how I met. At that same time in my life, I was dating some Arab Prince. I thought I had the world in my grasp and the sky was the limit. What I found was, these people had expectations of me. So disgusting were these expectations that I knew, as a good Christian girl, I could never perform. I remember when the realization of what was expected of me sunk in. I literally felt my body seizing. At one point, I was offered a penthouse in New York if I would do their bidding. Careers being offered to me. Whatever I wanted. I even had a friend who was in the Italian/Israeli mob who tried to get me to run money through my bank (money laundering).
I was offered lead roles in tv series, feature films by names everyone reading this will recognize. But, always with some strings attached. I started thinking there must be a way to play in their court without having to do any of their dastardly things!

But, in the end, I waisted a lot of time and energy trying to be a part of their world without actually being a part of them.
There was no way to do that and maintain my spiritual self. The self that would keep my soul safe.

That was a day that crushed me. I pulled away from the business to try and regroup and find a different avenue to (as my mother used to say) ‘have my cake and eat it too’. Which of course was an expression that never made sense to me. ‘why wouldn’t I want to eat my cake too’, I would ask!

It was this time in my life that I actually became me, Jody Mortara. The woman who entered into a partnership with God. That moment was when I realized how much power I actually had. When the bible says, ‘through Him all things are possible’…God wasn’t joking!

Any resources you can share with us that might be helpful to other creatives?

Yes. Once I realized that I had power beyond my wildest dreams through God, I started going to His instruction manual! The bible. But, with one major caveat. I stopped letting a pastor or commentator explain to me what I was reading. I read for myself. I let the holy spirit tell ME what the meaning was. It was so empowering that it changed my life….all for the better.

I’m not sure why I thought I had to do everything on my own, but, I suspect I’m not alone with this misconception.

I started on a journey to understand why we are here on planet earth. What do prophecies tell us? How does that relate to what’s happening in the world? How does that affect me? How can that help me become better at my art, at my contribution to society?

And, I suddenly saw the world in a very different way. I saw a vortex of sorts surrounding me. A clear, protected pathway to my destiny. And, now I allow the ‘next step’ to manifest the way it is meant to. And, if nothing seems to be happening, I do something else, go in my garden, play with my chickens, bake something yummy. And, suddenly the phone will ring, an email will come through with exactly what I need…The next step in my journey.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jodymortara/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100085998135133
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jody-mortara-17643914/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC2uDw9ral7cqX42VZTrY1BA

Image Credits
Most of the shots are associated with my film, “Cocoa”. The shot from “Vertical” is a film I was an actress in.