We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Maria Jose De La Cruz a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Maria Jose, thanks for joining us today. Are you happier as a creative? Do you sometimes think about what it would be like to just have a regular job? Can you talk to us about how you think through these emotions?

I am happy, but I also think that life as an artists or a creative can’t stay consistently happy. The highs are very highs and the lows can also be very low. This path comes with a lot of uncertanty and with a lot of silence when it comes to projects or auditions. So I would lie to say I have never thought about what would it be to have a regular job or become a digital nomad and travel the world, but I always come to the same conclusion. I would go crazy if I didn’t get to act or create.

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 feel like I started acting and telling stories before I knew that was what I was doing. I always felt drawn to performing, someway or the other. Eventually, I learned to understand and respect the craft and the way that it helps others. Art makes people feel seen and feel heard, and that was the biggest superpower I could ask for. I grew up in Mexico, where there is unfortunatley a lot of social injustice, specifically towards women. One of the first proyects I got to work on professionally was about the feminicides and the kidnapping that are so often silenced, and although now with more acting experience under my belt and remembering the mistakes I learned from on that set, it is to the day one of the projects I am the most proud about, because it was so much greater than me. It was for all of the women in Mexico that weren’t given a voice. I love acting, in every genre and every posible way to do it, and I would lie if I didn’t say a dream role of mine is to do and action-comedy movie, but telling those stories is what will always drive me the furthest.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

It’s bigger than the projects we do. So often non-creatives will ask you about your last project, or when the next one is coming, or the famous “what have I seen you in?”, but the life as a actor isn’t consistent with projects. They are mayor triumphs, and they should be more than bragged and celebrated, but more often than not, that is the day to day expectation from actors. Being an actor and being famous are not the same thing and sometimes people mistake that or because of that they decide to take you less seriously. I think also the biggest struggle can be that being a creative is form me one of the most vulnerable career paths, and I think people tend to forget about that. To create is to look inward and to dig and to work through what you may or may not want to work through, to give justice to the truth you are creating.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

Moving people. I always have said it and probably always will but we underestimate how much art actually impacts and moves people, and most importantly, when people are moved they are willing to do something about it. I know what it is to be in an audience and be completly and utterly moved, and I don’t mean moved as the dramatic sense of the word. Moved as in your emotions moved; jumped up and down, twisted, bent or levitated but your emotions were moved. That for me is the biggest reward. the ability to make others take a dive into the pool of emotions we carry as humans and very rarely dip our toes in.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/MariaJoseDeLaCruz
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/majo.delacruz/?hl=en