We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Brandy Hernandez. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Brandy below.

Brandy, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Let’s start with the story of your mission. What should we know?

For me, as a writer and visual creative, one of my biggest motivators is simply the fact that I have the privilege of being able to pursue what I love and what I want to do. Whenever I think about my life in a bigger scale and out of the context of my own bubble, I realize how insane it is that I’ve come this far. Both of my parents are Mexican immigrants, and most of my family didn’t grow up with the ability or the possibility of being able to pursue something creative or do something that they liked, they just needed to figure out how to survive. And my brother was a drummer, but life took him in a different direction and he ended up not being able to pursue a musical career. I’m one of the few people in my immediate and extended family that has a college degree, and I’m fairly certain I’m the only one pursuing a career in a creative field. So the fact that I’m able to do this is insane to begin with, and it’s what really pushes me to go forward and want to succeed. I want to do film and creative work not just because I love it, but because I’ve beaten all the odds to get where I am, and it would insane to just let all that effort- both mine and my family’s- go to waste.

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?

From a very young age, I had a fascination for the arts and anything creative. I loved to read, and that’s what I spent most of my time doing. And my brother was a huge audiophile and super into film, so he was always listening to cool indie bands or watching weird indie films, and a lot of the sounds and imagery really rubbed off on me, and so I got into music myself and started to seek out more and more. And as I got older, I started to watch more movies too, and I think subconsciously I was seeking out films similar to the ones I remembered watching as a kid, and it would be so satisfying to watch a film and then recognizing a shot, and realizing that I had seen it years prior, and I just didn’t know what I was watching at the time.

As I got older and started to think more about a career and what I wanted to do in college, I figured that because I liked film so much, and because I liked writing in my free time, that screenwriting might be perfect for me. And I was right- I got into USC’s screenwriting program and upon starting college, I realized that I really loved writing for film. And throughout school, I dabbled in other things and took a variety of different classes and tried to figure out what else I liked, and have gotten really into photography, especially concert photography, and video art as well. Though writing is my main “thing”, I would love to explore these other avenues of creativity and art, and figure out other ways of expressing myself and putting my thoughts out into the world.

My biggest achievement was a short film I wrote my junior year, and was produced in collaboration with USC’s Latine film club. It was one of the most rewarding experiences ever. The film at its core was about family and Latinidad and my own connection to my culture, and was a story that was close to my heart. And, with the exception of one individual, our entire cast and crew was Latine. Working on a set with a bunch of Latine creatives who shared my love for film and truly understood my story was such a rewarding feeling, and I was so proud to have been able to help create this space for all of us to come and work together. And for many of us, not only was it the first time we had ever been on a set that was majority Latine, but it was the first time we had been in a room with so many Latines since coming to USC. For me, this experience was rewarding, not just because I was able to bring my script to life, but because of the content of my film, I created a space for Latine creatives to come together and connect, which was something I never thought I would’ve been able to do.

When it comes to how people perceive my work and what I do, all I really want is for someone to be able to connect to it. Whether it be through a cultural aspect, or something else, I want people to be able to relate to what I am doing and the messages I’m trying to convey. Because, at the end of the day, all my stories and the art I make are about life and about my own personal experiences. One of the best feelings in the world is to be able to relate to a book you read, or a movie you saw, or a song you listened to. And I hope to be able to build those human connections with my own work, and make people feeling something- anything- when they read/watch/or look at my work.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Something that I already touched on was the whole relatability thing. Having people react to my work and say that they relate to it is so satisfying. The first feature script I ever wrote was a complicated story that was an obvious self-insert about my own relationship with my identity and my family. And I had sent it to a friend so she could review my Spanish, since my Spanish writing isn’t perfect. And when she sent it back with corrections, she told me how much she loved the story because it reminded her of her own relationship with her family. There were no other Mexicans or Latine individuals in the class where I had written the script, so it was my first time being told that from someone who had the same background as me tell me that they thought my work was relatable. For me, this is what brings me joy and satisfaction with my work, knowing that people who share my identity and experiences can see themselves within my work.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

Networking is one of the things that people really push in the entertainment industry. Everyone says that that’s the most important thing and it’s what will get you anywhere. But, throughout the years I’ve really had to reframe the way I view networking and how I approach it. People shouldn’t go into conversations with the intention of connecting with the most powerful person in the room or with the intention of getting something from someone else. It is almost always so painfully obvious when someone is talking to you because they want something. I’ve realized that the best way to network and make genuine connections with people is to just make friends with people you think are cool. I’ve made some of my best connections by just showing up to things and talking to people who I want to be friends with. And in turn, a lot of these people have tried to help me out and uplift me because of our friendship. All of the people that have tried to help me with jobs or creative work are people who are my friends and who I befriended in a very organic way, and not because both of us wanted something from each other.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://brandyhernandez8.wordpress.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/amrcnftbll/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandy-hernandez-882ab91b8/
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@brandyhernandez_?si=exumCkr1vYIQy5Pb
• Other: https://www.instagram.com/okaypaddy/