We recently connected with Christian Ortiz and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Christian , thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

I’ve always been a risk taker. Always. Something I will always advocate for is taking risk. In this life we sometimes think in two ways, the safe way and the risky way. But I am here to tell you there is only one way, your way. Life in itself is full of risk, this might be your last day alive or you might live f0r 100 years more. You might turn down the “low” paying artist gig for the “safe” corporate job but what happens when there are layoffs in that very “safe” job? There is no “safe” jobs, relationships, adventures, life, etc. This is why you must ALWAYS take the risk, because although life isn’t safe, the most unsafe thing in life is not living the life you always wanted.

Christian , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

Hi there for some of you that may not know about me and my story here is a little bit from the beginning.

The day after I turned 22, I packed all my things into my tiny little car and left my lovely hometown of El Paso, Texas; I can still remember hugging my family goodbye and holding back the tears as I pulled out of the driveway and started my 13-hour journey to Los Angeles, CA.

I didn’t know anyone, had no job, only a credit card and a dream.

Once I arrived I got to work looking for a job, any job. Luckily this cute & delicious family chain restaurant “Los Molcajetes” gave me my first real job in LA as a waiter, I hustled it out daily, but without losing track of the vision.

Then I was fortunate enough to get picked up by Entravision Radio, the same company where my favorite radio personality ‘El Piolin’ had his show. I bonded with everyone there and had a lot of fun, but I knew it was only the beginning.

After that I got hired at SBS Radio/Mega 96.3 at the time LA’s only reggaeton station, I was in the middle of it all during the explosion of the genre, during the earlier days of Bad Bunny, Ozuna, Anuel AA, etc.

But I was still thirsty for more, and by the grace of the higher powers, I got hired as a national television entertainment reporter for Estrella TV. This is where everything started picking up! Not only was it my job to be on television talking and reporting on everything pop culture and entertainment, but new eyes on me, meant new opportunities.

I got cast in a bunch of commercials and even got to be a part of “100 Humans” streaming on Netflix, “Perry Mason” on HBO, and many other supporting roles.

While I loved being on TV and having my parents watch me all the way in Texas, I knew the future is digital.

Life blessed me when I was able to join Buzz Feed’s Pero Like, a creator team made up of Latinos making great content ‘pa’ la cultura’. It is truly the definition of a dream job. I get to have incredible experiences, work with some amazingly talented people, and make content that helps propel Latinos forward in media; something that is VERY important to me.

Recently things have been extra spicy as I went internationally viral for giving Salma Hayek Mexican candy on the carpet of the 2023 Golden Globes. I was interviewed on television and radio by the same companies I used to work at, talk about full circle. Even my tias from the south of Mexico saw it reported on their television.

I’ve interviewed many celebs including Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Vin Diesel, etc., but that moment with Salma Hayek was extra special –as she held high her Mexican candy in her Gucci dress made me so proud to be Mexican and Latino. From the small town of El Paso, Texas to the glamorous red carpets of the Golden Globes, Grammys, and the Oscars, anything is possible, mi gente.

Now, I hope to continue my actor journey and get cast in movie and/or series to continue to represent for Latinos everywhere, I feel it, we’re so close, mi gente! I also plan on producing/directing my first short film this year. There’s so many new wonderful things coming my way and I can’t help but to be grateful for this beautiful life I have. So if anyone is out there reading this unsure if they are good enough to pursue the impossible, I’m here to tell you, it’s possible, believe in yourself and go after it-this world is yours!

What do you think is the goal or mission that drives your creative journey?

It’s a pretty well-known secret, Hollywood doesn’t like Latinos too much. We, mi genre, Latinos make up a huge amount of the general population and even more in California. Yet time and time again research shows that we are mis and underrepresented as a whole in Hollywood-produced television and cinema. According to government-backed research “Hispanic/Latino Americans are the largest ethnic minority group in the U.S., representing 18.8 percent of the total U.S. population” So how do you explain that Latinos mark up almost 20% of population but only show up less than 6% of the time on-screen in Hollywood productions? Its crazy! Here is an excerpt from a video I did with BuzzFeed’s Pero Like titled, “Discrimination in La La Land: Does Hollywood Hate Latinos?”

“Film and television are supposed to be a look into the reality of that given moment in time, and whether you realize it or not, media representation matters. Often, it defines and dictates what we as a society see as “normal.” So when a group of people on-screen are made out to act a certain way, that becomes the norm. By not showing positive examples of us, the Latino community, you are making a statement that there are no positive examples of us, like the millions of people in the comunidad are not worthy or capable of being great. And I don’t know…pero like, were all pretty great.

25% of movie ticket sales are from Latinx audiences, they make up around $1.7 trillion in profit. In the business world they don’t call the latinx market the sleeping giant for nothing. When we like a movie we show up. So to me it seems the head honchos at these hollywood movie studios can’t, or worse don’t want to see us, but they’re sure cashing out!

So, when they refuse to show us on screen it’s not because we are not talented enough, smart enough, pretty enough, or can’t speak the language correctly. It likely comes down to the idea that we are being silenced on purpose because our very existence in this nation is political. Even though a great part of this land was ours we are not wanted here by some. So the question isnt, are Latinx creatives being discriminated against in Hollywood? because that kind of seems like a fact at this point. The question is what are we gonna do about it.

Unfortunately in this scenario we have to speak with our wallet. We must go to our local movie theatres, buy movie tickets, buy the digital copies when they release, stream Latinx-led shows like Maya and the Three, This Foo, Gentefied, Primo. We HAVE to make our voices heard and show Hollywood Hollwyood who’s really in charge and that we are not just little dollar-sign-themed chess pieces to be played with. Not only that but, I encourage all my creative people of all countries under the Latinx umbrella to go and create, go and show these people what we have to offer. Create so much wonderful amazing arpt that it becomes impossible to ignore us. Become the next award-winning escritor, produce that amazing streaming series about your abuela, compose the greatest album inspired por el break up on tu ex, el tóxico, la tóxica you know which one. We as people, we are too beautiful and passionate to be silenced. Showcase all the gorgeous things that encompass the Latine experience….our hardships or difficulties and ultimately our triumphs.

Ya saben, es tiempo de darle duro, Chriz Ortiz, out.”

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

Go for it now, not later! I feel like since I came to LA and I didn’t know anyone I had to learn the game on my own and that obviously took some time. But the thing I have realized the most is go for it now! Don’t wait, there is literally no reason to wait. I used to think things had to be done when the time was right-under the perfect conditions, but I have realized those perfect conditions will never exist and I will end up waiting far longer than I had to. You are good enough now, make the jump, now.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.tiktok.com/@itzchrizortiz
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/itzchrizortiz/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCv2KM5zm71nrDWVOuEfY-2A

Image Credits
I have all the rights to these photos.