Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Rossana Barrera. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Rossana, appreciate you joining us today. What was the most important lesson/experience you had in a job that has helped you in your creative career?

I have been lucky enough to have had a professional career in education and human resources prior to becoming an actor. In the past I’ve been a special education assistant in preschool, a mindfulness coach in middle school, an algebra teacher in high school, and a leadership course facilitator and advisor for college students. I’ve also been a human resource consultant, and had other odd jobs like sales associate, production assistant, tour guide, library clerk, among others.

All of this experience has helped me realize that no matter what I do, I want to make sure I put human connection first. It is not a coincidence that most, if not all, of my jobs require me to interact with other people in scenarios where we are both open to learning from each other. It has helped me develop skills like listening, trust, and empathy, which I know now are also indispensable for acting.

More than any hard or technical skill, my life experience has helped me see the importance of interacting with other people, and realizing that everyone has something of value to contribute.

Rossana, 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?

I am a Mexican singer and actress. I moved to New York in 2023 in the pursuit of making art and connecting with people. Prior to living in the city I had little experience and education in acting, but always had big dreams of doing this one day. Now, I have graduated from AMDA’s Integrated Conservatory, and have been involved in a number of projects ranging from cabaret concerts and musical developmental readings, to acting in short films and doing voice acting for an animated series.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

There are two main goals for me when it comes to my career. The first is that I want to be able to live off of my art, paying back any money to people that helped me get to where I am. And the second is that I want to be proud and satisfied of all the work I do, making sure I pick projects that represent me and my values, but also challenge me as a person and artist.

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

I’ve had to learn to not put my value in other people’s opinions of me. If I do the work and I’m satisfied with what I’ve done, I’ll know I did a good job, regardless of the audience’s reaction to me. However, when people come up to me and say that they connected deeply with a song I sang, or a scene I did, I do feel as though everything I did has paid off. In the end, I strive for connection through art so if I know that happened, I feel extremely happy and proud

Contact Info:

• Website: https://rossanabarrera.com
• Instagram: @rossanabarrera

Image Credits

Shani Hadjian Photography
Apple Tsai
AMDA