We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Yoshi Barrigas. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Yoshi below.
Yoshi, appreciate you joining us today. When did you first know you wanted to pursue a creative/artistic path professionally?
From as long as I am remember I had a camcorder in my hand. It probably started with capturing memories for family gatherings. My earliest “storytelling” obsession was wrestling. For years my friends and I would create storylines and characters and wrestle in each others basements. I started getting creative with the production which led to me teaching myself how to edit video on a basic software. Naturally the next step was to try and tell some kind of original story with my camera so I gathered any and every reluctant friend I could convince to “act” and started churning out movies. This is not the part where I say my movies were indicative of some future artsy director. On the contrary they were ridiculously bad and probably inspired by movies like “Rush Hour” combining comedy inspired by inside jokes between my friends and I and fight sequences. But nothing made me feel more alive and I quickly got the itch. I would go on to make a series of short movies called “Portuguese Warfare” starring my grandparents who were very Portuguese and did not speak much English. It was a very run and gun tactic and would improvise everything scene by scene. The basic plot was that my two grandmothers were in some ancient rivalry, we never really find out why. They are forced to team up in order to take out the patriarch, my grandfather “The Chief”. But after they do, in a later movie, he comes back from the dead, some spirit version of himself, seeking revenge. It was all very silly but I was always very proud of these movies because it got the whole family involved and being creative, and watching my families faces when they would watch my movies filled me with joy and purpose. It was their smiles and tears, watching my videos throughout the years, that were likely my first indicator that this is what I want to do with my life. To entertain and tell stories.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I am an actor with aspirations to eventually transition into directing. I drove out to Los Angeles from Cape Cod, Massachusetts in 2010 after graduating college. All I ever learned from my schooling was that I did not want to work a 9-5, so my manifest destiny was mostly running away from that. I was running on naivety that with zero training I could somehow become a successful actor. Thank God for naivety.
My first big gig was in 2015 when I booked a guest star role on “The Big Bang Theory”. It was my first real opportunity to understand the mechanics of a fast paced professional production, and the pressure of performing. It took me a few of these guest star type roles to build the confidence to seize the moment when it comes rather than underperform due to nerves or some strange sense that you don’t want to outshine the stars. But like a boxer or fighter, nothing replaces the minutes in the ring. You can practice and simulate the fight as much as you want, but the real learning and progress happens in the actual fight. Or in my case, between action and cut.
I went on to do shows like “Criminal Minds” and I had a significant role in the pilot episode of a show called “SIX” where I felt like I did my first real acting.
But my “break” came in 2020 when I booked the role of the apostle “Philip” on the series “The Chosen”, which has become one of the biggest shows in the world. This was my first series regular role. I now had the opportunity I had been searching for. The prospect of diving into a character that I am partially responsible for creating. One that I get to live with for years.
“The Chosen” is essentially Game of Thrones for the New Testament of The Bible. Minus the sex and violence. The show focuses on Jesus and his 12 disciples. The show is unique in that it is the first ever crowd funded major series and the fan base is fervent in their support. To this day I still feel the love from the fans.
My time on “The Chosen” is where I would truly fall in love with the craft. I was grateful that the production really wanted me to bring my essence to the character. This was new to me, finding parts of myself to lend to Philip. I was told he was the sort of frat leader of the apostles. I sort of made him the hippie of the group. The only disciple that was prepared for the tough road ahead. I prepared for the role by fasting, going on long arduous hikes in the blistering sun, cold plunges, vows of silence…all things my character would have been doing in his training for the day the messiah arrived.
I ended up learning pretty quickly that all that preparation wasn’t at all necessary for my performance. The only purpose it really served was to prove to myself my own dedication to the craft. As I worked on the show I started learning that the best way for me to contribute was to learn my lines whilst trying my best not to pre plan my performance, and then just show up and surrender and trust that there was something in me that would express itself in accordance with the scene so long as I could get out of my own way. My biggest battle as a creative was, and still is, the pressure I put on myself. For sure my best scenes as Philip were the ones where I allowed myself to have fun and let Yoshi come out for a dance.
My aim as a creative is to make myself a hallow flute for God to make music through.
I never planned to get work in the faith based industry but for now that has been my path and I am grateful for it. I recently had the opportunity to play the lead in what will be my first feature film to be in theaters. It is called “Forty Seven Days with Jesus” and hits theaters March 11th. It was very refreshing to play a modern man after having done a period piece with an accent for some years.
I hope to continue to have opportunities to play characters and tell stories. Every time I get in there I learn something new and I feel as though I’m just beginning to grasp this strange and awesome thing called acting.
Soon I plan to make my directorial debut on the stage, directing an original piece about wasted talent in 1997 New York. A script I intend to turn into a film someday.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
This wasn’t originally by design but looking back on all my original scripts and music I have found a very common theme running through them; Paradox. Now it has become a conscious driving force. Exploring the marriage of opposing poles. Pleasure and pain, for example. You can’t have one without the other.
I also am obsessed with discovering in the moment. Preparing as much as possible but ultimately surrendering and discovering in a collaborative way. Improvisation, in other words.
I just want to work with likeminded people and stretch for new and exciting ways to tell stories.
What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?
I like the moment where you think you knew what something was but you were wrong. Creation is an endless well. And it’s all interconnected. Spending thousands of hours learning one creative path…when you start putting the hours into a different path, you may pick it up a little quicker than expected. To me it’s the disappearing that is addicting. The Zen of it all. When you disappear the communication begins.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @yoshibarrigas
- Youtube: @yoshtube
- Other: IMDB: imdb.me/yoshibarrigas
Image Credits
River Callaway (Getty) The Chosen