MARIA CORINA RAMIREZ TALKS BRIDGES
"The story had been yearning to be told"
Daniel John
About a dreamer, by a dreamer, for dreamers. ‘Bridges’ is a personal story for you, one drawn out of your own experience as a Venezuelan immigrant who once lived undocumented in the U.S?
The story had been yearning to be told for years. Truthfully for many of those years I was in denial about it because I was really afraid that it was something that wouldn't resonate with anyone else. I have found that often in this kind of experience, we think we are the only people it's happening to. In 2016, after I was commissioned to do an original one-woman show on stage that had a lot of the same themes of my personal experiences in it, I realized there was something there. The play was sold out for three weekends, and it was highly resonant with audiences. It was then that I decided to dust off the script for the film which I had started to write my junior year of college.
Immigrant stories in film have often been told through a white lens, take 'Spanglish', for example. It’s a good film, but one that still misses a deeper truth, limited by the perspective of those behind it, they could never know your experience, your family, the way you do?
Early on in the process, I had some interest in the film that could have potentially taken it the studio direction. Who knows if it would have ever been made but it was clear to me after the initial meetings that this was not the right route for this story. A lot of what had held me back from wanting to tell it was that for years I thought that it was inherently melodramatic and preachy because of the subject matter. I realized that that wasn't true of the story or of the experience, only of the way those stories had been told, particularly because of that non-lived in perspective you describe. So when I finally decided to tell the story, I knew early on that the only way to make it feel authentic and not riddled with cliches was to tell it myself. I am really grateful to have had that insight.
Authenticity always wins in the end, not just for the communities represented, but for everyone. It simply makes for better storytelling, for better films. A good story builds bridges, no matter where the audience is. Look at 'Moonlight', 'Lion', 'Bridges'. Do you feel optimistic about the future, about more voices being heard in film?
Absolutely. I am glad to be creating in a time where there is a growing knowledge of how important it is to let people tell their own stories from their distinct perspectives, there is a lot of room to grow still but I am certainly optimistic. I think the awareness and the intentions are there and those are pivotal first steps.
What was a film or other piece of art that you saw where you felt that you were represented for the first time?
The first time I ever saw myself represented in anything was in Lin-Manuel Miranda's 'In the Heights' on Broadway. I had been studying theatre at performing arts schools from a very young age but always had to do the reaching myself- pass for all American, play all American roles, and so on. When I had the honor of seeing Lin up there and hear the lyrics and rhythms of the songs he crafted which reflected so much of my own hyphenated identity and experience I felt seen in ways I never had before. His work and John Leguizamo's work were both pivotal in my realizing I could have the permission to do the same with my experiences, share them in the best way I know how, storytelling.
You were born in Venezuela and came to the U.S. with your family in 1997. Just eight years old. Young, but still old enough to take in the world around you. I find it interesting that you chose to tell this story not from your own perspective, but from your older sister’s. Why hers, and not your own?
There is certainly some of my own perspective laced in there. My sisters and I all went through adolescence in the middle of the same storm. I've always understood the world by laying it out in stories or playing them out in roles I've acted in. I've been very observant and curious most of my life. I got to observe my sister very closely throughout that time and a lot of her is in me too. Understanding her was understanding me.
Nathalia Lares, as Gaby, plays the role which can be seen as “you”. She’s the little sister, what was it like finding and casting your younger self?
Nathalia is such a talented young actress! What captivated me most from the moment I met her was this thing she exuded. A palpable sense of life beyond her years, eyes that knew and understood humanity in a much more nuanced way than most kids her age. But at the same time, still maintaining an innocence that is necessary to view life optimistically. She reminded me of myself. Instantly. I wanted to celebrate and protect the dichotomy of that depth and innocence. We developed a bond that is still precious to this day.
You were nine when you began acting. Did art, stories, in a way became home, when still trying to feel rooted in this new place?
Absolutely. Art became my home. It became the place where I found a much-yearned for sense of belonging. It was refuge. It still is.
Was it something you had been interested in even before, back when you were a girl in Venezuela?
I was in the arts in Venezuela. I was in dance, played the cuatro, a Venezuelan four string instrument, and did competitive poetry recitals. But art took a whole new meaning when moving here.
One of your sisters also worked on the film, as a producer. What was it like for the rest of your family to see it?
My dad never got to see the film. But I know how he would have felt. I know it would have made him extremely proud. My mother has seen it probably more times than I have! She and my sisters have been so moved by it. It's been deeply healing for them as it was for me, to see our experience and realize how far we've come.
