Origin

Monique’s Story

American & Latinx at the Same Time

My dad’s life was a Cuban Martin Scorsese movie, a silver-screen scrappy dramedy. As a self-proclaimed entrepreneur, he became the chauffeur of a Colombian drug lord and ended up fleeing a drug bust only to get caught on the Palmetto Expressway with a van full of opioids. He was sentenced to prison the day I was born, becoming bunkmates with the uncle of a famous pop star, who then helped us into our first house (which inspired the story of Anchor Babies).

How could I not get into showbiz?

I was performing at age six and writing short plays by middle school. This is also when the Latinx Culture got into me. My siblings and I went to school in Hialeah, Florida, a boisterous town steeped in throwback Cuban culture.

Every day, we ran to my grandparents’ house, smack dab in the middle of it all: lechon asado crackling over the fire pit, espresso machines whipping up cortaditos, the ruckus at El Super when meat goes on sale, underground news in Español, the squeak of plastic-covered couches, family members screaming over each other on Sansgiving, piñatas spilling out mini agua de violetas, cigars, and whiskey, and clanging pots on New Year’s. I saw this all play out through the camera lens of my granddad, our family’s resident photographer back when Kodak film meant serious business.

America got in there, too: Barbie Dream House, Little Mermaid, SNL, Country Music, Science Fairs, Soccer, Captain of the All-star Cheer Team, Community Organizing, Student Council President...

With a mom who didn’t know English and a dad who didn’t know Spanish, I learned to salsa between the lines. This conversation between the American Girl and the Latina, winner of the city’s Essayist of the Year Award as the misunderstood child of an immigrant family—this dichotomous life—has given me a foundation of fresh and textured material as an actor, writer, producer, and director.

College & Culture Shock in Florida

I chose Florida State University because it had a good film program. That, and I got a scholarship. My big hoop earrings and Latinaness definitely stuck out, an entrée into navigating the dialogue around multiculturalism.

Here are some highlights from that period:
• BA in Communications & Media Production
• Double Minor in Theater and Hispanic Marketing
• Classical Theater Fellowship in London
• Garnet & Gold Key
• Founder, Lingua Franca Multilingual Theater Company
• Founder, FSUnited Cross-Cultural Movement
• Starring Roles in 12 Films, LA Showcase
• On-Air News Reporter, NPR and The Florida Channel
• FSU Alumni Hall of Fame

Upon returning from London, I further immersed myself in classical training at Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Massachusetts. Fate struck soon after when the late Burt Reynolds directed me in a film and subsequently recommended that I make the great pilgrimage to LA. So, I packed my Hialeah heels and off I went to California.

Day Job: PR, Marketing, & Sales

Upon reaching the Golden State, I got into Public Relations, first as an Account Manager at a firm and later, for a vitamin-infused sparkling water company in Los Angeles (since acquired by Coke), where I handled everything, from cold calls to marketing campaigns to in-store promotions.

I also secured venues and sponsors for the American Red Cross for 2 years.

In driving campaigns and landing accounts, I honed my ability to craft a message for a particular audience, to develop rapport quickly, and to write content that reaches people and inspires them into action.

These skills would later prove invaluable to me as a producer. Meanwhile...

Full-time Acting & Writing in LA

I still recall when I got my SAG-AFTRA card. Best day ever. Soon, I began earning a living as an actor, working in theater, film, TV, voiceovers, improv, sketch comedy, commercials, promos, and one or two questionable Spanish gameshows.

As an actor and voice artist, I performed in films, Pilots, and TV shows alongside A-list actors, and hit the comedy circuit with Upright Citizens Brigade, iO West, and Second City, which played a big part in developing my comedic chops for writing, directing, and developing memorable characters. I also took writing workshops like Save the Cat and completed training programs at The Barrow Group Theater Company in NYC. I started developing half-hour shows, joined the WGAE, and sold then shot my first studio Pilot.

I studied under Gregory Berger, Larry Moss, Anthony Meindl, Tina Packer, Mark Rylance, and protégés of Stanford Meisner, Peggy Fury, and Uta Hagen. I learned the Linklater Technique, clowning, physical comedy, playwright analysis, and creative writing. I completed the Writer’s Guild staff writer training program.

Later on, I shadowed directors Lesli Linka Glatter and Clark Johnson, which launched me into directing.

I’ve had two production companies. We’ll call the first one a starter kit.

RezLab Entertainment

I co-founded RezLab with an Emmy-winning producer to develop commercials, advertising, music videos, pitches, and some creative short films I co-wrote which won awards at US festivals. We also won a National VFX Award from Ad Creative.

It’s at RezLab where I cut my teeth on running the show, learn how to manage talent and crews on set, understand what everyone’s job entails, adjust scripts on the fly, negotiate with vendors, troubleshoot unforeseen crises, drive post-production, and run promotions. Above all, I gained a sense of how to foster a positive environment.

We were tireless and we had some good wins, producing for Latin Grammy and Cannes Lions award-winning artists and entities from Colombia, Mexico, San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Australia. RezLab was my real- world crash course in producing, inspired by American Zoetrope’s early years, throwing caution to the wind, collaborating with contemporaries, experimenting... finding my voice.

She Se Puede Productions

In New York, everything comes together under She Se Puede Productions... my Latin-American upbringing, my production experience, my roots in activism and leadership, my acting career, my time in marketing and sales, and all my training.

She Se Puede is my voice — authentic, honest and, yes, loud.

We deliver smart, funny, and touching portrayals of family, art, community, fashion, and grassroots activism through the lens of Latinx/Latin-American storytellers and multicultural women with unique stories that reveal the universality of our shared experiences in places like New Orleans, Nice, Mumbai, Montreal, NYC, Hialeah, and New Jersey, partnering with Emmy, Peabody, and Canadian Screen award-winning directors and producers.

We develop family drama/ comedy series, documentaries, and docuseries that illuminate the lives of unforgettable people and a vibrant, albeit somewhat hidden, culture that is deeply woven across America.

Yes, she can.
Yes, we can.
Yes, we will.

She Se Puede.