Meet Stephania Sanquiz

Today we’d like to introduce you to Stephania Sanquiz.

Stephania, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I grew up in the dance floor. My mom was a jazz dancer, so when she got married, she went back to my hometown, Coro- Venezuela and built her own pharmacy, working in her second career didn’t take her passion away, so she started teaching jazz and fitness classes in her gym, I still remember they were rehearsing choreographies, and I used to sleep on the dance floor, while they were jumping my body was bouncing too, lol.

I also practiced gymnastics for seven years, it was like a meditation for me, I was so little, and I loved to do those risky jumps. When I was 15 years old, I got into a beauty contest “Miss Teen Venezuela” and did my first singing performance, that’s when I realized what I really wanted to do. Not long after I auditioned for a singer’s reality show called: “Fame, Sweat, and Tears” in the most popular Venezuelan Tv channel: “RCTV” (Radio Caracas Television, I got to stay till last part of competition and then I got a scholarship from executive producers to study acting in the same channel.

I had it all, all I dreamed off since I was a little girl watching Shakira video clips and practicing singing and crying in front of the mirror. I was 17 years old and I was studying acting in the best channel, hanging out with the top artists and producers. I was staying at the same time business administration and English, plus I was teaching yoga and just when I started working in small roles on tv, the dictatorial government closed the channel because they didn’t want the truth of what was happening in Venezuela to be exposed to the world. Years after almost all the tv channels in my country were closed and I realized I was living in a country that was falling apart by the dictatorship.

I always dreamed of going to America, but it was hard for me to make the decision because I was finishing a bachelor degree that I hated it, but I felt that was my commitment with society and my widow mother who sacrificed everything for my sister and me after my father died in a car accident when I was seven years old. After I got my BBA, I went to India and met a spiritual master who taught me about service and Bhakti Yoga; I discovered a purpose, service to others. I went back to my country and started to do service to the community, bringing food, cloth and spiritual knowledge to hospitals, nurse home, orphanages, homeless and children with cancer.

Struggling to combine my spiritual life and the realization of my material desires, I decided to go to New York City as I always dreamed and I got a scholarship to study 2 years of Musical Theater and Acting for Film in New York Film Academy. After I completed I started doing musicals like “The Wedding Singer” at Connelly Theater and American Theater of Actors in NY. I was living with my husband now, Norbi Novak, professional model, and actor, I met him in Miami long before, but after three years living in NY, we decided to move to Los Angeles and focus on acting.

While I was preparing everything to move to LA, I recorded my first single in Miami with Yasmil Marrufo, a friend and someone who I admired and always wanted to work with because he is the biggest music producer in the Latin market. I realized my single and got the opportunity to start promoting independently in channels and radio, unexpectedly my single reached position N2 in the official radio billboard in Venezuela and also the video clip became very popular in “HTV Musica” Channel. That inspired me to be my own boss and start producing scenes, and music.

Now, I recently played the role of Rita in “Marriage Material,” the first movie musical in the history of American Film Institute and I’m choosing projects that I am really passionate about it, but must of all to keep promoting my music. The next step will be creating my own film company and release my first feature film. I tasted what is to be your own boss, bring your own ideas to life, and even though it’s the hardest thing to do because you risk so much and you learn so many different things at once, it’s the most rewarding. I am an Artist, but my purpose of service is my impetus.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Definitely the dictatorship and civil war in my country, the economic problems I’ve faced and the long process I went through to be able to work here. The student visa, then the artist visa and then the green card.

Moving out so many times, living by rent, no work! Oh! God! just I know how much struggle I’ve had and how difficult it’s been emotionally and psychologically.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
I’m producing my music independently as well as writing and bringing stories to life! I’m starting with small stories, short films but I want to build my own film company and create a lot of Movie Musicals. I believe that film era has to come back strongly and it’s coming back!, we can see how marvelous musicals like The Greatest Showman and La La Land. There’s nothing more beautiful that breaking into song when the emotion is so extraordinary, and words are not enough to express it. That’s the magic of film musicals!

I’m proud of coming from a small town like Coro, Falcon, Venezuela and have come this far to pursue my dreams! I believe no matter your background you can break in the most extraordinary form of work and way of living. Because that passion and “playing with impulse and blood,” you can not buy that, you can not teach it either. So I believe in myself, and I am totally in love with acting and singing.

Has luck played a meaningful role in your life and business?
I don’t believe in such a thing like “good luck” and “bad luck” roles, I believe in choosing roles that I am passionate about, roles that vibrates and resonates with me, with my essence, I believe that’s powerful! When you’re telling a story that needs to be told, experiences that happened and people need to watch it, live it with the characters and learn a big message from it!

I love Angelina Jolie because she is doing film with purpose! Everything she does in her life is with a higher purpose. For me, Films like: “La Vida e Bella” or “Unbroken” are the type of films I want to do in the future, those are films that change people’s, and those are stories that really need to be portrayed in a beautiful way because those people experienced extraordinary things.

I’ve had a lot of failures in my life, and what I learned from it? Get up quicker! Keep fighting! Keep believing! Time goes by so quick and how scary is to abandon this body and not have taken advantage of this wonderful opportunity!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.StephaniaSanquiz.com
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stephaniasanquiz/?hl=en
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/StephaniaSanquizOfficial/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/stephanysanquiz
• Other: https://youtu.be/bl0QgZpIDS0
  iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/magic-is-here-single/1167595697
  

Image Credit:
David Rey Photography: @DavidReyPhoto.Weddings
Indra Rodriguez de la Sierra: @IndraRodriguezDeLaSierra
by: @Cm_Schwartzy
by @DanteNightShow

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