Today we’d like to introduce you to Eduardo Olmos.
Hi Eduardo, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
I was born in Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico. I came to the US to learn English and somewhere along that process, I happened to do a play. One of the first things I did was Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, where I proudly played the ship’s captain. I didn’t really know what I was saying, but I liked it. So I kept doing it. Eventually, I moved to New York to study drama at NYU Tisch. I moved to LA not long after graduating, where I’ve been since. Now my English is much improved, and can confidently say I know about fifty percent of the words that come out of my mouth.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
It certainly has been a winding road. Any actor knows how it goes, but I had the extra layer of dealing with immigration woes. Any international actors, artists, or immigrants in general can attest that, even in the most straightforward scenarios, it can be an unpredictable position to be in. It’s especially weird as an actor since a lot of doors just won’t open if you don’t have your situation sorted. This meant talking with a lot of lawyers and a lot of pursuit. But I finally had a wonderful lawyer guide me through it, and one pandemic later I have some wonderful projects under my belt and the future looks bright. Shoutout to Maria Andrea Wesch at the Law Offices of Camila R. Ransom for all her help in this windy road.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I’m an actor. I’ve been doing it for a bit now and always looking for new, exciting projects. One of the ones I am most proud of is a project I worked on during the pandemic called “La Casa de la Abuela” (Grandma’s House). At some point into the pandemic, I began talking with my good friend, Dante Jiayu Liu, who has also been featured in this publication, about safely shooting a project that encapsulated some of what we were going through during the pandemic, but also as people who have left their homeland in pursuit of their careers, who feel they’ve left a lot behind and sometimes feel like whatever “home” means becomes increasingly tenuous. Ultimately it’s about homesickness and belonging. We were in lockdown, our families far away, and were looking at a period of tremendous uncertainty. So we put together this short. It’s essentially a conversation between a man stuck in the U.S. and his grandmother, who wants him to return to Mexico.
There’s a lot about this film that is special to me on a personal level. But one thing I think makes this very special is how the creators of this project (Dante and I), one from China and the other from Mexico, recognized the same feelings and vulnerabilities and found so much common ground. The script is in Spanish. The director did not speak a lick of it. The actor (me) is Mexican. The crew was almost entirely Chinese. And pretty much everyone hailed from somewhere other than the U.S. in this project. One could safely assume it would be a Tower of Babel, with cultures seemingly ripe to clash. But instead, we saw each other in the shoes of the other, and Dante directed it with such care and understanding that it language almost became secondary.
The short made its way to Rome via the Rome Prisma Film Awards, to the San Diego Latino Film Festival, and to the prestigious FIRST International Film Festival in China, among others. The thought of so many cultures responding to this cross-cultural handshake was a big, proud moment for me.
I’ve worked on other fun, exciting projects since. One most recently I filmed in Mexico. I look forward to disclosing more details about it as the news of it are released. I’ve worked with an astounding pool of talent, and my latest project is no exception. I hope to continue to be this fortunate, and I don’t take it for granted.
What makes you happy?
My family. My friends. Acting, especially when it’s the good stuff. Making people laugh. Traveling. And food, of which LA has an endless supply.
I think the why’s of most of the above are obvious. And most of it goes hand in hand! Going to a restaurant with friends and family to eat, drink and be merry? It’s the perfect combo. I guess acting is left out of that equation, although I was once forced to do a monologue at some dinner and I went blank. It was embarrassing and if you can weasel yourself out of situations like that, I highly recommend it.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @eolmosm
