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Meet Wesley Rodriguez

Today we’d like to introduce you to Wesley Rodriguez.

Wesley, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
It all started with a sprinkle of childhood imagination and a mix of my Miami, Cuban-Guatemalan spice. See, I used to play with action figures. I’m not sure if kids know what those are anymore. I used to play with the Beast Wars, Pokémon and Sonic the Hedgehog action figures. I would typically recruit my dad as an actor and sound fx specialist, while my mom was the cinematographer. These home movies we used to make would have full story arcs as well as intros and outros.

I was also pretty blessed to have cousins who were also imaginative in their own way. We had binders filled with episode guides of each of our battles with episode descriptions, dates, locations, etc. At one point, my cousin Chantal and I had a Pokémon matrimony, marrying our toys using several rolls of toilet paper in a sort of heart-wrenching season finale. It’s really funny looking back to see where it all started because we often lose sight of what brought us joy back then.

With that said, I grew up. I graduated from my dream school, the University of Florida, where I focused on photography and film production. I made ‘Cycle,’ my first kick-ass film with my best friends, got involved in as many 24-hour film competitions as I could and started my first and only sketch comedy channel on YouTube. But I hungered for more. I had my eyes set for LA.

I moved to LA after being accepted to the grad school program at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. I became entrenched in the real deal in a real place where “real” films got made. I’ll never forget the moment Spielberg along with his editor, Michael Kahn, walked into the USC theater and presented Jurassic Park in person. I was in a full state of stargaze—here was a man who I have admired since I was a young boy presenting my favorite movie of all time. It inspired me and made me want to work even harder.

A few years later, I graduated USC taking with me the opportunities to meet and work with some very talented people and mentors who have helped guide me along the way.

Since graduating, I got an opportunity of a lifetime (thanks to Black Factory Cinema) to make a film in Cuba with legendary director, Werner Herzog. From conventional film school to his unconventional style of filmmaking, he mentored me as I co-wrote and directed Palante, a short film about an impoverished young Cuban girl and her grandfather immigrating to the United States during the economic crisis in the 90s.

That film really changed my life. It solidified my focus on telling more stories using my cultural background as a centerpiece and more importantly, the power of female leads as well. My mother and my grandmothers have always been the strongest people in my life and for that, I thank them for contributing to the idea of “Pa’lante” which means to move forward in Spanish.

So anyhow, Palante hit the festival circuit and was awarded Best Film, Best Directing and Best Short Screenplay in various festivals across the US and abroad, as well as garnered media attention from former Univision reporter Maria Elena Salinas. Shortly after, I made another short film based on my experience being disconnected from my family during Hurricane Irma. If you haven’t noticed, I love my family. Not hearing from them as the eye of category four Hurricane rolls through your hometown can really affect your psyche.

So I made ‘Disconnected’ starring my friend and actress, Angelique Rivera, who portrayed a young woman braving the psychological moments of disconnection from her mother in Puerto Rico during Hurricane Maria. Disconnected premiered in Puerto Rico and at the HBO Presents New York Latino Film Festival in Manhattan.

Currently, I share my time between freelancing as a writer-director and cinematographer with that of being a mentor and educator for children between 6th-8th grade with the Latino Film Institute’s Youth Cinema Project, under the guidance of its founder, Edward James Olmos.

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?
It hasn’t been the smoothest road, of course. There have been too many obstacles to count. Financially speaking, I’ve lived month to month since graduating, some months not making enough for rent or food. I’ve had to resort to what we call in Spanish, “Comida de Pobres, ” which means poor people food—rice, eggs, and Vienna sausage—it’s quite the delicacy, to be honest. I’ve had to endure many rejections from festivals to jobs to failed relationships both in work and in love.

Being in a creative field is not easy. You constantly struggle with the inner voice doubting your ability to do anything and be something. I think they call it the imposter syndrome, where you always feel like a fraud. For being a big city, LA can be lonely too. So yeah there are battles with depression every once in a while especially when you feel like you’re not where you want to be.

But that’s part of the journey, right? We celebrate the wins but more importantly, the losses too.

We’d love to hear more about what you do.
As of right now, my own company is in the works, but currently, I freelance as a writer-director, and cinematographer for narrative features, shorts, and commercials.

I have worked as a cinematographer for more than 30 short films, two independent documentaries in Thailand and Japan and two feature films. No Todo Es Trabajo, an Ecuadorian feature film I shot in 2017, was the most watched local film in the country for 2018 during its 5-week theatrical release.

Ultimately though, what sets me apart from others is the drive to continue pushing forward and never letting go of the same sights I had as a child — that sprinkle of imagination. Doing what makes you happy and sharing that happiness with others is the reward I always seek. I’m proud to be Latino and be in the position to make real change through art, culture, and representation.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
Yes – massive colliding tectonic plates plans. This year I’m absolutely hellbent on pitching and selling my series: a fresh and culturally relevant Latinx experience set in a cyberpunk universe. This is certainly an endeavor that is much larger than myself. For over a year, I’ve been writing and developing a TV series with fellow USC Alum, Zakaria Schwartz, and an awesome team of creatives. The series is currently titled, “Systema,”; A LatinX-Futuristic Sci-fi Adventure that was inspired by the unique intersection of 90’s video game culture and the Latin-American experience. Set in Miami of 1995 and a parallel dystopian Miami of the future, Systema is a vibrant, retro-futuristic world that fuses nostalgia, mysticism, and technology. Ultimately, we aspire to forge a place within the Sci-fi community for more Latinx-Futuristic Adventures, because after all, we are very much apart of the future – so why are we still absent from the genre?

Literary agents, development executives, and other powers that be – I’d keep a close eye on the next wave of writers, directors, and creatives that are committed to showcasing these beautiful and regrettably unexplored experiences.
From action-figure home movies to TV, I have to keep the childhood dream alive–no matter what. So this year is all about moving forward. Pa’ lante, Pa’ lante.

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