On a mission.
Yalitza Aparicio went from being a preschool teacher to an Oscar-nominated actress after starring in Alfonso CuarónThe 2018 Drama Roma. She’s now pursuing roles that give visibility to Indigenous communities and provide a voice.
As Aparicio explained during CelebHomes’s “Ones to Watch” series celebrating Indigenous heritage, she takes her time choosing between projects.
“I feel like there has to be coherence between my words and my actions,” the actress, who’s of Triqui and Mixtec heritage, continued. And the projects that I am working on are all about the importance of Indigenous people being represented on the screen.”
Most recently, Aparicio starred in the Hulu short film Hijas de brujas—a project that she described as “a little bit complicated for me.”
Why? Her character had a part in English.
“Actually, a majority of the short film was supposed to be in English, but then there were a series of changes during development,” Aparicio explained, recalling having “a lot of nerves” in the beginning. But with all those nerves, I was supported by enthusiasm and hope to learn and communicate a new language.