Celia Rocha is a Spanish actress and producer living in Los Angeles. She’s had the chance to work with directors like Isabel Coixet, Phyllida Lloyd, Pedro Almodovar, Agusti Villaronga and Olivia Wilde and Nacho Cano. Her passion, besides acting and writing, is also to produce and develop unique diverse stories with a focus on hispanic voices.
How many years have you been a judge?
This is my first year!
What excited you about judging for the Telly Awards?
The range of formats showcased is what excites me most about judging for the Telly awards! With the industry changing so fast it’s incredibly inspiring to see how we adapt and create.
What was your first job in the industry? What did it teach you?
It was a television movie for the Spanish national channel when I was ten. The director casted me because he asked if I knew how to speak Japanese in the audition and I said “Absolutely!”. It was a cute white lie that got quickly debunked but it taught me to have confidence and just go for things even though they seem impossible.
What project are you most proud to have worked on?
Theater will always be what I’m most proud of. I was Melibea in La Celestina, a very dense Spanish classical play Off Broadway. There’s no feeling like being on stage in front of an audience.
What’s the most challenging part about your job and/or the industry?
The current industry is odd, more so being an immigrant with English as my second language. I feel like as a society we always need to put people in a box and anything that differs from what we know is not portrayed as much in current projects. Not having a strong social media presence also now determines your future in this industry, and that’s just…weird!
What do you look for to determine excellence in video?
I love unique voices and forms of expression. I appreciate so much cinematography and composition. But a piece that moves me and leaves me thinking is always what I’m looking for.
What are your current roles and responsibilities and what do you love most about your job?
Right now my main focus has been writing and developing those projects. I’ve been loving putting teams together and finding the right people to make those projects happen!
What initiatives or projects are you working on now that excite you?
I’ve been acting in a few of the projects I’ve written and produced. I need to be better at delegating and that has been a wonderful learning journey (still working on it!).
Do you have any specific practices you lean on to spark creativity?
Going on walks, listening to reggaeton and hanging out with friends!
What inspired you to pursue your career path?
The feeling of relating to someone else’s story. People.
In your experience, what is a significant change you are seeing happen in the video, television, and/or film industry, and what insight can you share about how to navigate it?
Big budgets for well packaged projects instead of finding and cultivating new voices. As a producer I understand but would love more discovery of new talent and betting on them.
