Latina of Influence | Gina Rodriguez
Actress Gina Rodriguez is a 2015 Latina of Influence named by Hispanic Lifestyle. Gina is being recognized for her passion to entertain, educate and inspire.
In this video segment the Golden Globe winning actress talks about her role in the CW series Jane the Virgin.
Hispanic Lifestyle’s 2015 Latinas of Influence was recognized during a luncheon held in their honor at Latina Conference 2015.
UPDATED – February 2024
Gina currently stars in the ABC Series, Not Dead Yet. The show focuses on Nell Serrano, an accident-prone American newspaper reporter who left her last job five years ago to move to the United Kingdom with a lover. She returns to the US when the relationship ends and tries to resume her journalism career as a newly single woman. Serrano is assigned to write obituaries by her new employer, and begins to encounter ghosts of the people whose obituaries she is writing, whom only she can see and hear. The ghosts begin to have conversations with Serrano, and offer her advice on how to rebuild her life while also helping her write their obituaries by telling her their stories. The ghosts then disappear after their obituaries are published.
ACTOR BIOGRAPHY
Gina Rodriguez is best known for playing the title role on the hit series “Jane the Virgin,” for which she won a Golden Globe® for Best Actress in a Television Series Musical or Comedy. Her upcoming projects include Netflix’s film “Players” and Netflix’s miniseries “Lost Ollie”.
Rodriguez was recently seen in Miranda July’s film “Kajillionaire,” opposite Evan Rachel Wood and Richard Jenkins. She has starred in Sony’s “Miss Bala” and Netflix’s film “Someone Great,” which she also served as a producer. Other film credits include Paramount’s “Annihilation” by Alex Garland and Lionsgate’s “Deepwater Horizon” by Pete Berg.
Her voice can be heard in the title role of Netflix’s “Carmen Sandiego” and can also be found in the Twentieth Century Fox’s “Ferdinand,” Warner Brothers’ “Smallfoot” and “Scoob,” and Sony’s “The Star.”
In addition to her acting career, Rodriguez is a driving force for inclusion and the empowerment of women in all ways, most especially in the entertainment industry. This passion led her to create her production company, I Can and I Will Productions, with a mission directly reflecting her commitment to create art and tell stories from those who are traditionally unseen and unheard. The company has finished its second season of “Diary of a Future President,” where Rodriguez directed, produced and performed as the future president. With her family, she established the We Will Foundation, which aims to uplift and champion underprivileged youth through arts, education, scholarship funding and financial literacy.
Rodriguez is a proud native Chicagoan and was educated at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts.
Hispanic Lifestyle’s interview with Gina from 2015.
From the website, HereisGina
Growing up in Chicago, actress Gina Rodriguez started performing at age seven with the salsa dance company Fantasia Juvenil. She went on to work with other companies including Los Soneros Del Swing, performing at several Salsa Congress’ in Chicago, California, New York and Puerto Rico. Gina knew she wanted to continue to perform and entertain and at age sixteen, Gina was one of thirteen teens to be accepted into Columbia University NY- Theatrical Collaboration taught by Richard Niles. For two months she wrote, directed and performed original work with twelve other kids brought from all over the world. She fell in love with New York and living in Gramercy Park, NYU called her name. Upon her acceptance to New York Universities- Tisch School of the Arts, her calling was clear, and theatre would be it.
Gina had four years of intense theatre training at both the Atlantic Theatre Company and Experimental Theatre Wing, working with both David Mamet and William H. Macy, the brilliant guidance of Rosemary Quinn and other wonderful professors. Directly after graduation, Gina booked her first lead role in the feature film TINY DANCER. After that, Gina originated the role of Frida Kahlo in the world premiere of Casa Blue: The Last Moments in the Life of Frida Kahlo at the American Stage Theatre. She continued to work in New York with multiple theatres and her work in film and TV steadily grew, including shows “Jonny Zero,” “Army Wives,” and “Law and Order,” in addition to several short and indie films. One in particular, Osvaldos, was accepted into festivals including ABFF, NY HBO Latino Film Fest, Chicago International Film Fest, Urbanworld. They named Gina winner of the “Best Actor” award at the First Run Film Festival in NY and Osvaldos aired on HBO in 2010 and was named on of the “Five Best Shorts.”
Actress Gina Rodriguez
Latina of Influence
After many years of success and work in NY, Gina booked a lead role in a feature film GO FOR IT along side actress Aimee Garcia in which she received a 2011 Imagen Awards nomination. Shot in both Chicago and LA, once shooting in LA began, it was clear the move to the west coast was the next step for her career. Just five days after moving to California, Gina booked her first co-star role CBS’ “Eleventh Hour.” It didn’t stop there, within her first year, she went on to book series regular roles on web series “Eden’s Court” and “No Names,” and her first studio film “Our Family Wedding,” with America Ferrera, a lead in indie film SUPERCHICAS, and the ABC Family show “Ten Things I Hate About You.” Since then she has guest starred on the hit TV shows “The Mentalist,” “Happy Endings” and stars in the upcoming film CALIFORNIA WINTER among Ruttina Wesley.
Now, Gina is promoting her most exciting role to date. While screening GO FOR IT (distributed by Lionsgate) at last year’s LALIFF, she had the opportunity to meet with director, Michael Olmos, and producer, Victor Teran, who had just begun to work on their project FILLY BROWN. Michael and Victor were so impressed by Gina’s performance in GO FOR IT that they had her read for the title role. Originally, the role had been written as a spoken word artist, which was an area that Gina had experience, but upon meeting, they informed her that they were considering changing the part to a rapper. After an outstanding audition, in which Gina provided an impromptu rap performance, she had secured the lead and title role. Moving at an accelerated pace, Gina was in the studio recording music for the film within a few weeks. She collaborated with the music producers, E Dub and Khoolaid from Silent Giant, to come up with over five original songs for the film. After the film wrapped, E Dub and Khoolaid approached Gina about continuing their work with her and developing her into a rap artist. She has continued working with them and has now performed in Oklahoma City, OK and Odessa, TX, opening for Bun B from UGK.
