Kikey Castillo named one of LA's Rising Talents!

What a thrill it was to open up the Hollywood Weekly magazine and see my name, Kikey Castillo, as one of LA’s Rising Talents.  The recognition is humbling yet Ooh sooo deliciously good it makes me squeal with delight!!   

Christina Anastasiou, has a long standing pulse on the Hollywood hot track so it’s truly an honor to be listed as ‘one to watch’ by her and the magazine.  I congratulate and share in this joy with my fellow Rising Talents - Useless Keys, Chanel Ryan, Ernest Sturm, and Emanuela Belleza, who I’m sure are just as ecstatic to see themselves mentioned. 

Click link to view the online issue Hollywood Weekly magazine August Issue

page excerpt from August Issue of Hollywood Weekly magazine

 a few facts were lost in translation; send me a comment if you would like to know what they were

My Syrupy Road to Pancake Fame

Only my close friends and family know that I LOVE LOVE pancakes.  Often getting asked if I want pancakes with my syrup...but in all honesty It's the pancakes, not the syrup that I can't get enough of.  Just writing this is making me crave the sweet, soft, fluffy, yummy cakes that make my soul go Mmmmmm Hmmmm. So it was only all too befitting that I get cast in a commercial about....PANCAKES, how apropos!
  

My national Denny's pancake commercial is currently getting a lot of play on TV.  My friends across the nation from Rhode Island, Wisconsin, Washington, Oregon and of course California have all been telling me they've seen me, or shall I say "Maria", the Denny's waitress, serving up pancakes with a smile.  I admit, it's fun to hear the comments and accolades but it's still a bit surreal to me that I made a national commercial here in LA considering the rough start I had.   

Me and my co-star Kurtis Bedford

When I began my professional acting career in Phoenix I landed my very first audition.  And I kept landing job after job after job.  

One commercial I worked on, even bumped me from an extra to a principal role working along side one of baseball greatest home run hitters - Sammy Sosa.  I got Taft-Hartleyed right on the spot!  My acting journey in Arizona was so easy I thought, it's a sign, I'm destined to go to Hollywood and that's what I did. But let me tell you, what happened to me in Phoenix did NOT happen to me in Hollywood.   

I went on what seem like hundreds of commercial auditions here in LA without getting hardly any callbacks.  Yet I thought I was pretty good at most auditions!  I took classes, I had a commercial agent and I was SAG but not one single commercial paycheck.  I was really beginning to think it was like winning the Lottery...just darn near impossible!  [I thank my commercial agents Pat & Pierre for not giving up on me] 

Then one day, I was on the road to callbacks and after that I booked my very first commercial in Hollywood.  I remember it - oh boy do I remember it.  It revived my faith in me, my career path and just felt freaking great!  I don't know if you remember the HBO series called "Rome", well I did a commercial promo for that show....that never aired LOL.  Yep, shot it, got paid, had a blast working it but it never aired.  Welcome to Hollywood.  

This promo led to another promo then a regular commercial then another and another and then... nothing for a year.  That's how it goes, sometimes you hit sometimes you miss, for months or even years.  Luckily, these past few years have been good to me and I've had a good commercial run.  

Here is my Denny's commercial!! Directed by David Gray, who also directed me in a McDonald's spot I did a year ago.  This also happens a lot, you start working with the same people over and over because once they know you and trust your work they keep bringing you back for more.  But cracking that world...oh boy, that's a WHOLE 'nother blog.


 

From Cheerleader to Chola

Capt. Sr. year

Look at those cute little chipmunk cheeks, big megawatt smile…I was a perfect candidate for a cheerleading back in H.S. and at the University of Arizona but quite the contrary for a hardened, barrio chola for film & TV in Los Angeles.  In the world of Hollywood where a lot of Latina roles call for chola's, let's face it; I haven't necessarily been their first pick.
 

But that has all turned around for me, thanks to director/writer Terence Heuston, who cast me in his short film, Maddoggin’.  Shout out to actor/producer friend Eddie, for the highly recommended referral!! 

Last night the film made its world premier screening at an Oscar-Qualifying accreditation film festival - the Latino International Film Institute & Festival (LALIFF). 

red carpet

LALIFF celebrates 15yrs

                                                                                                                                             

the two boys in film

Maddoggin’ is the story of two boys in East L.A. being pressured to join the local gang and where the choices they make over a single day alter their lives forever.  The project was proudly filmed in Boyle Heights (an East Los Angeles community), with a combination of local, professional actors and kids from the area.  All of the music and art in the film was also created by artists from Boyle Heights and surrounding East L.A communities.  The purpose of the film is to help create economic opportunity for at-risk youth.

I played Juanita, girlfriend to the head gang leader and the head of her own female gang. I had so much fun being on set filming and working with the talented cast, crew and director.  Not to mention, the role was a big opportunity for me; playing a character that I would NOT normally be cast in.  I had fun researching everything from the cadence of speech, enunciation of words and even how to apply chola makeup. Believe it or not, not all Latino’s know this automatically LOL.

The movie was a smash hit at the screening and I was proud to hear my fellow friends in the entertainment biz complimenting me about my performance and about my transformation into Juanita the chola from East LA.   

The 15th Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF)
July 17th – 25th, 2011
Egyptian Theatre, Hollywood
http://latinofilm.org