Meet Alondra Andrade | Actor / Writer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Alondra Andrade and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Alondra, can you tell us about an impactful book you’ve read and why you liked it or what impact it had on you?
Acting in Film by Michael Caine, An Actor’s take on movie making. The book was transcribed from an Acting Workshop Caine did with BBC in 1987. It relieved me from so much stress and confusion I had when transitioning from stage to screen acting. Some of the contents explored include; Preparation, In Front of the Camera — Before You Shoot, The Take, which delves into Close-ups, Continuity, The Art of Spontaneity, and Film Technicalities. One majorly overlooked discussion that intrigued me was an Actor’s Etiquette on and off a film set. A lot of it seems like general knowledge of professionalism and decorum, but there are a couple of golden eggs that aren’t commonly known to starting film actors. Geoffrey Hobbes from The Sunday Times raved about the book saying ” Witty, articulate and always entertaining, Michael Caine takes the nuts and bolts of film acting to pieces and gives away more trade secrets in the process than you thought existed.” which I couldn’t agree more with. I wouldn’t say it’s esoteric to individuals in the industry alone either, as any moviegoer can find themselves absorbed in the fascinating material and have it change their perspective in the way they watch films & tv shows.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
As an actor I’m drawn to surrealist cinema with strong influences from either German Expressionism or French Impressionism. The difference being that German Expressionism is characterized by the set design, components of visual distortion, and hyper-expressive visualization of the characters to evoke a fractured state of mind. Whereas French Impressionism is centered around the unusual camerawork, editing techniques and garish visual themes. Prime examples of Surreal German Expressionist Cinema are ‘The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari’ directed by Robert Wiene, ‘Edward Scissorhands’ directed by Tim Burton, and ‘Eraserhead’ directed by David Lynch. Most of which are horror films, that I used to find nightmarish to say the least. Strangely enough, I’m attracted to things that horrify me. I used to have an intense fear of zombies and vampires, this fear was so deep that I found myself researching them and learning as much as I could to justify my angst. Somehow the fear transformed into fascination when I caught myself hanging on to every new piece of information I found. I realized that the fear stemmed from lack of exposure. It is a fear of the unknown. Once I made that discovery I was able to mentally confront these trepidations and now freely explore their cinematic domain. This led to a string of discoveries for horror films and it’s sub-genres, Gothic Fiction and Fantastique. Examples of Gothic Fiction include ‘Suspiria’ directed by Dario Argento, ‘Sleepy Hollow’ directed by Tim Burton, and ‘Nosferatu’ directed by F.W. Murnau. Some examples of Fantastique are ‘Labyrinth’ directed by Jim Henson and ‘Alice in Wonderland’ directed by Tim Burton. Burton is a filmmaker I greatly admire and hope to work with someday. One of my favorite films from him was actually from a television special, in collaboration with Disney that only aired once on October 31st, 1983 called ‘Hansel and Gretel’. I would love to be a part of something so hauntingly beautiful. That is my dream as an actor, to be able to suspend someone’s realism for surrealism in morbidly fantastical ways.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Los Angeles is such a beautiful and diverse city. If someone was visiting from out of town, I’d take them to Wurstküche located in the Arts District near Downtown LA to try their exotic Rattlesnake & Rabbit Bratwursts. The dish’s title is a bit jarring but doesn’t do the German sausage justice, as they are tender and delicious. They also have great options for Vegetarians, like the Vegetarian Smoked Apple Sage and the Veggiewurst. Their Klein fries paired with the buttermilk ranch are some of the crispiest, most savory fries I’ve ever had. If that’s not really your scene, we can grab tacos at any local Taco Truck. You can find them by following the alluring aroma of pastor y piña, like a cartoon character floating towards a cooling pie on a windowsill. Seriously though, they’re everywhere in East LA, usually by car washes and supermarkets. For drinks, we could go to Tiki Ti, the 1960’s Les Baxter-esque Polynesian-themed bar on Sunset Blvd. Then we could end the night at The Elysian Comedy Club for an improv show that thrives on loosely organized chaos, which I love.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Edward Padilla, who was my first acting teacher when I was eight years old. His passion for this art form is unmatched, as he spends most of his time giving back to his community with free acting & writing workshops. Eddie introduced me to exaggerated physical acting and stage etiquette, which is the foundation of my presence onstage. I am tremendously grateful to him and Corky Dominguez for trusting and allowing me to grow in such a creative space. We’ve since stayed in touch as he continues to support me through my journey.

Website: https://www.alondraandrade.com

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_alondra_andrade_/

Youtube: https://youtube.com/@alondraandrade9841?si=VhF5SVeSI2EsgB40

Image Credits
Shane Sato Matt Komimura Michael Veritas Richardesque Photography