Meet Johnny Baca | Director | Writer

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

Hi Johnny, how has your background shaped the person you are today?
I’m from Dallas, TX. My upbringing was very suburban life up until a point. When I was 12 my parents divorced. From there there were a lot of struggles but from that point on helped shape me into the man I am today. Watching my mom work 2,3 jobs to keep us going, I adopted that work ethic and taught me independence. My brother and I making our own dinners, chicken and rice bay bay. Still love it to this day, but ultimately going through the struggles, watching my mom sacrifice so much while still being her joyous self and having fun definitely shaped me. On top of that, being of Mixed ethnicity and my Latino roots has played a massive role in who I am today. Unlike my brother and cousins, I was able to meet my great aunts and uncles and spend a lot of time with them getting to know my Baca family. My grandfather and his stories with his brother and sisters stories. Learning about our culture, especially throughout my 20s was such a blessing. I love being Latino and getting that opportunity, before our older generation passed on, to learn so much about my family roots.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
Being a film director is everything to me. Over the course of my film career it’s taken me a long time to get to this point. The point of knowing exactly who I am. Looking back, I used to question the time wasted with my acting career. Was it time wasted? What did I gain from it? But now I know, it helped shape me into the Director I am today. I love acting and I love actors. That decade+ of auditioning and working as an actor helped me learn how to speak to actors. Know what we struggle with. Know what are thoughts and preparations are. It’s invaluable knowledge as a Director for me. Some may say I’m softer than other Directors, but that’s just me because I understand the struggles of acting and so I base myself there for the talent and performances, always. I lead by trust. I trust everybody on set and give them the space to operate. Trust in my crew. Trust in my cast. In return they trust me and follow my lead of calmness. Nothing more important than keeping a cool head on set and positive energy. If the crew or cast sees you down, they will be down. Vice versa, when they feel your energy, happiness, hopefulness to the piece and calmness during stressful times, they will be there with you keeping their energy up and full joy. My sets are joyful and that’s how I lead. Always joy. Always positivity. I mean hell, we’re making a movie! What’s better than that!

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
We’d hit all the hot spots. Observatory, beaches, relaxation, sunset strip, griffith park, Universal and head down south to Disney. Just a fun vacay.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
My mom, dad, brother, family and friends. So many people have my back and that’s the greatest gift in the world. Knowing you aren’t alone.

Website: https://linktr.ee/johnnybaca

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/johnnybaca1/

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/johnnybaca24/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnnybaca24

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@johnnybaca

Other: TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@johnnybaca1

Image Credits
I have rights.