Meet Vanessa Plaza Lazo | Production Designer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Vanessa Plaza Lazo and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Vanessa, have there been any changes in how you think about work-life balance?

It is very hard to think about work life balance working in the entertainment/Film industry. However, I think it is something everyone that works in it (or any other very time consuming career) should ask to themselves constantly as a reminder of what your life priorities are and find that balance that makes you happy in a rewarding way.

In my personal experience, when I first started working in Art Department (12 years ago) my idea of working my way up and gaining some experience was saying yes to any opportunity I would get. Work hours or work conditions weren’t really an important thing as long as I had a chance to show my talent, make new connections and be able to grow in my career. With the past of the years and having gained great experience in the field, I started realizing that if my entire life goes around work, I start forgetting and putting aside other important things, things that I didn’t realized at the time are essential for my health, mood and even for my work performance.

Over working myself started creating in me back problems, anxiety and some loneliness feeling. Even though I was doing what I love, when I was getting back home after long hours of work, I wouldn’t have energy to do anything else. I wasn’t eating that healthy, didn’t have time to work out, see family/friends or even just have some time for myself and rest.

I’ve been living out of my Country (Ecuador) for 14 years already, far from family and friends, and although I’ve made new friends that have also become family, going back home to my people is always needed and revitalizing. Having at least a day off to connect to myself, to do things I like to do that are not work related, get some inspirational and creativity moments, do exercise and take care of myself are things that nowadays are part of my strict week routine to keep my life balanced with work.

I still think that taking advantage of as much of opportunities I get is important, but always keeping in mind and being very honest to myself that health and mental peace is not negotiable.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?

As a Production Designer, when it comes to start a new project, I’m always looking a way to give each new set a twist. Even if you are recreating a space that already exists, and/or you are getting a previous prompt/brief for what you need to design, there’s always a new way to present it and a new perspective to create to make it unique.

I’m very proud of my multicultural background. It has given me a more open perspective about things with different references in life. It wasn’t easy, it’s been a long run, but something that has always helped me overcome every challenge is my courage and persistence. I’m very passionate about my goals and I don’t stop trying until I get where I want to go. It takes a lot of knocking doors, reaching out to people, sharing your work and always keeping myself up to date with new resources and tools to improve my final product and always deliver astonishing results.

I was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, I lived 2 years from my childhood in Graz, Austria, but grew up most of my life in Ecuador attending to a German school. I went to college in Buenos Aires, Argentina and started my career in Art Department there. I started from the very bottom, learning and working my way up. I worked on Tv commercials, music videos and multiple Tv shows like Extreme makeover Home edition Latin America , Your face sounds familiar, Big Brother Argentina, among others.
I moved to California in September 2016 to do an MFA at CalArts. Here I learned about the theme entertainment world (something that isn’t quite developed in South America). I worked for 3 years in a road on the Universal Hollywood Studios Horror Nights as scenic artist and gain so much experience that helped complementing my career as Production Designer. I keep working on commercials, I’ve designed some independent Features and I’m looking to get new opportunities in TV as well. Always aiming to keep growing and improving while loving what I do.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?

If a good friend comes to visit, I’ll definitely would like to show them the spots that make me feel at home and represent my lifestyle. LA has so much to offer, and definitely an option for every personality and different interests. I’m the kind of person who likes outdoor activities, connect with nature and do cultural activities that feed my creativity. Some good plans and places to hit during a week visit in LA for me would be:

A great hike spot with a top view point of the whole coast at the end of the trail like Los Leones is a great spot to start a morning. Brunch in the middle of nowhere to scape from the noise of the city would be cafe on 27, food is great there as well. Ride a bike across the boardwalk from Venice beach to Will Rogers is very pleasant. Art galleries and museums always have something great to offer, there’s so many options, but my favorite ones are Hammer museum, The Broad and Murmurs Gallery.

Thrift stores and flea markets are great places to find curiosities and unique items either to decorate your place, find inspiration or even some vintage clothing pieces. Silverlake neighborhood has plenty of these stores on Sunset Blvd. but also Fairfax or Los Feliz flea markets on the weekends are always a great plan as well.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I’ve met so many people in these past 12 years of career. It’s been a long run in different countries, thus I could mention multiple people that gave me that first push on every new stage of my career and taught so much. However, on this one specifically, I would like to thank and shout out to my parents, my two biggest fans despite my level of success. The two people that celebrate every single little step forward I give as smallest as it is. They don’t work in the film/entertainment industry or anything related, but they give me constant unconditional support and gave me the greatest life fundaments which are the ones have taken me where I am now. “Always be humble and give your 200% to what you do and commit to. Be passionate about life. Travel somewhere new at least once a year, it doesn’t have to be far or expensive, just allow yourself to expand your horizons and perspective about things.” These are just few things from many they taught me, and because of these and so many other things, thank you. Shout out to Julio and Inés!

Website: www.vaneplazalazo.com

Instagram: Instagram.com/vaneplazalazo