Yalitza Aparicio’s Young Hollywood 2019 Interview on Handling the Success of Roma and Why She Lost Interest in Film While Growing Up

Yalitza Aparicio never saw herself in film while growing up. In fact, the absence of anyone on film that the Roma star could identify with pushed her to stop really appreciating cinema altogether. But while she was on track to becoming a teacher, everything changed. Yalitza accompanied her sister, Edith, to a casting call for Alfonso Cuarón’s film. When it came time to audition, Edith felt unwell and hesitated, so she persuaded Yalitza to try out instead. The director had already looked at tapes of more than 3,000 women in search of the right actor to play the role of Cleo, a domestic worker for a middle-class family living in Mexico City during the 1970s, a family based on his own.

Yalitza won the role.

Roma now has 10 Oscar nominations, including Yalitza’s best actress nomination. It’s a groundbreaking achievement for both the performer and Hollywood — she’s one of the very few indigenous people ever to have received a nod from the Academy. Over the past couple of months, Yalitza has gone from her quiet life in Mexico to jetting all over the world for screenings, photo shoots, red-carpet events, and more.

It’s still a bit much for the young woman coming off her first acting gig. Yalitza is taking it all in stride while being mindful of all the discussion heralding her performance and nomination as major moments for representation. Because while she may not have had someone to look up to on the screen when she was younger, now she’s setting the example. As part of Teen Vogue’s Young Hollywood Class of 2019, Yalitza opened up about the responsibility on her shoulders, what she has splurged on, and more.

Teen Vogue: You’ve said in a past interview that you’re “not the face of Mexico,” and you’ve been pretty vocal about there being lots of other kinds of people in your home country. What sorts of people from Mexico do you hope to see represented in Hollywood?

Yalitza Aparicio: When I said I wasn't the face of Mexico, [what I meant] is that there really are very different sort of hues and characteristics of what people look like in Mexico. What I would like to see is for more of that diversity to be represented, for there to be more of those faces that you'd see and live with in your day-to-day. For example, for me, growing up, I never got to see people who looked like me or like any other people that I grew up with. That, over time, made me lose interest in cinema and to really focus on things that I considered to be more like reality because everything that I saw in film just seemed completely like fiction.

TV: Roma has received a lot of buzz, and people are thankful because it's breaking stereotypes for indigenous people. What other stereotypes do you think still need to be broken?

YA: Another thing that I really like about the movie is that you see a single mother, which was not something that’s looked upon very nicely, but you see the strength of that mother and her ability to survive. I think that's also very valuable.

TV: It feels like there’s been quite a bit of tourism through Mexico City over the past couple of years. What do you hope people learn about the city from a film like Roma?

YA: For the people who are Mexican, that they don't forget certain aspects of our history, and for people who are not Mexican, that they get to learn more about all the different languages and different landscapes that make up Mexico.

TV: What was the hardest part about filming Roma?

YA: There were many things. One of them was just being surrounded by cameras and trying to forget and not get so nervous, to be able to just act and do the things that were being asked of me. Something that I always forget to say in interviews is that I actually had to learn Mixteco. I don't actually speak Mixteco. The person who taught Mixteco to me is Nancy [García], who plays Adela in the film. Because we didn't have a script, we had to practice right before the shoot every day in how to pronounce it and how to get it right.

TV: When the cover for Vogue Mexico came out, there was such a huge response. What did it feel like to see all these people talking about it?

YA: I wasn't expecting how much happiness people expressed at seeing such a different face on the cover of something like Vogue México. A lot of people wrote to me and said to me that it really meant a lot to them to see that because they aspired to that and they didn't think that they could do that. For me, the thing that means the most to me is giving people a sense that this is possible, that this opportunity would actually be something that could happen.

TV: Alfonso Cuarón has talked about your welcoming presence and how it made you perfect for the role in Roma. Where do you think you developed that?

YA: I would give my mom the credit for that. I think she really is the one who inculcated certain values like these in me. It goes back to my mom.

TV: How does your family feel about everything?

YA: They're very happy, and like myself, they're very surprised to hear some of the things that are happening because they don't know anything about this world. They just keep encouraging me to keep moving forward.

TV: Since Roma started gaining Oscar buzz, you’ve been nonstop attending screenings and walking red carpets. How do you feel about all of that?

YA: It has been overwhelming. A lot of actors who have a lot more experience than me come up to me and tell me that in fact my experience is a really overwhelming experience, that everything that's happening is really big. I'm very aware of the fact that this might not happen again, so what I really try to do is ground myself in appreciating every moment and taking full advantage of what I can learn from every single moment I'm living through.

TV: And what has it been like getting to wear all these amazing dresses and doing photo shoots?

YA: It's very fun because I really sort of sometimes can't get why they're putting certain things on me or how they're combining certain colors. Then I see the photographs, and I'm really taken aback by how great it all looks. It's amazing to me because I'm not even good at combining colors.

TV: You've spoken a bit about whether or not you want to continue acting. Do you feel, because there has been such a big conversation about what you represent, a responsibility to carry on?

YA: At some level, yes, I do feel that responsibility and particularly toward people who look like me, a way in which I could continue to inspire them and give them the strength to keep doing what they're doing. In that respect I do feel a responsibility. Then also I feel like I discovered a love for acting that I'm still curious to see whether it's something that I would deepen — [whether] it's actually a love for acting, or whether it's just an illusion that I'm living through at the moment.

TV: Is there anything that you’ve indulged in or treated yourself to because of all of this fanfare and the work you’ve done?

YA: The first thing that I did, because I was finally receiving an income, was buy a bunch of books. Now I can have some books that I've been wanting. The Lovely Bones — I bought that in Spanish. The Little Prince. One that's called La Tregua in Spanish, a book by Mario Benedetti who's a very well-known novelist.

TV: Is there anything else that you want to talk about that you haven't had an opportunity to talk about in past interviews?

YA: That I'm 25 and not 26 like some people are saying.

Translated by Carla Marcantonio

Fashion stylist: Solange Franklin

Hairstylist: Dennis Gots

Makeup artist: Sarah Uslan

Manicurist: Holly Falcone

Set designer: Bryn Bowen

Location: Smashbox Studios L.A.

BTS content: Hannah Choi

Photo assistants: Maria Troncoso Gibbs, Cailan O'Connell, Jason Renaud

Fashion assistants: Christine Nicholson, Corey Cano

Set design assistants: Thomas Anderson, Molly Painter

The future of Hollywood is in good hands. Teen Vogue chose seven emerging actors who are paving the way to a better tomorrow. They're shattering stereotypes, bringing a new authenticity to their roles, and challenging age-old expectations. Say goodbye to the industry's tired ways and hello to our Young Hollywood Class of 2019, a group we'll be celebrating with at a party in partnership with Snapchat. Check out the rest of the group here.

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