Exclusive Interview: Luis Valdez Talks ‘The Director’s Chair’ and More

I had the honor of speaking with award-winning film and theater Latino director Luis Valdez (La Bamba, Zoot Suit) about his career, today’s Hollywood, and his recent interview with Robert Rodriguez for “El Rey Network Presents: The Director’s Chair,” premiering Sunday March 29, at 8:00 PM ET/8:15 PM PT. The all-new hour-long special will be followed by Valdez’s Golden Globe® nominated La Bamba.

What was your experience being interviewed by Robert Rodriguez like?

Well, it’s a meeting of two representatives of our community. I realized I’m older than Robert; we both came out of the trenches and I’ve always admired his brilliance, perspicacity, and ingenuity. To speak to a young, dynamic filmmaker, who has not just created his own voice in the movies but also has created his own network, run an interview show and is a director. I think that’s phenomenal; it was a real privilege to have met him.

Through the interview what part of your history did you enjoy discussing the most?

We had quite an extended conversation. I believe they’re going to air an edited version. We talked for quite a while, and I was impressed with the questions he was putting forth; he knew what he wanted covered, the territory. The answers for you are lifelong: what you do, what you wanted to do, what gave you the spirit? You got to have a lot of determination to be a filmmaker and if you’re going to get in the trenches of Hollywood, then you have to be ready to battle. That was 50 years ago when I started, as it is today, the success I had early on, I had against incredible odds. Young people need to know that you have to make your own opportunity; no one is going to cook the meal and put it in front of you. You’ve got to cook your own food. You’ve got to make your way and cut through the brush and make your opportunities.

Now filmmakers seem to be remaking popular titles. Would you consider retelling your story of “La Bamba” or “Zoot Suit” in modern time?

It depends on what the circumstances are. One of the things that please me about “La Bamba” and “Zoot Suit” to begin with, is that for a lot of people it still seems fresh, it was made on a very limited budget, a one million dollar budget and thirteen days to shoot it. It was my first feature length film. We shot it on 35 mm film, 3 cameras and it was shot in the Aquarius Theater in Hollywood, so it was baptism by fire, what emerged was the film that I had to make under those conditions. I had to cut corners, use some ingenuity in order to solve certain problems because it wasn’t a fully fledged realistic film, it had to be stylized. Now the fact that it’s stylized I think it has given it a freshness today that a lot of people remark on; they look at it and it doesn’t age as quickly as other kind of films where you can go out of reality. For example, there are cars in the street and you can see that they are dated. Ten years later you can see that it is dated; “Zoot Suit” isn’t getting dated that way because those references don’t exist. The film as-is, it’s a product that remains fresh. Would I take the same subject matter and make another film or could anybody take the subject matter and make a film? Sure, that’s always possible, it’s history right? I don’t think they can do it in the exact same way, the Pachuco is a superhero, and he’s my invention, my creation, an Aztec God. Also, the experience I had as a kid looking at Pachucos from the ground up, as a little kid. I was five, six years old and had Pachucos in my neighborhood, they seemed like giants to me.

What is your opinion about Latino actors, producers and directors having a place in Hollywood now?

I think the day will come shortly when people will realize that there are Latinos everywhere, from Latino stars to producers. It’s another American expression for our identity, that’s who we’ve always been; we didn’t come from elsewhere, we are from here. We are from this continent, this hemisphere. There’s nothing foreign about Latinos, foreign is the other people who come from other parts of the world; they have to realize that we are part of the fabric. In the business, is what it takes for people to look upon Latino subjects and Latino performers as profitable. I started to prove that with “Zoot Suit”, it became the highest grossing play of the city of Los Angeles, it’s been the longest running play and it’s been almost 40 years. Also, “La Bamba” made over 100 million dollars worldwide in 1987. The idea of being a box office success had been proven and the argument still wasn’t strong enough because producers thought it was a fluke, they didn’t understand. And more recently, the introduction of a lot of Mexican filmmakers, directors and cinematographers, some of them are good friends of mine. It is obvious that the landscape has changed and Latinos are part of the present and the future, we are in the movie houses. There’s a profit to be made if they respond to the needs of that audience. Traditional movie audiences are falling off and so they’re being filled by Latinos that come in. I think it takes Latino producers to realize there’s money to be made and careers to be created if they take advantage of the potential.

What advice would you give to people that are trying to immerse themselves in this field?

Everybody has to know how to create there own career, if you’re an actor it’s important not just to look at your craft just as an actor, you have to produce yourself, you have to promote yourself. You have to understand the craft of directing, you don’t have to become a director but you have to understand how to work with cameras, how to act in front of cameras. A lot of actors don’t realize they have to be aware and the stars that have made it are the ones that have developed awareness. Some become directors themselves; they understand how the cameras work. It’s an overall education, the profession requires for you to be as conscious as you can about all of the elements involved. Everything from analyzing which scripts have the best potential, not just looking at the lines you are given. How’s the script? Does it work for the story? Does it have an appeal? Does it have a heart? All of that. Every actor has to make that kind of judgment. I also think it’s really important, strictly for non-white actors not to demean themselves. They’re often asked to play those roles. I was offered roles, directors called me up to play a role and I asked what it was. They wanted me to play a drug dealer and I said no sir, no thank you, give it to someone else. I’m not the kind of actor who would have a head shoved in a toilet, find some other guy because I refuse to do that. I’ve always refused to demean myself. My advice to Latino actors male/female is don’t demean yourself. If the role calls for you to make yourself less of a human being, pass it on, you will find better roles. Insist on a certain level of quality and that’s my advice. Maintain your dignity because dignity is the key to your Stardom.