1707802781 Abril Zamora Being a reference makes me dizzy I don39t

Abril Zamora: “Being a reference makes me dizzy, I don't want to disappoint or question everything I do” | TV

Entertainment News / By /

In recent months, searching for information about Abril Zamora on the Internet has brought up a flood of phrases that have become perfect aphorisms to share on networks.

– “It’s time for revenge for all the people who chose us last.”

– “If you get lost, look for me, for I will be there.”

– “This song is sung by non-normative people who had the courage to make it so that people like us could sing it without anyone judging us.”

These three statements – they are just three examples of many – were said by the actress, director, producer and author (Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, ​​42 years old) in one of her courses at the Operación Triunfo Academy (on Prime Video). Zamora is the acting teacher of this edition of the competition/reality show and is also the best friend and spiritual winner – two categories that are agreed upon every Monday after the gala and during the live broadcasts of the show – the followers of OT and the media. Internet.

More information

After 12 editions of the program and the success that the Javis achieved after their time at the academy in the same teaching role as Zamora, the first feeling is that behind this popularity there must be a measured marketing strategy on one of the parties. : either from the actress herself or from the entertainment giant behind the program, Gestmusic. At the beginning of the interview via video call (Zamora lives temporarily in Tarrasa, near the academy), a woman appears overwhelmed by her dog, which she has just left at the vet, and is firing off ideas – it is not impossible that she will be part of it later of the Internet's memory – with a disorder and spontaneity that is far from measured planning.

Questions. He has become an icon of Generation Z, something like their emotional coach. How are you doing?

Answer. It makes me very excited when someone tells me they want to be my friend. I don't do anything other than be myself. Being a reference even before the OT gave me a lot of giddiness because I don't want to disappoint and I don't want to question everything I do. I feel like the references need to be a certain way depending on the topic. It's very nice that people take your speeches and apply them to their own lives. But at the same time there is a feeling that it is something temporary and that not everyone will agree with it.

Zamora was recruited by Tinet Rubira, the head of Gestmusic, after working on another program for this audiovisual company. “I had already dropped it,” he admits with a half-smile. When he received the final offer, he said he had some considerations due to the format of the competition and the level of exposure. “A few years ago, it seemed impossible to be an actress and take part in a reality show at the same time,” she explains. “Things are changing. I have a very particular profile and I think that it is not always risky to put trans people in roles that are not identified as trans people.”

The performer's career is a painstaking exercise in breaking away from labels while avoiding the conversation about impermanence. “I always mention it in my interviews, but if that's all they want to talk about, I avoid them. Although I think we are in a time where we need to continue to talk about it.”

Q In the OT, you are more likely to be the safe place that participants go to.

R. People inside forget that I'm a trans person. This makes me feel valued as an acting teacher. They always praise how they feel super calm and confident because they know no one will judge them. At the same time, they also have this effect on me.

Abril Zamora, in her apartment in Terrassa. The actress and screenwriter has become a reference for Generation Z. Abril Zamora, in her apartment in Terrassa. The actress and screenwriter has become a reference for Generation Z. Gianluca Battista

Zamora wrote, directed and starred in the eight-episode series “Everything Else” (HBO Max). He has fifteen signed works: “The Freezer”, “The Indifference of the Armadillos”, “Pulveriza”, “Yernos que Aman”… He created the series for prime time on Telecinco Ladies by (h)AMPA; He was a screenwriter for Elite. As he has stated more than once, he will not stay at home and wait for job offers. Still, she's no stranger to imposter syndrome. “I’m learning to live with it,” he says. “Every now and then I give myself a pat on the back. When I did the series [Todo lo otro] I learned an exercise that was to say good things to myself.”

He continues to complete his resume with the novel he has just published (Ana Kissed Another, Ediciones B), and awaits the release of two series (Respira, on Netflix and A new Dawn, a comedy by José Corbacho) and a film in Italian (Mimi, the Prince of Darkness). Additionally, he believes he has just finished writing his first feature film and is looking for financing.

Q Her new book is about the social constraints that women suffer from. One of the series touches on the topic of public health. Is everything you do political?

R. Yes, there is already a political component to the fact that I suddenly go to places to fill these spaces. It's important to see how a trans person talks about things other than transsexuality. I am a person who speaks very quickly, I am a friend of my friends, I am very insecure, I am blonde even if it is wrong. I am many things and also trans. Walking down the street holding hands with my ex-boyfriend and showing our love is a political act.

He wants to find out what his hobbies are between premieres by 2024. His goal, he says, is to get off the productivity wheel for a while and stop filling the gaps between work and work with more work. “I always wanted to be an actress and that's why I think I'm trying to do things to accept the girl and the teenager that I was, that's why I focused my life on work,” she explains about the debt, which she believes she owes herself. He doesn't know how to spend his free time: “Maybe he does macramé or maybe he cooks. It makes me sad not knowing the things I like beyond work. Those of us who pursue art have a problem: if you don't work, you don't feel fulfilled as a person. And I don't know who sold this to us, but it's bullshit.

You can follow EL PAÍS Television on X or sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.

Get the TV newsletter

All the latest news from broadcasters and platforms, with interviews, news and analyses, as well as recommendations and reviews from our journalists

LOG IN