[Watch the video interview on YouTube here]
Film Courage: Which came first, your DNA test or the idea for I Am Migration?
Paola Baldión, Filmmaker/Actor: The DNA test. I took the DNA test in a time where immigration was being degraded, the process of immigration and immigrants, especially Latinos, were being dehumanized.
I had a curiosity, Where do I come from? We all migrated to some place. At that moment it came both from this political time of questioning, Who are you? Where do you come from?
I started to question the same things to myself. Then once I got the results it was pretty clear. I was like Oh wow, I am from 10 different parts of the world? That’s crazy. Funny enough, I’ve lived in some of those places. I really feel like I’m 20% Italian. I am, even though I didn’t know I was at that time, so for me it kind of clicked. I was like Okay, I’m from 10 different parts of the world, so that means every human being on earth they all also be from different parts of the world. How about we use this idea and kind of make a statement of where we stand…(Watch the video interview on YouTube here).
About:
Paola Baldión is an award-winning actress, director, and producer of Colombian and European heritage. Born in Paris and raised in Italy and Colombia, Paola is a multilingual Latina artist fluent in Spanish, English, Italian, and French. She began performing at age four in her parents’ marionette theater and later trained under renowned masters Edgardo Román and Paco Barrero in Bogotá, followed by HB Studios in New York and Stephanie Feury Studio in Los Angeles. She holds a BFA in Theater and Film Studies from Concordia University in Montreal.
Paola made her feature film debut in the lead role of Marina in Retratos en un Mar de Mentiras (Portraits in a Sea of Lies), which premiered at the Berlin and Guadalajara film festivals. Her performance earned her the Colombian Academy Award for Best Actress, along with Best Actress honors at the Guadalajara and Amiens International Film Festivals.
As co-founder of Dos Almas Films, she has directed impactful short films and documentaries, including For Alma and I Am Migration-a documentary where she and partner Jamie Toll travel across the U.S., offering free DNA tests to explore ancestry and identity.
Her latest fiction film, Abrazo, tells the emotional story of a pregnant Central American woman crossing the U.S. border. The film has received 29 festival awards, including Best Film, Best Director, Best Writer, and Best Actress. Through her body of work, Paola continues to champion stories about identity, migration, and social justice-bringing visibility to underrepresented voices in both dramatic and comedic roles.
WATCH ‘I AM MIGRATION’
Facebook.com/iammigration/videos
WATCH ‘ABRAZO’ – NEW SHORT FILM BY PAOLA
CONNECT WITH PAOLA BALDION
Advertisement – contains affiliate links
(As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases)
New book from Film Courage – Now on Payhip!
Camera we use for interviews – https://buff.ly/3rWqrra
Sound we use for interviews – https://amzn.to/2tbFlM9
Other books on Amazon that Film Courage recommends – https://buff.ly/3o0oE5o
