The De La Cruz cast chats the inspiration behind Yoli De La Cruz’s story and becoming an MMA fighter!

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Is Michael Bias from Dela Cruz and you're listening to
me on Chanel in the City.

Speaker 2 (00:14):
Hey, everyone, and welcome back to another episode of Chanel
in the City on iHeartRadio. I am your host shanell
A Mari and I have three special guests today, which
is we never do this, but this is a very
special moment.

Speaker 3 (00:28):
Three of my good friends.

Speaker 2 (00:29):
We have one of the greatest movies of all time
that you guys have to check out, Della Cruz, which
is hitting all over the platforms streaming platforms August eighth.

Speaker 3 (00:39):
You must check it out.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
We got Michael Baiz who's the screenwriter, a beautiful, amazing,
talented screenwriter.

Speaker 3 (00:45):
Of the movie and director.

Speaker 2 (00:47):
We got the lead actress, the gorgeous, the talented, the
amazing Sofia Diaz. And we got the talented, amazing, driven,
awesome Dennis Bonia, the executive.

Speaker 3 (01:00):
You, sir, I'm lucky. I'm a lucky girl because.

Speaker 2 (01:02):
You usually don't get the three three main people like
this on Channel of the City.

Speaker 3 (01:07):
Guys, welcome to Chanel in the City.

Speaker 2 (01:10):
Thank you, congratulations on an amazing movie. I was privileged
enough to screen the movie before it hits August eighth,
all streaming platforms as well as is it heating theaters
as well, or talk to us a little bit about it.

Speaker 1 (01:25):
Not yet, Actually it's not in theaters. We did do
a festival run, so I played in different festivals and
really beautiful theaters. We played at the Regal Theater in
downtown LA. We played at the Chinese Theater here in
Hollywood where I live in California, by the way. So yeah,
it's been playing in theaters and festivals, but it will
be streaming, as you said, on the platforms on Amazon,

(01:46):
Fandango at Home and Verizon FiOS August eighth, which is
coming up, coming, up coming, up coming up.

Speaker 2 (01:53):
And everybody's asking me, Chanel, what movies you know the
summer slow? What show should I be watching? This is
the movie Dela Clues. Let me tell you, it's such
an empowering movie. I'm gonna let you guys get into
what the movie's about and what the inspiration is. But
it's about a female and based on some true events
in Mexico of what's going on in the Latin culture

(02:13):
and in general, of a woman who really finds herself
in the dumps and has to fight her way through
life and has to fight her way through her I
would say, antagonists write whether they're.

Speaker 3 (02:24):
Male, meant mostly a male.

Speaker 2 (02:26):
But talk to us about why you wrote, Like, talk
to us a little bit about the movie, and what's
the premise of this movie de la Cruz.

Speaker 4 (02:32):
Sure?

Speaker 1 (02:33):
Sure, Well, I'm going to go back a few steps
because I actually wrote the first script. It's now part
of a trilogy. This is actually a trilogy. So this
is part one. I wrote part three in nineteen ninety nine.

Speaker 4 (02:47):
When I finished writing. I started in ninety seven. I finished.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
I spent two years writing one script and it wasn't
it wasn't intended to be a trilogy. It's like one script.
It's called Butterfly in the Fire. It's following the story
of Jolie de la Cruz. It' it's still her story.
She's still the main character. But I came out of
film school. I wrote the script. I presented it to
my writing mentor. His name is Eddie Palmerans. He's also
a fellow New Yorker, an amazing teacher. He taught a
club of university, the Sundance Labs. He had a movie

(03:12):
called Caught that was released by I think Sony amazing,
amazing talented guy. He read the scripts and Michael, I
really believe in this, I'm going to sit with you.
He sat with me for two years working on the script,
getting it to the best possible shape, and once I was.

Speaker 4 (03:26):
Finished, like, okay, now what do I do it?

Speaker 1 (03:28):
I just I didn't have no contact, no investors, I
had no experience, Like what do I do now? So
I just put it to the side. I did a
bunch of short films. Theater plays commercials.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
In New York. I'm born and raise in New York.

Speaker 1 (03:39):
Yeah, a lot of commercials for Cable Vision, Time Warner.
But I always had the script in the back of
my mind. And in twenty nineteen, I said, you know
what I'm going to shoot. I'm going to shoot a
little twenty minute version of that script to see if
it's possible to shoot it for a smaller budget but
still high quality. That was very important to me. So
I went with my friend and we shot twenty minutes.

(04:00):
And her name is Angie Castro. She's also Columbian from Calias.
As we were chatting before and she got so excited
by what we had done in New York. She went
to Columbia shot her own short film won a ton
of awards and called me so excited, said, Michael, you
got to come shoot here. So I flew to Columbia
with the intention of, Okay, can I shoot this movie here?
But I loved Columbia, the beautiful country. But my story

(04:23):
is such a New York story. I was like, oh,
the opening scene is on the subway, like it's not
going to work here. But a light bulb moment happened.
I said, well, what if I write a prequel to
that story and I set it for another country so
it could be like, you know, Yoli lives in Columbia
and then she moves to New York.

Speaker 4 (04:38):
You know, that was my thinking.

Speaker 1 (04:40):
But then you know, I wrote, I wrote the prequel
and that now it's called Mortos, which is now known
as Part two. But at the time it was going
to be the prequel to Butterfly in the Fire. And
you know, the pandemic hits and then the strike happens.

Speaker 4 (04:53):
I was like, oh, here we go, Cans. I had
to wait.

Speaker 1 (04:55):
Another couple of years. So it was twenty twenty March,
and you know, the pandemic hits, and then in August
was my girlfriend's birthday, which actually today, today's actually her
birthday's happy birthday, and Brittany's Brianna and Brittany because the
twins and.

Speaker 3 (05:11):
Brittany Happy Birthday. That's amazing. I love that. Are the
actress too?

Speaker 4 (05:14):
Or did you ever the sound healers yoga teachers?

Speaker 5 (05:18):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (05:18):
Yeah, something that I need all comedians. That's a mixed.

Speaker 4 (05:27):
Mexico for their birthday.

Speaker 1 (05:28):
Because we were like, if we had it with the pandemic,
we need to get out out of California. So we
went to Mexico to Porta Viata and we're celebrating the birthday.
We're at this gorgeous restaurant in Portavarta called a Capella
the Most Amazing View sunset, three violinists coming to the
table and playing a lightning storm going on in the background,
and I was like, oh my god, we're like in

(05:49):
a movie right now. I feel like we're in a
scene of a movie, like The Most Romantic I should
be proposing right now. So we're like and there's an
amazing moment and I go, wow, this is where their
date happens. This is where Joli and Xavier go on
their first date. Like it just it just hit me
and that's where everything unfold. And I said, okay, I
think Mexico is where I got to shoot this movie.
So I went researching online and then found like a

(06:12):
bunch of producers. But it took me to Guadalajara because
Porto Ayarta is part of Holiscoo and but so is Gualajada.
But Gualahada has a film commission, a film, a whole
more big, good film community. So I started emailing a
bunch of filmmakers over there, producers, and they wrote back
to me, and I started to narrow it down to
who I wanted to work with. So I flew them

(06:32):
to Gualhara, Mexico, with the intention of shooting Mortos, which
again is now known as Part two. But it was
taking a long time to get that movie made. It's
gonna talk a lot, to take a lot of money.
I was like, here, I am back in the same dilemma.
So I said, Okay, I'm gonna give it one more shot.
I'm gonna write a prequel to that one, and I'm
gonna scale it down to an affordable budget, a smaller
size production that I can manage, and I can do

(06:54):
it without waiting another twenty years of my life, and
that's what we did. And sure enough we went to Gualajara.
That's how we we met Sophie. And then it's done.
You know, but it's a twenty eight year journey. I
actually count. I said, wow, from the idea to now
the release on the on August eighth, twenty eight years.

Speaker 2 (07:11):
Well, it's funny you say that because a lot of
the audiences always wonder, right, and same with artists and writers.

Speaker 3 (07:16):
We all are producers writers, right.

Speaker 2 (07:18):
You think if I write a script and it doesn't
make it, we're scared somebody's gonna take it or somebody's
gonna make it. So it's interesting, like you said, you're like,
you have to take other jobs in New York.

Speaker 3 (07:26):
You have to hustle. I think people don't realize. With
Hollywood or move.

Speaker 2 (07:29):
The movie business, you're constantly hustling until you make that movie,
until that movie is on screen, and even when it's
on screen, you still want to do.

Speaker 3 (07:37):
More and you still have like other things, you know
what I mean. So it's amazing.

Speaker 2 (07:40):
That you got to get this movie done and you
had the patience to wait this whole time. Now, how
did you know you wanted Sophie and how did you
meet Dennis, Like how did you put this whole team together?

Speaker 3 (07:51):
Like what was your vision? Did you go through auditions?

Speaker 4 (07:54):
Yes?

Speaker 1 (07:54):
Yes, we actually put a word out on this on
the website called Backstage, which is still a big way
for actors, especially who don't have representation, to find And
I remember when when I when I was a kid,
I wanted to be an actor. And then I was
on the set of Carlito's Way with Al Paccino and
Brian de Palma and and I was like, I don't
want to be an actor.

Speaker 4 (08:12):
I'm to be a director. So that's where it all
changed for me.

Speaker 3 (08:15):
But wow, really, so that's where it changed. He said,
I don't want to do the acting, I want to
just direct. Wow.

Speaker 4 (08:21):
Because I was an extra, I was in the background.

Speaker 1 (08:23):
I was like this kind of sucks, you know, like
the pa Gino's amazing, you know, John like Guioman amazing cast.

Speaker 4 (08:29):
But I was like, Brian de Palma is the one
calling the shots.

Speaker 1 (08:32):
And then that's why I changed, is that I want
to become a director instead of an actor. But we
put the word out on Backstage. We had four hundred
submissions for this role of Jolie de la Cruz because
it's a great role. You know, it's a young you know,
m na fighter. I'm like, this is I want to
be there.

Speaker 2 (08:51):
I want to transition now. It's the lead based on
a on a true character or just a general like
vision of what a Latino woman is.

Speaker 1 (09:01):
Yes, it's like a general because I was living in
New York when I wrote her, so of course you
know I'm Puerto Rican. It was like, okay, she's the
Puerto Rican from the Bronx. That's that's where I was living.

Speaker 4 (09:09):
That's where I was. You know, I write who.

Speaker 2 (09:11):
That's my typemes from the Bronx. I've had all long
history's parismatic.

Speaker 3 (09:19):
What can I think?

Speaker 1 (09:21):
I got the best musicians, the best, we got everybody.
So so that was my initial vision was this young,
tough Puerto Rican girl from the Bronx. And then as
I started to shift, you know where we're gonna shoot
it at. And that's why that's why Collie did resonate
with me, because Collie is a beautiful country in Columbia,
beautiful city. And then it has like these favelas, you know,
these these these and we went, we went. It's amazing

(09:41):
you can go on these tour like a tram ride
over them and see and I'm like, wow, this is
I feel like I'm in Brazil and the favelas. So
I do wanted something urban. So when I went to Gualajara,
was like, oh, Gualahara has this vibe. It definitely has
an urban but it's a beautiful, beautiful city. I love
wal but it has an urban vibe to it. Right,
So I was, okay, I think I think this co work.
So when we put the word out for the audition,

(10:03):
we got four hundred submissions, and you know, me and
and my my my producing partner.

Speaker 4 (10:07):
Angie, we watched.

Speaker 1 (10:08):
We try to watch every single one of them, and
you know, we look through the headshots and you know,
it was a long process, but we we finally we
picked this one girl who we found in Mexico City
through one of her friends, Fernando, who actually is an
actor in the movie, and he recommended this one girl
and we we we loved her. She was great and
it's okay, you got the part. But this was all
via zoom and phone calls and text message and WhatsApp

(10:29):
to finally, second, we're going to go to Mexico.

Speaker 4 (10:32):
We're going to meet her in person.

Speaker 1 (10:33):
So we go and before we get to Mexico City
where she is, we stop in Gualajara to do some
auditions there, and that's where Sophie enters the picture. And
you know, in my mind we already have this other
girl past. And then I see Sophie in the hallway.

Speaker 4 (10:47):
I'm like, ah, this girl.

Speaker 1 (10:51):
I feel bad for her, like she's she's see her
reading her line. She looks so cute, you know, Let's
give her a shott. Let's have her come in anyway,
even though we got the other girl. And she blows
us away. She blows us away her performance. He'says like
this and my girlfriend, Brianna I mentioned she's right next
to me. She has no film experience. This is our

(11:11):
first venue into this world. She turns to me and goes,
you messed up. You need to pick her.

Speaker 2 (11:18):
It's not personal, it's how it's the talent at the
end of the day, talent.

Speaker 6 (11:24):
So I'm like, thank you, Breed, thank you so much
for that.

Speaker 1 (11:29):
So I'm like, oh man, we really really got it.
She's so good.

Speaker 4 (11:32):
So we've got this other girl. So we wrap up Gualajara.

Speaker 1 (11:35):
We go to Mexico City and now I'm supposed to
meet this actress over there and we're holding some other
auditions and I don't know it. I get a call
from her manager, who I'm like, I've never been dealing
with the manager.

Speaker 4 (11:45):
I'm dealing with her directly. Who's this manager calling me?

Speaker 1 (11:47):
And she's like, yeah, she can't do the role, no explanation,
just she's not going to do it. And I was
like what. So I'm completely like angry, to be honest
with you, I've been talking to this girl for months
and I feel like she broke up with me out
of nowhere, has a great coffee I get to take
up out of here, you know. But then Brianta and
Angie go Sophie, now you can work with Sophie.

Speaker 3 (12:10):
I'm like, yes, it's a blessing. You see, Doc was
on your side.

Speaker 1 (12:15):
It was a blessing. We fly back to Gualahara. A
few days later, we meet with Sophie. We officially offer
her the part. We connected her with a trainer because
in the in the movie and as you saw, and
she's an MMA fighter. Sophie had zero experience in MMA
and we put her with not just any trainer. We
put her with the father of the number one UFC

(12:35):
female fighter who actually became the champion, Alexa Grosso.

Speaker 2 (12:39):
So so I I even know who Alexea Grosso is
and I'm not Okay, that's crazy.

Speaker 1 (12:45):
Sophie trained with Louis Grosso, who's Alexi's dad, for three
years while it took to raise the money to figure
out where we're going to shoot this movie. Sophie was
in training for three years. I'll let her tell you
the rest.

Speaker 2 (12:59):
Wow, that's what an incredible story. So yeah, talk to
us about the part. What you have to do to
get ready? Of course, three years. I mean, this is
why I tell people about acting or comedy or entertainment writing, producing.
You gotta want to really put the work in. You
can't think people are gonna do it for you, even
if you're an actress, whether you're beautiful, you're talented, it's

(13:20):
like you have to actually do research and work. So
talk to us about like a knowing you got the part,
you know you're acting for how long?

Speaker 1 (13:29):
Now?

Speaker 7 (13:29):
How old are you?

Speaker 3 (13:30):
So beautiful? How old are you?

Speaker 7 (13:32):
Yeah, I'm a twenty seven right now, Oh my god,
so young?

Speaker 6 (13:36):
But I started.

Speaker 7 (13:38):
I started when I was little girl, but in musical theater,
so like I wanted to be a musical theater actress,
but in Mala Lakara there is not a lot of
gigs of musical theater.

Speaker 6 (13:53):
So either I have to move to Mexico City or
New York. But you know, life, life, and.

Speaker 7 (14:03):
I started to do the princesses like for kids parties
and stuff.

Speaker 6 (14:11):
Then one friend that he was, I.

Speaker 7 (14:13):
Don't know, like a prince or something back then, he
was like, are you like interested in movies and commercials
and stuff like that?

Speaker 6 (14:20):
And I was like yeah, I mean.

Speaker 3 (14:22):
Yeah, but like why do you think I'm doing the
princess thing?

Speaker 7 (14:26):
But but yeah, I mean I could try better. I
don't know, like how where where to find castings or anything.

Speaker 1 (14:34):
You know.

Speaker 7 (14:35):
He was like, don't worry, I'm gonna give you a
lot of castings and you just go and you know,
get the audition and that's it. And then I started
to do commercials and then one thing led to another
and my first TV show and stuff like that, and yeah,
I mean, right now I'm here, but but yeah, the beginning,

(14:56):
I didn't know anything about this other girl. You know,
I was just there there for a callback and that
was it. And I did the casting for Jolie in Muertos,
so the La Cruz it wasn't even written back then.

Speaker 6 (15:13):
So uh, I was I was in this stage because at.

Speaker 7 (15:17):
The beginning, I didn't know anything anything about the story.

Speaker 5 (15:21):
Uh.

Speaker 7 (15:21):
And the casting was a really intense part. But I
always I love to to ask a lot of questions
when I'm in a in another audition, and and I
remember the first thing that I asked to Michael, like,
can you tell me what happened here? Because I don't
understand completely this scene.

Speaker 6 (15:41):
He was like, oh, this happened. I was like, oh, oh, oh.

Speaker 7 (15:46):
My god, Okay, that changes everything.

Speaker 6 (15:48):
Okay, give me one second. And then I just.

Speaker 7 (15:52):
Yeah, I just I just I just did it, you know,
with the information that he gave me. And uh yeah,
I was. I was feeling happy. And you know, if
this part is going to be for me, it will.

Speaker 6 (16:05):
If it's not, it's.

Speaker 7 (16:06):
Okay, you know, casting it that I usually do, casting
that I forget because if not, it's really painful.

Speaker 2 (16:14):
Like well, that doesn't ask you, how do you if
you can share with our audience too, like as an actress,
you know, and you're beautiful, you're talented, you have everything
going for you, and it's competitive. How did you deal
with the fact knowing, well, I know you didn't know
about the other girl, but like just in general, knowing
that you have competition or you have people rejecting your

(16:34):
saying no to you, how.

Speaker 3 (16:36):
Do you keep your light?

Speaker 2 (16:37):
How do you keep positive and keep going and say, well,
you know what, I love this, so I'm going to
keep going until it's for me. Like, how did you
deal with it during this process?

Speaker 7 (16:45):
I know, yeah, because I think rejection it's part of
being in this in this industry in general, you know.
But I feel that actors and actresses we deal with
a lot of rejection, a lot of it.

Speaker 6 (17:00):
So I feel that.

Speaker 7 (17:04):
Don't take anything personal because at the end, you know,
they're trying to tell a story and I don't know
if this if Jolly was blonde, and they don't have
the budget to make me blonde. So you know, it's
not because I'm not talented or because i'm not you know,
I'm not worthy of the role, but it's just it's

(17:25):
just because they can't do it, or it's it's it's
not because of you sometimes, you know.

Speaker 6 (17:32):
So it's very it's very different. And also.

Speaker 7 (17:37):
Most of people that are gonna say no to you
and you have to you have to deal with that
idea and try to live with that. But also discipline
is a very good I think discipline is my best
friend because I feel that discipline takes you places where
motivation can't. So I feel I feel that when you

(18:00):
are disciplined and you are always working on your dreams,
it would eventually happen and you cannot work with somebody
that is not you. So I feel that also you
have to to be truly to yourself and be you know,
I'm this girl. If I fit in the part, I will.

(18:22):
If not, you know, another opportunity is gonna come and
people will see, Okay, you can make me one and
probably I'm gonna look good.

Speaker 6 (18:31):
Maybe not, but I can try.

Speaker 7 (18:33):
You know, to also to be open with that possibility
that you can you can be somebody else, but you
have to work for that and you have to acknowledge
all of that and embrace that part.

Speaker 6 (18:46):
But first, such a cliche.

Speaker 7 (18:49):
I know this, but you have to be you because
the end, that's all that you have and you have
to work with that.

Speaker 3 (18:58):
I love You're my new best friend for and form.

Speaker 2 (19:00):
And second of all, I love that you say discipline,
because that's such a big thing that a lot of
us don't think about. And I think if a lot
of us had that, we wouldn't be asking why this
and why that.

Speaker 3 (19:11):
I do agree with you.

Speaker 2 (19:12):
I think discipline is the number one thing that a
lot of us forget, and if we can use that
to be our best friend, it's probably the best advice
I've ever heard in my life, because now I'm going
to start thinking, you know, when I ever want to
go sideways, oh, discipline, And when you start thinking that.

Speaker 3 (19:26):
You are more closer to your goals, you know what
I mean.

Speaker 2 (19:29):
Like you said, like you're not taking it offensively, you're
not taking it personally.

Speaker 3 (19:33):
You're just on a track. And that's what brought you here.

Speaker 2 (19:35):
Now you're the main actress of such an I believe,
so I wouldn't just say this is an incredible movie
that actually I think should change time, especially since we're
in a very critical time with so many things, you know,
like talk to me about the woman. For me, it
was very empowering for women, like especially seeing you, you know,
this beautiful girl who's smart, who's talented, who has everything

(19:58):
going for her, and she's still finds herself in these
really challenging situations with men or in general with people,
like do you see yourself in real life as Joli? Like,
were you able to relate to her in certain situations
that's happened to you, you know what I mean where
you had to be a fighter?

Speaker 3 (20:15):
No?

Speaker 6 (20:15):
Yeah, I feel that.

Speaker 7 (20:21):
Joli is not a quitter, and me myself, I believe
I'm not a quitter either, So I completely understand when
I when I read, you know, the whole story, even
in Muertos. She she's still a fighter, you know, and
I had to create or discover her, Yes, discover her

(20:43):
in this journey of becoming an MMA fighter, you know.
But but yeah, I feel that I started to become
Joli when I started training. I don't know, for example,
when you do certain activity is.

Speaker 6 (21:00):
In this case, is the MM A thing.

Speaker 7 (21:03):
I have a really long hair, you know, really real
long hair, and when I start training, I realize I
cannot have this long hair because it's a trigger always
is a trigger in the training and the trainings and everything.

Speaker 6 (21:16):
So I had to cut it and I did.

Speaker 7 (21:19):
And now and then I realized why MMA fighters either
there's a girl that she she's bold because of that,
you know, they always.

Speaker 6 (21:29):
Have raises and everything.

Speaker 7 (21:31):
So I had like to to get to know her,
like why she's doing everything that she does, And in
a way I started to become her because I feel
that it's just that I feel all women are jolly,
and because because I.

Speaker 6 (21:49):
Don't I don't want to say that.

Speaker 7 (21:50):
Every girl or every woman has passed to I don't
know abuse or any anything similar, but I think most
of us have been through something like that, and it's
really sad to say that it's a it's a shame
to to actually accept that, because I feel that every

(22:13):
woman has a story of kind of abuse, you know.
So I feel Jodi is really easy to relate with it.
And because she's a she's a teenager that you know,
it's I think it's more one.

Speaker 6 (22:30):
It's it's more powerful.

Speaker 7 (22:32):
Not because an old girl or or an older girl
it's not important, you know, but but because she is
she is a teenager. I feel that when she finds
herself and she feels stronger and that she can make
a justice, uh you know, without any other's help, just

(22:53):
by herself. I think it's really powerful. Because we don't
teach our girls to be strong when.

Speaker 6 (23:01):
They're they're little.

Speaker 7 (23:02):
You know, we're always kind of like the I don't
know how to say this in in English, but use
so deville.

Speaker 2 (23:11):
It's like submissive, like polite, like my mom used to
say in Spanish Columbian. She used to be like, yeah,
and I always bothered me because I felt like I
had to fight in me and I and I never
could bring it out because I had to be the
polite I forget how you say it, but there's a.

Speaker 7 (23:28):
Yeah, like the polite one, the one that controlled her,
you know, their emotions because you're the woman, you have
to be the bigger person in the room and all.

Speaker 3 (23:38):
No violence, no right.

Speaker 7 (23:40):
Yes, but you know it's really powerful because she can
she can teach little girls that it's okay to to
speak for themselves, to to raise their voices, to say.

Speaker 6 (23:54):
This is not this is not right. You know this,
I'm so angry. What can I do?

Speaker 7 (24:00):
You know, and not repress all of those emotions that
are really powerful emotions And it's not they're not like
the emotions are not right or wrong. You know, they're
just emotions.

Speaker 6 (24:12):
So you have to let it out.

Speaker 7 (24:13):
You have to cry, you have to if you want
to get angry, okay, you know, go angry whatever, but
you have to let it out and it's okay, there's
nothing there's nothing wrong with that. So we have to
teach our girls that and also teach our boys to
be more respectful with those things, you know. So I
think it's very powerful Jolly. It's such a powerful character,

(24:38):
and she can teach I.

Speaker 6 (24:41):
Mean everyone you know, to everyone.

Speaker 7 (24:45):
So I feel so blessed for being part of this
story because I feel Jolly's story can be anyone's story.

Speaker 3 (24:54):
I feel.

Speaker 2 (24:55):
So you have to understand. I cried during this movie.
I was angry during this movie. I felt all the
types of emotions, which makes such a great movie.

Speaker 7 (25:04):
You know.

Speaker 2 (25:04):
So like and I wanted to be Jolee at the end,
I wanted to have her in me almost like you're right,
it's a representation for all women, but it should be
a representation for men to be learning the boundaries of
society of what women go through, right, Because like, even
when it's funny, I watched the movie and it's almost
like I tell Dennis this all the time, Like God

(25:25):
brought Dennis into my life and all of you. As
I was going through a really challenging time in my life,
as we all do, and I was having a hard
time like just standing up to men sexually, you know,
just being like I want to separate work and all
that stuff, like as women go through. And once I
saw the movie, I felt just more confident to talk
about what I wanted, what I don't want in a

(25:46):
nice way.

Speaker 3 (25:48):
Like in a way you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (25:49):
Like even though Joe had to Joli had to fight physically,
sometimes I felt like that was my backup in the
end of the day if I had to, like what
is this guy gonna do to me? He's gonna manip
allow me to go into bed with him, and then
what he's gonna plunk me? Like we are get so
scared as women, we put all this fear. And when
I see your character, I was like, wow, I see

(26:10):
if she can be this way, I should be this way.
But I do feel like we need to teach our
girls from a young age because I almost tried for
the little girl and me exactly that didn't have the
fight and that's the problems that arise as you get
older and trauma and so wow, like I'm just the movies,
like I want everyone to see this movie because of

(26:30):
how empowering and how much it can make you either
feel better learn but also become a better person, a
stronger person.

Speaker 3 (26:38):
Why do you think? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (26:39):
And anyone can answer this, Why do you think you
don't lead? Yeah, Michael, why do you think? Or and Dennis,
you guys can also time in why did you want
your lead to become the MMA fighter? Without giving too
much away? What is the premise also of why she
had to become a fighter?

Speaker 3 (26:55):
What did she goes through? Without giving too much a way.

Speaker 1 (26:57):
Because to see you know, of course, and I think
I think we should we just say a little bit
about what the movie is, because you know it's in
the trailer. If people watch the trailer, it's all there.

Speaker 2 (27:06):
Oh, by the way, where we're showing an exclusive trailer
on the eighth with iHeartRadio. Guys, you can only click
make sure you click on the link in the description
which will take you.

Speaker 3 (27:15):
To the trailer.

Speaker 2 (27:16):
Michael Light, we'll we'll talk about sharing that, but yeah,
talk to us a little bit about the premise.

Speaker 1 (27:20):
So you know, we wanted to, you know, obviously with
the trailer is those trailers that like give away the
entire movie and like I already saw the movie, I
need to see it, you know. So we did how
to give you a little bit more than we wanted
to to really let you know what is this movie about.
But there's so much that we didn't show as you saw.
That's that's not in the trailer at all. But the
main thing of the trailer is that Yoli gets sexually

(27:42):
assaulted and she wants justice, you know, and that's all
she wants. She wants justice, you know. She doesn't go
to revenge until she doesn't get justice, so her justice
is denied, then she goes for a revenge, but and
initially she just wants justice. And I think that's something
that all survivors, all people who have who have been
in these situations, whether it be you know. And it
was also for me important as a writer, and Sophie

(28:03):
and I spoke about this a lot because we already
cast her for Part two, which then of course would
have her for Part three before I wrote Part one,
so we would have these conversations like, Okay, here's the
scene we talked about it in part two because she's
on the day as I mentioned, this beautiful romantic restaurant
and the guy that she's on a date with asks
her why did you become a fighter?

Speaker 4 (28:22):
Like why are you a fighter?

Speaker 1 (28:23):
And she says, because when I was in school, you know,
there was this boy who liked me. He tried to
attack me, and you know, I and I trained and
I went back and I beat his.

Speaker 4 (28:31):
Ass, you know. So she tells me that that was
the entire, the whole script.

Speaker 1 (28:37):
Yes, this one little I don't know, two paragraphs of
a scene, you know, became this whole entire movie because
I knew that there was so much there, you know,
to talk about abuse and the training that she had
to go through, and like who was this guy and
how did she meet him? Like, there was so much
to build around in that world, just over this tiny, tiny,
little moment. So it was important for me to like, Okay,

(28:58):
let's address this because I was listening to me. I
listened to a lot of podcasts as well, and it
was one in particular, I think it was Oprah talked
about how like when when when women are abused or
raped or assaulted, the usually this alcohol involved. It's a
very high percentage of the guy trying to get the
girl drunk. So okay, and I had that in my
mind that Wow, I've never heard that voice that way.

(29:21):
It makes sense, but I never heard it said, so
that that became okay. He takes her to this beautiful restaurant.
He's trying to wind and diye in her. He's trying
to get her drunk, like like he has an ulterium motive.
We see that he has an agenda from from that
moment on it. He's really trying to get her drunk.
And she's like, no, I don't drink. I don't drink,
you know. And and then there's there's moments where where
I where I love that. In that moment there at

(29:41):
at the table, at at the restaurant, she says, I
don't drink, but yet her peer pressure is forcing her.

Speaker 4 (29:47):
To drink, you know.

Speaker 1 (29:48):
And then and then when he when he takes her
home and he tries to sexually assault her, you know,
she says, right where I love she says, I said no.
She says it over and over. I said no, I
said no. You know, it's like saying no is so
I'm important. But like sometimes these a holes don't hear
them no, and they just goes, you know, no means yes.
It's that that stupid you know, cliche is you know,

(30:09):
so so there's so much. There was just so much,
and you know, I was so grateful that, you know,
Sophie and I had these conversations about, Okay.

Speaker 4 (30:17):
Where's the line, you know, how far do we want
to go?

Speaker 1 (30:19):
Like I want to protect my character as the writer
of Yoli, so I didn't want to.

Speaker 4 (30:23):
I didn't want to have.

Speaker 1 (30:24):
Him succeed in the attempt, but still the attempt is
still traumatizing, just because he doesn't traumatized by it, you know.

Speaker 7 (30:33):
So so I wanted to that because I remember that
we talk about it, you know, and I'm well, I
was doing the breakdown of Marto's the second second script,
and I asked Michael because in this line, particularly this line,
I asked him like, how broken is she? Like, like

(30:56):
what happened in this moment that make her know? An
mm a, what what was like the motive?

Speaker 5 (31:03):
Uh?

Speaker 3 (31:04):
And I remember that, I.

Speaker 6 (31:05):
Asked him, and then the lacruse happened. And also we talk.

Speaker 7 (31:09):
About like how far you know this guy is gonna go?
And and I say, okay, in my in my experience,
thank god, I've never been in that situation, like not
not like that, and but but still things had happened
to me in a way, and it doesn't mean you know,

(31:31):
it's it's not that it's kind of the same as.

Speaker 6 (31:34):
If it was the whole of you.

Speaker 7 (31:36):
You know, of course, trauma is there. That the the
fact that you know that somebody that you know wanted
to hurt you, and the was there, it's the same.

Speaker 6 (31:48):
It's the same.

Speaker 7 (31:48):
Trauma is the it's it's something that you don't recover
that easily, you know.

Speaker 2 (31:54):
So that's that's why I wanted to on that note,
I wanted to say that when I was watching it,
I liked that you didn't take it all the way
because I've been there, you know, personally, I haven't talked
about this, but now is the appropriate time to talk.

Speaker 3 (32:07):
About it because of the movie.

Speaker 2 (32:09):
I've been in points where I've been abused by a
man physically, mentally, emotionally, or I've been sexually assaulted. But
because like what you and Dennis and Michael are saying,
the trauma is still real. So even if it doesn't happen,
like how many times I've said no to a guy
and he's manipulated me otherwise and then used me and
threw me out that's a form of sexualists.

Speaker 3 (32:30):
Do you know what I'm saying. There's so many different
forms of.

Speaker 2 (32:32):
Feeling violated or saying no, or feeling like you said,
people want to agenda is to hurt you and use
you and not have any other intention. That's what I
also love about the movie is like I needed this,
and I know many women needed this because we're silent
in our head. We're taught by society to be quiet.
Like you said, Michael also said, sometimes you're not heard.

(32:53):
Sometimes it's the denial, even what you go through in
the movie as a character, like people not believing you,
people not believing us. And then how do you find
that justice when someone doesn't believe you? Like and any
of you can answer this, it's like, how do you
find that justice within the movie and the character and
off screen when everyone's against you, who doesn't believe you?

Speaker 3 (33:11):
Do you still keep quiet? Do you still fight?

Speaker 2 (33:14):
That's why I get why your character had to be
an MMA fighter, because the only justice in that sense
was kicking the shit out of a guy and teaching
him a lection. Not that we all want to get
there though, right, Not that.

Speaker 3 (33:23):
We all want to do that every day.

Speaker 2 (33:25):
No, I'd be in jail and I would call you
from Mexico and then I'd really be in shit.

Speaker 3 (33:29):
I'd be like, I just beat the shit out of
a guy. Can you save me?

Speaker 5 (33:33):
Well, that's the beauty of the movie, I think, Shoutel
because you know, when I first got involved, you know,
and Michael and I met and talked about it, I
was immediately drawn to the movie and the message that
it had. But the message became broader and broader as
I learned more and more. A personal message for me,
a personal message for people in my family, personal message

(33:54):
for not just women, but men, non binary. This is
a problem that affects everybody, a huge right to sort
of defend and find justice. And the fact that in
this particular case, Joli gets her power back. But as
you can see through in the movie, right, the power
doesn't come back immediately. There's there's a transition to the
point where she finally realizes she has to take control

(34:16):
of this situation and face it head on. And for me,
you know, the situation is very real because too many
people are not believed. Right. You know, she goes, she
tries to get justice through the system. The system is
rigged against these kinds of things, and then only you know,
ten percent of the cases that are reported ever get

(34:37):
to any level of some sort of conclusion. Ten percent
of the reported cases, imagine, because most cases don't get
reported because like Youoli said, he has said, you know,
because she is Eoli right at the end of the day,
for me, she is Youoli incarnate, right, and she's you know,
her case gets brushed under the table whatever reason, right.

(35:01):
And so it's just it has to be said, and
it has to be said in a broad enough way,
in a meaningful way that you have to listen, you
have to believe, you have to share the story, and
you have to sort of let them get the voice
back and be part of that voice. And you know, Michael,
and I'm Michael. I meant you know, it was a
very sort of uh. I always say, there are no

(35:23):
coincidences in life. Like you said, Shane, right, we crossed
paths at the at the cutting room. There was no
plan for us to even know each other at that point, right,
you happen to be on stage. I resonated with your act.
I went and reached out to you. We had a
good talk with Michael, you know, we had this this
call and I wasn't in the movie business this. I
was in the talent development business. And I had pivoted

(35:45):
a couple of years ago and I had I had
just finished premier in a movie that I was involved
in in Las Vegas when a friend of mine from
Las Vegas called Michael and said, Michael, you need to
talk to Dennis. Maybe Dennis can help you with Dela Cruz.
And so Michael and I had a a zoom call
and I don't think we were into the call more
than thirty seconds when I knew that I needed to

(36:06):
be involved in this role. And you know, I told Michael, Michael,
you had me at hello, you know, like in the
like in the movie Jerry Maguire. But it evolved, and
it's evolved. That's got it more complex and more more
nuanced and more rich the story for me and why
I've been sort of so adamant about getting the word
out because it's so widespread, and so it's not just

(36:27):
women as men, it's everybody, and it affects every race, color, creed,
nationality doesn't matter. There are no boundaries for this kind
of abuse. And like you said, Jolie, you know, wasn't
the assaulting and go all the way, but there's other
ways of being heard and traumatized. And this trauma never
goes away. I mean, it never goes away. You deal
with it, you confront it, it gets buried for years

(36:48):
and years, and then you lash out at some point
and you have these horrible relationships with men or women
or whatever. And so I think this is all a
very important part of dealing with the trauma, dealing with
the healing deal. We're regaining your voice. And through Sophia
does a beautiful job of explaining her journey and how
she got to that empowerment. Obviously the sequel and continues on.

(37:12):
And you know, the journey never ends, right is that
oh I'm fixed, I'm great now and everything's good. You know,
it continues on and continues on, affecting your relationships and
your life for the rest of your world.

Speaker 2 (37:22):
And so, of course, and that's by the way, beautifully said.
I love that it's also coming from the men like
you and Michael, like men in general, saying hey, like
we know what's going on, we understand. I want to
know from your end why you think the system is rigged.
And by the way, because I've gone through stuff, whether
it's all the way or half. I have friends that
have gone through stuff, and by the way, it's very
hard to have these relationships. You're right, the trauma lives on.

(37:44):
We're all in therapy.

Speaker 3 (37:45):
People who want to get help are in therapy for it.

Speaker 2 (37:48):
Sometimes, like recently, I've been telling some guy no, no, no,
and then.

Speaker 3 (37:52):
There's that manipulation.

Speaker 2 (37:53):
So you have to know when to Like when you
see Eoli too in the MMA fighting point, you also
see her through these like errors where she verbally is
saying no and like after the attack meaning it meaning
there has to be a boundary where you're like, no,
you're not coming to my house. I don't care what
you But it's hard for women because we've said.

Speaker 3 (38:13):
That to men before. So why do you think the cyst?
Is it a money thing? With the system being rigged?
Not believing women? Is it? Is it? Is it something
that's too much for them to handle?

Speaker 2 (38:23):
Because I never understood what's the big deal to hold
somebody you know is accountable.

Speaker 4 (38:30):
Yeah, definitely to please try men.

Speaker 1 (38:33):
I personally feel that one the system is mostly male dominated.
First of all, it's mostly men running things, and two
it is money.

Speaker 4 (38:44):
You know, in my movie you know.

Speaker 1 (38:45):
He has he has his relative. His father is the cop.
You know, his father protects him. You know, he sweeps
it on even though the father speaks out against him
and says stop doing this. But later on he tells
lit Bull, tell her to drop the case.

Speaker 5 (39:01):
You know.

Speaker 4 (39:02):
So so it's still his son. He's still protecting his son.

Speaker 1 (39:05):
I'm here in California and just just a few days ago,
a bunch of four little teenagers went and beat up
another another, another teenager as a racial a racial hate crime.
And we find out that one of those teenagers who
assaulted the other guy his father's a cop. I'm like,
look at this. It just goes to show you like,
even though you would think, oh, his father's a cop,
he should walk the straight and narrow path. No, he thinks, Oh,

(39:27):
because my father's a cop, I can go and just
beat the hell out of somebody and I'll get away
with it.

Speaker 4 (39:31):
And he just might.

Speaker 1 (39:32):
Who knows, it just happened days ago, So who knows
what's gonna happen. But that that's the truth of the
of where we're living in is that it's a male dominated,
you know world. Unfortunately in terms of power structure, it's shifting,
but it's shifting so slowly. And that's why even this,
even you know the fact that you have this, this,
this podcast and this talk show, it's amazing because it
gives voice, you know, to topics that men won't speak about.

(39:55):
You know, I'm a yoga teacher also aside from from
from a filmmaker, so I'm I'm constant in the space
and the conversations of the feminine energy. We're always talking
about the chakras, particularly the throat choker, which is expressing
speaking your truth, expressing yourself, not biting your tongue, not
holding back.

Speaker 4 (40:13):
I lived this stuff.

Speaker 1 (40:13):
I talk about it all the time in yoga, and
now it's trying to put it in a movie in
a way that's entertaining but also has some some some
umph to it, you know, has has a message, has
something to say, but still in an entertaining way because
we want to get people to come and see it.
But then we just knock them and go, hey, oh man, wow.
I didn't expect that one, you know, and like you said,
have an emotional effect. We wanted people to feel her pain.

(40:36):
When I wrote that scene, it was very difficult for
me to write this character who I've known for twenty
eight years, you know, to write her in the situation
of her being sexually assaulted. To shoot that scene when
Sophie and I and Isaac that the guy who plays Victor,
who's a sweetheart, by the way, he's the nicest guy.

Speaker 3 (40:54):
He's though.

Speaker 5 (40:57):
Amazing.

Speaker 3 (40:58):
I hope between them two on screen is amazing.

Speaker 4 (41:02):
Yes, And they've known each other for years.

Speaker 1 (41:04):
She brought him to she brought him to us, and
I was like, Wow, he's a good looking guy. He's tall,
he's handsome, you know, he's got talent, you know, but
he's the sweetest guy. And so that was a very
tough scene for him to like. Even even in rehearsals,
it took him time to get there because he just
felt like he couldn't lay his hands on her, he
couldn't forcefully grab her. So it was a lot. But
shooting that scene was so difficult for me as a

(41:25):
director to do it again, to do it again because
hearing her cry and hearing her say I said no,
and it was so emotionally to edit that scene was
oh my god, it was painful. I remember editing takes hours.
I'm watching the scene over and over I'm trying to
find the best angle. I'm adjusting this, I'm adjusting that.
I was like, oh my God. And luckily my girlfriend,
as I mentioned Brianna as a sound healer, I finished
that scene and she just happened to be doing a

(41:47):
sound bath downstairs in our living room. I ran downstairs
and you're.

Speaker 2 (41:50):
Like, I need healing because it could be dark and
painfully took me.

Speaker 4 (41:54):
It shook me.

Speaker 1 (41:55):
I felt I felt the energy of the character which
chose to show you what after Sophie is. I felt
the energy of the character resonating through me. It's like, wow,
this is so intense right now. To sit here for
all these hours going through so can imagine someone who
lived it and to have it in their mind for
the rest of their life, Like it just doesn't go
away because I hit it, hit delete or cut or

(42:17):
whatever I do in the computer. This is someone's life,
you know, and many people, And thank you for sharing
you and being so yeah right, this is something we've
heard so many times. But we finished the screening and
the women will pull me to the sign, Go Michael,
thank you so much that happened.

Speaker 3 (42:32):
If you're giving us also the comfortability and the familiality
to say I can share this and wow, these people
get me. Not only are they making a movie. That's
why I want it.

Speaker 2 (42:41):
To be so worldwide because it helped not only me,
but people and I know women who've been through it,
whether it's fully the sexual.

Speaker 3 (42:48):
Assault or not, or just men.

Speaker 2 (42:51):
I say it's sexual abuse, even sometimes when men like
what they did to Sophie, and even with the police,
like I've had people tell me.

Speaker 3 (42:58):
Even this movie has taught me, you don't just trust
authorities because they're the authority. You don't just trust the
system because they're the system. You trust yourself.

Speaker 2 (43:06):
That's what Sophie and You'll Lea the character taught me,
and it was gonna teach everyone is like you take
justice in your own hands sometimes, yes, be smart about it, Yes,
be passion about it, because I never have patience. That's
why it's like it took me to we met, because
I've been going through this also for two years or
a couple of years.

Speaker 3 (43:23):
And now I get to talk to you guys about it.

Speaker 2 (43:25):
You're helping so many people take back their power because
it's not about letting the police make The police doesn't
always know with all du respect, they don't always know
all the decision even I had to tell them when
I had to make reports.

Speaker 3 (43:37):
Look, per my lawyer, I'm sorry, Like we're.

Speaker 2 (43:39):
Gonna have to see the police department if you're gonna
be like acting aggressive and telling me that you don't
believe me and that I'm lying.

Speaker 3 (43:44):
Someone's paying someone under the table. We all know it's money,
you know what I'm saying.

Speaker 2 (43:48):
So I love how you guys are bringing these like
elements and these layers to this story of like, this
is real, and so it's so important to me to
get it out. It's so important because it's gonna help
so many women.

Speaker 3 (43:59):
You have no idea.

Speaker 4 (44:00):
I agree, I agree, it's such a crucial thing.

Speaker 1 (44:03):
And you know, we saw the Me Too movement, which
was which is great because it took down a lot
of people. It showed the corruption, it showed, you know,
the conspiring it showed, It showed all the ugliness of
the film industry, of every industry.

Speaker 4 (44:15):
It affected everywhere.

Speaker 1 (44:16):
But then like okay, that that that slowly quiet, it
disappeared and now no one's really talking about it again.
And now and guess what, it's still happening. It's still
it's still.

Speaker 5 (44:24):
Weird part the problem is that it happens primarily with
people you know or family members. We're not talking about
people and positions of power only, right, Yes, it's the
people you trust, Like she trusted her friend to be
a friend.

Speaker 4 (44:36):
Right.

Speaker 5 (44:36):
You trust your family member, your uncle, your aunt, whoever
you're and all of a sudden you're put into this
predicament of oh my god, you know, and then you
have to shut up about it because when the family
feels shame, or you feel shame, or the family doesn't
believe you, or the family doesn't want to believe you
because they don't want it to be known, so they
don't want you to go to the police. They don't
want you to make it. So there's this whole cover

(44:58):
up that occurs, well beyond the fact that there's corruption
in the system, or there's power and money sort of
to silence it, all the other social economic factors of
family and shame and guilt, and I mean especially, I
don't want to say especially in the Latin community. I
know from being a Latino what I've seen and observed,

(45:18):
and I'm sure it happens in many more cultures and
every culture, but what I've saw in the Latin community,
this machismo and this sort of I can't let anybody
know that I've been hurt this way if I'm a man, right,
you never want anybody to know you've been hurt as
a man in that particular way. Are you a man anymore?
You're not a man anymore? You know what's wrong with you?
So it's a multi dimensional impact movie that you know.

(45:41):
I can't tell you how many people after I did
a short video on the movie reached out to me
and said, I'm glad you did this. I wanted to
let you know that I was sexually assault I These
are people that I've known for a long time that
they say, oh my god, how have they kept their
shit together? You know, so without having an explosive traumatic
is they have had traumatic events and they've been able

(46:03):
and they have been able to sort of you know,
resolve them or whatever. And it shows up in relationships,
or it shows up and other factors in your life.
And you know, you can be successful in life on
an hour basis and be a total mess inwardly during
that whole time.

Speaker 2 (46:19):
Well, I was going to tell you because I felt
very safe with Dennis. You know, we bonded off the
after the comedy show, and I had kind of expressed
you too, like when I told you I was acting,
but also I've went through the sexual assault stuff and
you're like, I can't believe you didn't talk about it.

Speaker 3 (46:32):
That's why this movie is going to resonate with you.

Speaker 2 (46:34):
But not only that, the fact that, like you can
have a restraining order even against somebody, but that persons
so unpredictable and the system's not really protecting you that
you feel you're on your own.

Speaker 3 (46:43):
So that's why I even resonated with you. Lea.

Speaker 2 (46:45):
I was like, damn right, she's taking it into her
own hand. She's becoming a fighter because she knows that
there's no one else who's going to save her but her.
So what am I going to let the system or everybody?
Am I going to die on everybody's expense? Or am
I going to think about me? That's what I got
from and that's why you made me feel safe to
say No, you're allowed to talk about this, you're allowed
to promote this, you're allowed to say and you're right. Unfortunately,

(47:06):
it's like we become this difficult person because you're saying
it's a cover up. I thank you for not making
me and other women though feel crazy.

Speaker 3 (47:14):
Thank you for not making us feel like you.

Speaker 2 (47:15):
Literally, all three of you beautifully said everything I've been
thinking for months. I've been told you it happened with
people I know in comedy. That's the hardest thing. I
came just with the three of you know this story.
I came to Dennis and I said, you know, Dennis,
we just met, but he has such a great work
ethic and he's so respectful with women and everything like that.
I said, maybe we can just work together on things

(47:36):
where I don't have to deal with some of these
men that I because.

Speaker 3 (47:39):
He said to me. Remember, I don't know if you
remember this. It's like, aren't you doing your comedy? You're
going in and out right.

Speaker 2 (47:43):
No, it's like these men want to brit stay, make
you drink, make you do whatever, and it's like that's
not part of the job though, right, you know, that's
not part of you should be able to go, or
Sophia should be able to go do her job right,
work with creative people like you guys, and then leave.
But that's what's scared me too, that it was a friend,
it was someone you know, and you're just really teaching
people like these flag these red flags to look out

(48:06):
for too when you're out, you know, maybe you get
sexually assaulted. So I mean, what do you guys think
needs to change too? You know, wasn't yeah, Sophie Peace, I.

Speaker 7 (48:15):
Think it's the mentality because you know, Johnny, she fights
like she literally literally she fights and then she becomes
an MMA fighter. But but you know, I think it's
about attitude, like woman, a woman attitude to say no,
and confidence because when you have confidence, I've seen this

(48:38):
and that completely change everything for me when I when
I started training, I was feeling more powerful, but like
physically stronger, and I knew that if somebody just came
at me, I could have taken take him down, you
know with that guy. So I was feeling I was
feeling good with myself, you know, because I was working

(49:00):
you know, myself and everything. Now you know the training,
the I was eating good, I was working on myself completely,
so that more than you know, the muscles and the training,
it was the attitude that I was taking. So whenever
I don't know, somebody or someone say anything something to me,

(49:22):
I say like, I don't know, I don't care that's
your opinion.

Speaker 6 (49:25):
I don't care.

Speaker 3 (49:26):
Well, that's what I was gonna ask you. What are
your tips?

Speaker 2 (49:28):
What are your tips for women in general out there
when a man has power and makes you feel like
if you're not gonna sleep with him or do or anything,
or or he forces himself on you, what are your
tips on how to handle if you're saying no and
they're not hearing. So, what's some tips we can, like
as women be confident?

Speaker 7 (49:45):
I mean, well, when it comes, when it comes. Like basically,
I would always say, try to learn jiu jitsu. Okay,
when it comes to a physical thing, uh, trialing jiu jitsu,
it could save your life, like as a as a
woman could literally save your life. But I think it's, uh,

(50:09):
it's we have to start changing our mentality because like
you were, you guys saying and chatting about you know,
the all the the system is not gonna help you
and everything.

Speaker 6 (50:25):
I truly believe that.

Speaker 7 (50:27):
If you don't do the things, if you don't do it,
nobody else will for you. Like not really so okay,
Jolie channelized that that energy into fighting, you know, I did,
into the acting into arts. Most most people I don't
know in their jobs in the sports and everything, you know.

(50:47):
But for us women, I think we need we need
to start changing our mentality that without men, we're actually fine.

Speaker 3 (50:57):
We can take anything.

Speaker 6 (50:59):
You know, we we can, we can.

Speaker 7 (51:01):
Give birth, We get your life, so we create life
they can't for example.

Speaker 6 (51:10):
Also, we have to to.

Speaker 7 (51:12):
Embody our our energy and our power because we are
powerful the same way as men are.

Speaker 6 (51:20):
But usually this abuses.

Speaker 7 (51:23):
Come come from someone that has power over someone, you know, either.

Speaker 6 (51:30):
I don't know, father figure, it could be you know.

Speaker 7 (51:33):
A manager or manager, somebody that is above you. But
what's above like work, you know, maybe age. But at
the end, we all persons. We we can do the
same things. You know, we have brains, we have everything.
So I feel that it's it's something about the mentality

(51:57):
that we have to embrace our power. And I think
that's it because because if not, you know, girl, we
have always been teached that that we have to be
I s. So so that's why I feel I feel
that way, you know.

Speaker 2 (52:14):
Yeah, And also for you guys to chime in anyone,
Michael Dennis, Sophia, do you think when we do talk
about these things out loud with people in power positions,
is that a good thing a bad thing. Do we
always should we always talk and fight for ourselves because
for what I learned from this character of the movie
and the movie itself with all the metaphors, is even
if you sound difficult, yes, you should always fight for you,

(52:38):
you know whatever that means. But like a lot of
like I feel like I've been having a lot, I
have had a lot of friends in the industry or
myself get retaliated against if you talk about it, like
the guys don't want it, like Michael said, Dennis said,
they don't want to take ownership, they want.

Speaker 3 (52:52):
To cover it.

Speaker 2 (52:52):
So what do you think we can do to overcome that,
you know what I mean? Like to really get what
we need, what we want still and not? Does that
mean where the guys still have the job you know,
and you don't because you talked out loud.

Speaker 5 (53:05):
Well, I think that's part of the shift that's going
on subtly that Michael talked about. Some have shifted, like
you know, I have three daughters and I tell them,
like Sophie, you don't need a man to be in
your life to be confident and successful. You are good
and intelligent on your own as your own person. You
are a fabulous human being. You don't need to surround
yourself with a man or woman or partner whatever. But

(53:26):
that doesn't mean you can't have empathy. You can't have
you know, those relations, but you have to be on
guard right And you know these predators, I call them predators,
like you said, they know your weaknesses because they're pretty
close to you. So they've seen you in the work environment.
They've seen you in situations where where maybe you've had
a couple of drinks and you tend to be maybe
a little more and so they know how to push

(53:47):
the buttons in the right things to make you feel
like you're safe with them, but you're not really safe
with them. So I tell my does you got to
be on your guard all the time, and you have
to be insistent and resistant from the very start, not
let any hope these happen, and don't be and don't
feel bad for it by saying hey, push back, say no, hey,
get away from me. Stop that. That's not appropriate. You
know I don't need you talking to me that way.

(54:07):
Please don't use that language around me. Please don't use
that sexual innuendo. Please don't do that. Tell them just
be tell them, and you know, most people will back off.

Speaker 2 (54:16):
And even if they use it against your work because
a lot of women on the audience ask me what
do I do? And different types of work. The person
won't book me. The person won't hire me if I
do you.

Speaker 8 (54:26):
That's why you have Lilith Fair and you have all
these other other tours and and things that happen where
women take care of themselves right and show their power
and show their their their ability to sort of overcome
this this sort of what I would call you know,
this Rik system for men is women have the power
at the end of the day.

Speaker 5 (54:43):
They just need to be able to feel comfortable expressing it.

Speaker 7 (54:47):
Yeah, and like I'm not gonna give you the job
or whatever, then don't don't.

Speaker 4 (54:52):
Don't give me the job.

Speaker 6 (54:53):
Don't give me the job. Is the confidence you know
about it?

Speaker 7 (54:57):
Yeah, somebody else If okay, you don't give the job,
it's okay, somebody as will buy I'm good.

Speaker 5 (55:03):
Enough, I'm gonna get the job somewhere else.

Speaker 4 (55:05):
I mean, I'm that good, I have that talent.

Speaker 5 (55:07):
I don't need you.

Speaker 7 (55:09):
You didn't, Yeah, don't. I think God maybe that you
didn't get the job. Because if that's gonna be your boss.
Maybe it's way better, you know, because when a door closes,
another three opens.

Speaker 3 (55:22):
Yeah. There's a scene also, I think in where You'll lead.

Speaker 2 (55:26):
This really impacted me and inspired me where I forget
it's you're in the scene where you're ready. You're ready transitioning,
by the way, phenomenal acting job on how you transition
from being that weak like little I don't want to
call it weak, but being just feeling defenseless as a
teenager and then transforming into this brilliant like mma fighter woman.

Speaker 3 (55:46):
The transition is phenomenal to see.

Speaker 2 (55:47):
But you there's a scene where you the guys trying
one of the guys are trying to compare you to
someone and you say something like I don't have the
exact lines, but you look them dead in the face
and you say, I'm not that woman or some there
was a line or some scene, but like, i'll send
you this, I'll share this scene when we're talking about
it on air.

Speaker 3 (56:07):
But it made me feel like it's confidence.

Speaker 2 (56:11):
It's not giving a shit about you're right, it's you.

Speaker 3 (56:14):
You come first. You're the one, you're the survivor.

Speaker 2 (56:17):
You're the one who's supposed to it's just such an
incredible movie. It's made me feel so much better that
there's a platform that I can feel safe to talk
about and other people can talk about it.

Speaker 3 (56:26):
You know.

Speaker 4 (56:27):
Good.

Speaker 1 (56:28):
I appreciate that so much, you know. I think I
think Sylvie's bring up a great point. I think that
you definitely with mindset with confidence first and foremost, and
where do you get the confidence? And I think, like
she said, you know, training, I taught martial arts for
ten years. I'm a second degree black belt, so I
loved this girl from thirteen to twenty three, and it
kept me in a very safe bubble, kept me off

(56:49):
the streets of New York. A lot of my friends
were getting into trouble, get into drugs, got arrested, one
of them got murdered.

Speaker 4 (56:54):
You know, it kept me away from all that.

Speaker 1 (56:56):
And I was just in karate classes Monday through Saturday,
then starting competing in tournaments on Sunday. So that was
my world for ten years. I really believe and I
know that that you will get confidence from any type
of physical training, whether it be martial arts, you know,
jiu jitsu, whether it be boxing, whether it be judo,
whether it be wrestling, just something physical to show you

(57:17):
that you do have power, that you can punch someone
in the nose and make them believe you can kick
someone in the groin and knock them to the ground.

Speaker 4 (57:24):
Like when you.

Speaker 1 (57:25):
Understand that something so small as that, a little jab
to the eyes, you know, something so simple can take
someone down, it really gives you confidence to say, oh,
I can stand up to this guy. I can stand
up to this person and let them know and if
they don't hear me verbally and it becomes a physical thing,
I can take care of myself like there's something very
very powerful and knowing that that you.

Speaker 4 (57:46):
Can do that to somebody.

Speaker 1 (57:47):
And we always said that martial arts is not being
abusive and becoming a bully, but it's the art of defense.
So if you all have to defend yourself and you
understand how to defend yourself, you know, then then then
that's great, you know, and you know, I know people
can you know, tasers and little pepper spray and that's fine,
but you got to get it out of your bag.

Speaker 3 (58:06):
You don't need to get out of here about it.

Speaker 4 (58:09):
It's just another step of something to do.

Speaker 1 (58:10):
And you're probably nervous and it's shaking you spray yourself
like like, but knowing how to punch anying how the
elbow and kick them like that is just you're always
going to have your hands and your feet with you,
you know, so you have to worry about like getting
something out of your purse, out of your glove compartment
or something like that.

Speaker 4 (58:26):
So I think that that's very, very important.

Speaker 1 (58:28):
And I think the other thing too, is, like Sophie says,
is like if that's if this person is already showing
you these red flags from the beginning, then then don't
be with that person, to stay away from them, because
you know that it's only going to go down a
more slippery slope the more the opportunity gets bigger, you know,
whether it be for a job or a roll or
something like that. And you know, it's very it's very
known in the entertainment industry, particularly with men, you know,

(58:51):
the casting couch. And you know, we saw what happened
with these moguls who were very powerful in the movie industry,
you know, abusing their power. But then once once women
spoke up, once the truth came out, shut it down.
Like now now this guy's in jail and this one's
career is over. I mean, like it really, so it's
important for us to speak up. It's important for women,

(59:11):
you know. And look, if you try to go to
the authorities that they able to listen, like in the
case of Yoli in the movie, then then social media.
Social media is a is a platform that's shutting people down. Also,
like once the word gets out, like once it's on
the internet, it's hard to take it back.

Speaker 2 (59:26):
That's why when everyone tells me, such your mounts now,
I'm like, you know what, I'm not gonna argue with you. No,
I'm not like, I'm gonna go through the right channels
and I'm gonna specifically speak my truth because then everyone
says that girl's crazy, that girl.

Speaker 3 (59:38):
That's what we get called like speaking out or not
speaking out.

Speaker 2 (59:41):
And it's like, but you know that the abuse and
the predator is literally still at this bar or club
and none of you care. So you can't also get
mad if you're not helping the other person report.

Speaker 3 (59:50):
It, you know.

Speaker 2 (59:51):
I guess my question also is is why I know
you think it's a male dominant whatever world and they're
trying to cover up. But I guess we all that's
why I want everyone's watching and want everyone to speak
up more and more.

Speaker 3 (01:00:02):
You know, was it you know, was it hard for you?

Speaker 2 (01:00:05):
What would you say your favorite scene was, and what
would you say the hardest scene was for you guys
to do?

Speaker 1 (01:00:11):
For me, you know, just just a lot of a
lot of a lot of the scenes where Yoli is
going through that transformation was so wonderful to watch because
I knew Sophie was already there. You know, she has
spent three years in preparation for the role, to get
ready to shoot the movie. As we were trying to
raise money and all that stuff. As I said, you know,
but I knew that she was going to bring it
because I saw, you know, she would send me training videos.

Speaker 4 (01:00:32):
You know. I spoke to her coach, Luis Garasso, and
he told us.

Speaker 1 (01:00:36):
He told me, he says, she's ready to go into
the ring like like it's not a matter of oh,
she's ready for the part, for the choreography. No, she's
ready to fight like she. I feel safe putting her
in a ring knowing she can fight for real. And
then we had another trainer in Mexico City because he's
in Gualajara. When we were in Mexico City, we wanted
to keep her sharp. So we met with another trainer
who we found out there, who was a bare knuckle

(01:00:57):
fighter and he was training with her, and he said,
I would put my money on her. I would put
my money like that's how well trained that she was.
So it wasn't about like, oh, you know just for
the movie. It's like her as a person. She was
at that point where she could defend herself. You know,
which is a beautiful A beautiful things beautiful it is,
it is, So I think that that's the amazing thing.
Is like for all women to learn martial arts, to

(01:01:19):
learn boxing, to learn you know whatever, it takes skills
and learning how to communicate or express because you know,
there's verbal jiu jitsu also, right, there's physical digit there's
verbal jiujitsu. The verbal ju jitsu can get you out
of those situations where maybe you don't want to be
confrontational or tell someone, hey, go f yourself, because.

Speaker 2 (01:01:36):
Yeah, can you give us an example of verbal j
I've heard of this, but I know that that's not
always going to help you because you need both.

Speaker 3 (01:01:44):
But can you also like give us a tip because that's.

Speaker 1 (01:01:47):
Interesting to think that one is listening to your intuition,
you know, and in the movie, you know, there's red
flags with the character or Victor, you know, he he
invites her to the pool party, and right away he
starts talking about, Hey, you know, what's your sexual friends,
Like he's already letting you know his agenda, and she
tells him, you know, I don't I don't want to
talk about those things. You know, I think that's sacred between.

Speaker 6 (01:02:07):
Boilersers Michael something.

Speaker 2 (01:02:13):
But it's like he's like telling them like he's he
meaning right, we see these red flags. I've already saying no,
I don't drink, I don't talk about something that go on.

Speaker 3 (01:02:21):
Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:02:21):
So I think that women and women are very into it,
more into itive than man. If women really need to
listen to the intuition, and if a man is already
doing these things already, if a man is already doing
these things already, then then she she she has to
listen to that intuition and let and let let let
him know, like I see you, I see what you're doing,
and not be scared to just say it, you know

(01:02:42):
what I mean, like just speak up, especially from a
New Yorker like yourself.

Speaker 3 (01:02:46):
And that after the.

Speaker 2 (01:02:47):
Movie, I said but in a nice way. The movie
actually taught me. I used to go like zero to
one hundred with guys like my ex compredator. I feel bad,
but he is and people don't want to believe me
this recent guy because he's in the industry and there's
a power dynamic as he I said, I'd have to
explain to you nicely.

Speaker 3 (01:03:03):
I cannot go into bed with you.

Speaker 2 (01:03:04):
I cannot do all these things with you because you
cannot make me feel guilty when a you're drinking and
getting drunk, and then you want to do this to
me and then you want to manipulate me. And I'm
telling you it's not about me not liking you, because
a lot of men will be like, you don't like me,
you don't enough with that shit. It's because I don't
feel safe right now to do this. And I have
every right to say. And if you don't want to
book me on your shows, don't book me on your shows.

(01:03:26):
That's what the movie gave me confidence, because it becomes,
like you said, it will become a toxic.

Speaker 3 (01:03:33):
I mean, there's three parts to this movie for a reason.

Speaker 2 (01:03:35):
There's a right there's gonna be it's you know, and
I have the privilege. I'm not going to talk about it,
but to see the second part. God willing, I'll be
joining you guys in the future. But it's it's uncredible
to me that you say no to a guy because
of the entitlement, because of the power. Some guys just
don't want to hear it. And now I have the
confidence to say, if you don't want to deal with
me because you want to manipulate me and make me

(01:03:55):
feel guilty, that to me is.

Speaker 3 (01:03:57):
A form of sexual abuse.

Speaker 2 (01:04:00):
Saying no so many times exactly, and he doesn't want
to listen. He wants to make me feel guilty about it.
And that's where I saw myself in her at that dinner,
at that bull party.

Speaker 3 (01:04:09):
I was like, oh my god, Like, this is how
it happens.

Speaker 1 (01:04:12):
There's red flags, there's signals that are happening throughout you know,
and and you only you know. She says no, she
expressed herself. She says it, even when the attack happens.
I said no, I said no, you know. So it's
like there's there's people who won't listen and will try
to force themselves upon so, you know, I think I
think that that's where it's like Okay, I've said it.

Speaker 4 (01:04:29):
Now I've got to show you.

Speaker 3 (01:04:31):
But now I've got to show you. And you don't
even suggest like moving away.

Speaker 2 (01:04:35):
Like my Colombian mother, God bless her, she's always like,
don't you know, don't ruffle feathers. Meanwhile, she'll scream on
the top of her lungs if she asks you, but
don't ruffle feathers.

Speaker 3 (01:04:43):
Don't you know, don't.

Speaker 2 (01:04:44):
Use but don't walk away. It's always walk away. Do
you feel walking away or no? You show them with like.

Speaker 3 (01:04:52):
Okay.

Speaker 1 (01:04:53):
In martial arts, you know, we always try, especially a
specific martial art called krav Maga, it's always like you
want to get away, want to get away from the situation, right,
like the last thing, because look, the truth of the
matter is that, you know, men, men might be physically
stronger than the woman. You get a good shot in
and run away, great, but like to engage in a
full out, back and forth fight, that's a little bit,

(01:05:14):
you know. And even even with Stoke thees training, like
I wouldn't be like, hey, go fight the six foot
two guys three hundred pounds, you know, like like it's
more about like get the shot that you need to
get to get out of the situation and get the
hell away, you know. So that's what we more of,
like you just remove yourself from the situation to not
get into any type of a physical confrontation.

Speaker 4 (01:05:33):
That should be your last resort.

Speaker 1 (01:05:34):
We always say it in the martial arts, the last resort.
If you can verbally get away, great, you can physically
run away.

Speaker 4 (01:05:40):
Great, but try the last.

Speaker 1 (01:05:41):
But if if it comes down to it, then it's like, okay,
you gotta go all in, you know, if you got
you gotta just because it's it could be a matter
of life and death.

Speaker 4 (01:05:49):
You know.

Speaker 1 (01:05:49):
We talk about sexual abuse, and we talk about you know,
all these things, but there's also kidnapping, Like.

Speaker 3 (01:05:55):
That's a lot of ways kidnapping.

Speaker 1 (01:05:58):
Like it can continue to escalate to the ultimate, which
is death, you know. So so we've got to be
cautious and know that. Okay, you know, in a blind rage,
it can go either way for the male or the female,
whoever is involved.

Speaker 4 (01:06:09):
So we have to know that, you know.

Speaker 1 (01:06:10):
So again I strongly recommend obviously speaking of oneself, you know,
of course reporting it to the authorities, like Sophie says,
if they're showing these signs from the beginning then maybe
that's not the person you want to work for, and
trusting that the right job will be there for you.
The same way with Sophie, you know, she she she
came into that audition. We already technically had the part

(01:06:30):
for another girl. She came in and she blew us away,
and then mysteriously the girl couldn't be part of the movie,
and it wanted because the role was meant for her.

Speaker 3 (01:06:39):
For her, that made me feel right.

Speaker 1 (01:06:42):
So right, that the right part will be there for us,
Like as an actor, we go, but this is it,
this is the perfect role as the movie. I've been
dying for it. I was with an actress for the
other day. She's a big fan of The Hunger Games
and in this role. When she went to audition and
she tried her best and she didn't get it. You know,
it's like, unfortunately, that's the that Sophie says that that's

(01:07:02):
the nature of the game. You know, sometimes you'll get us,
sometimes you don't. You deal a lot with a rejection
as a filmmaker. I'm dealing with rejection all the time,
you know, pitching to investors, pitching to distributors.

Speaker 4 (01:07:12):
You know, I hear no more times than I hear. Yes,
you know, but it's just part of it.

Speaker 1 (01:07:16):
We have to just accept that and know that the
right project is there for us, and if not, then
make it.

Speaker 4 (01:07:21):
You know.

Speaker 1 (01:07:21):
I had to write this script because you know, there
wasn't this story. Yes, Okay, I have a story I
want to tell about this character. But I had it
in her mind twenty eight years ago, and I want
to tell the story. So I had to go and
raise the money. I had to shoot it, I had
to edit the movie, I had to produce it, I
had direct it, I had to write it.

Speaker 3 (01:07:38):
You know.

Speaker 4 (01:07:38):
I had to do all those that happened.

Speaker 3 (01:07:40):
Because that's inspired.

Speaker 2 (01:07:42):
Yes, And it's also like working with people like you guys, right,
like even with Dennis when we talked about things like
it's almost like he believes in me or you guys
to create roles.

Speaker 3 (01:07:51):
You work with people who are going to believe to.

Speaker 2 (01:07:53):
Create things or have things are ready for you without
giving you this like aren't right this journey of like
herd Chip, you know what I mean.

Speaker 3 (01:08:01):
That's what I love about this movie.

Speaker 2 (01:08:02):
It's like it really teaches you to take your power
even if you are self defense and the authorities might
arrest you.

Speaker 3 (01:08:08):
She wasn't giving she didn't give a ship about that.
She was like, I'm gonna beat the ship out of
you if you come for me. I don't care if
your dad's a cop. I don't care if your dad's
are powerful. That's what we need to get in our
head because you know, women get scared.

Speaker 2 (01:08:20):
We're like, they're gonna tell the police that I hurt them.
You know what I'm saying, Like, what's your advice when
that happens?

Speaker 3 (01:08:26):
Like what would your niece.

Speaker 7 (01:08:30):
Man has too much pride for the Like do you
think they're gonna say, Oh, no, girl.

Speaker 3 (01:08:39):
I don't even want to love with that.

Speaker 2 (01:08:40):
But the pride, Girl, you need to write a book
because I can't.

Speaker 3 (01:08:45):
I'm dying of laughter. The pride, I forget about that.

Speaker 2 (01:08:48):
You're right, Do they want me to say that a
girl beat the ship out of Exactly?

Speaker 4 (01:08:52):
It's it's definitely egoist.

Speaker 3 (01:08:54):
I really realize that that's a good psycholog Sure.

Speaker 1 (01:08:58):
Now there's so many I think and that Sophie said,
it's beautifully. Women have the power. You have the power
to create life. There's no other higher power than that.
Like that, that's it, Like, like none of us would
be here if it wasn't for our mothers. You know,
like like we have to remember that and respect that
as as a man, you know, and as a man
who who's sympathetic and has compassion and and and and

(01:09:20):
you know, as I said, aware of the feminine energy.
I have the utmost respect for my mom and for
all women in my life. So so so we have
to understand that. And I appreciate that, and and really
you know, just that's it, that that's the key after power.

Speaker 3 (01:09:36):
Yeah, Dennis, please, And.

Speaker 5 (01:09:38):
Asked about the favorite scene. I think what you know.
I loved the whole movie, but a part that resonated
with me was the relationship between Joli and her dad.
It's a special relationship. I have three daughters relationship. And
when the dad reads the reports and Jolie comes home,

(01:09:58):
he doesn't jump all over her ship about what happened.
He's hurting as much as she is. And what he
does is he embraces her and comforts her. And for me,
that was a powerful scene and how you thought that
out and how that played out. But Fernando and YOI
that's the that's me and my daughters. Something happens to you,

(01:10:21):
I don't want to blame you. I'm not blaming you.
I'm embracing and loving you because I know it was
not your fault. For me, that was that was a
powerful pivot.

Speaker 2 (01:10:32):
That's going to make me cry because that made me
cry because we look, we have our dads. And forgive
me for crying. I get emotional because I want women
to feel safe. And I think that was such a
powerful scene because me and my dad are best friends.

Speaker 3 (01:10:51):
But sometimes your.

Speaker 2 (01:10:52):
Dad he thinks protecting you is by silencing you.

Speaker 3 (01:10:56):
And I think that scene was so powerful when he
was on her side and he encouraged her.

Speaker 5 (01:11:01):
She walked through that door and he embraces her and.

Speaker 4 (01:11:05):
Feel my love.

Speaker 2 (01:11:06):
I cried so much during that because it was like wow,
like how many dads do you.

Speaker 3 (01:11:12):
Know, you know who do that? And how many dads
do you know?

Speaker 4 (01:11:16):
You know, It's one of the most powerful moments.

Speaker 3 (01:11:20):
Cried like a baby.

Speaker 4 (01:11:23):
But that's important.

Speaker 1 (01:11:25):
It's important because that just goes to show like like
you know, these are this is the real stuff that
we need to see.

Speaker 4 (01:11:30):
You know.

Speaker 1 (01:11:31):
Yeah, I'm a big fan of movies. Obviously, I go
to two movies multiple times a week. I see the
big Hollywood two hundred three hundred million dollar movies. We
didn't have that budget. So can we close people emotionally
just the same with a simple scene like that, with
no lines, there's no dialogue, dialogue.

Speaker 3 (01:11:48):
The powerful thing is like you guys got in all
our heads. I bet you.

Speaker 2 (01:11:51):
There's so many people like me who thinks that that
can be best friends are close with their father, but
they have daddy issues from it.

Speaker 3 (01:11:57):
I used to make jokes about it.

Speaker 2 (01:11:59):
Or they have real issues where they want their father
or the male figure in their life to just believe them,
to encourage them. Like Dennis and you said, you have kids,
you have daughters, you have girlfriend's wives, even Sophia.

Speaker 3 (01:12:10):
You can tell us about your real life dad like that.
You don't need any words for that scene. That's what
moved me.

Speaker 2 (01:12:16):
And you don't need a big budget to tell a
story like this. This story needs to be worldwide as
much as I can push it, because I want every
audience member to hear this really, really sensitively and serious,
take it seriously because people ask me and I don't
have the answers.

Speaker 3 (01:12:30):
You guys are my experts.

Speaker 2 (01:12:31):
You know this is They can come to this episode
right now and hear it all and feel less alone,
you know what I mean?

Speaker 3 (01:12:37):
So that was wow, that was amazing.

Speaker 4 (01:12:39):
Thank you, Thank you so much. I really appreciate it.
That means a lot to me. It's important. I do
have to run.

Speaker 3 (01:12:45):
We're gonna wrap it up.

Speaker 4 (01:12:46):
Want you continue, I do want you guys, to get
you guys. I gotta go teach yoga kas. But I
want to share.

Speaker 1 (01:12:50):
Something big and yes, please do I've even heard this? Yes,
I'm sharing it on your on your show, now, on
your show. I woke up today to find out that
we won another festival in Italy. We won ten awards,
ten more awards ten so that puts us now at

(01:13:12):
thirty nine. So we won for Best Feature, Best Producer,
Best Director, Best in Amatographer, Best Screenplay, Best Editing, Best
Original Score, Best Sound. Nine Isaac Finley won. He won
for Best Award Best Actor for Isaac, who played Victor
the bad guy. Of course, of course Sophie won Best Actress.

Speaker 3 (01:13:33):
Of course, Sophie's listen. I'm telling you right now. You
heard it here first. Sophie is going to be a huge,
famous success. It's gonna be on magazines. We're going to
want to be Latin's Americans, Whites, you name the Jews,
I don't care who you are. Puerto Ricans. You mark
my words, your star.

Speaker 2 (01:13:50):
We can also end it here like I'd love for
you guys to do one SoundBite for the promo. First
and foremost August eighth, Everyone tune in Amazon, time Fan
danego any streaming platform, Go watch this movie. You heard
it from me for here first. It's gonna win Emmys
and Oscars. It's going to become the most popular movie.
I'm telling you go support my friends. Anyone wants to

(01:14:13):
say one more thing, thank you. Where can everybody follow you?
Sophie and Dennis and Michael real quick?

Speaker 7 (01:14:18):
Oh yeah, and only on Instagram it's Sophie E s
O F y.

Speaker 2 (01:14:25):
D I okay amazing and Dennis where can they follow
you for more of the future projects that you're going
to be executive producing.

Speaker 5 (01:14:33):
And Instagram under medicine man LinkedIn under Dennis F. Bonia.
I'll be obviously followed the Dela Cruz the Movie, which
is a great place to go.

Speaker 1 (01:14:45):
And yeah, yeah, Na Cruise Delacruz the Movie on Instagram
and Facebook, and then Dela Cruz theomovie dot com and
then on there you can link into all the different things.
All the platform links are there, the trailers there, people
can see all the behind the scenes pictures, red carpet
pictures are all there.

Speaker 4 (01:15:03):
But I do want to say.

Speaker 1 (01:15:04):
Something in the spirit of what we've been talking about
in the theme of the movie. Dennis was very very
intuitive and suggested this and we acted on it.

Speaker 4 (01:15:11):
We reached out to an organization called RAIN r A
I n N.

Speaker 1 (01:15:15):
And RAIN is a is an organization that helps. It's
a hotline for for people who have suffered such sexual abuse.
So we want to give a shout out to RAIN.
It's rain dot org, r A I n N dot org.
And then the phone number for that is one hundred
sixty five six hope h O p E six.

Speaker 5 (01:15:32):
The answer is Spanish and English. It's the Rape, Assault
and Incest National Network.

Speaker 3 (01:15:37):
Wow, that's amazing.

Speaker 2 (01:15:38):
We're gonna put that also in the description of iHeartRadio.
So they had the links that they can have any
audience members feel safe to click on it. Yep, you
guys are amazing. We're gonna all support the movie. One
more question. Dela Cruz. Why Dela Cruz, Why that ditle.

Speaker 4 (01:15:53):
That's that's her last name?

Speaker 1 (01:15:54):
In the movie, but as a movie, there's a lot
of a lot of symbolism with the church.

Speaker 4 (01:15:58):
You know.

Speaker 1 (01:15:58):
I was worn raised in New York. My mom is
you know, we raised Catholic, became Christian, and discovered yoga.
So spirituality religion has always been around me, and I
always try to include churches in my movies and some
type of a martial art fight scene in my.

Speaker 4 (01:16:11):
Movie I Love It, I Love you know.

Speaker 1 (01:16:13):
But Dela Cruz, you know, and we see the symbolism
of the cross, you know, how Gordo is the cross,
and you know, Jolie goes to the church and she's
looking up at the cross, and you know, so that
it's her name, but also has a lot of symbolism
in terms of like faith and hope and salvation.

Speaker 4 (01:16:28):
You know. We're also releasing the soundtrack.

Speaker 1 (01:16:31):
The soundtrack is made coming out also on the music platform,
so that the album is incredible.

Speaker 4 (01:16:36):
Omen I will share.

Speaker 3 (01:16:37):
It on Amazons with some of the music.

Speaker 2 (01:16:39):
We'll get a so you guys can also check on
patreon dot com. We're gonna give you guys an exclusive
to the soundtrack of Dela Cruz. But you gotta guys
listen to the interview and watch the movie if you
want an exclusive soundtrack.

Speaker 3 (01:16:51):
I am. I know, it's an amazing soundtrack.

Speaker 2 (01:16:53):
I was listening to it over and over again, but
Michael will let you go.

Speaker 4 (01:16:57):
Thank you,

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}The De La Cruz cast chats the inspiration behind Yoli De La Cruz’s story and becoming an MMA fighter!

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The De La Cruz cast chats the inspiration behind Yoli De La Cruz’s story and becoming an MMA fighter!

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