Yessica Borroto Perryman

Yesica is a Cuban model and actress known for her performances in Sound of Freedom, Cuatro estaciones en La Habana (2016) and Non è un paese per giovani (2017).

Yessica has managed to carry in her body the work of creators who attempt to establish a Creole language in island fashion, a quite difficult challenge in a country where communication and supply conspire against the creation of Cuban codes in clothing.

In January 2020, Vistar Magazine selected Yessica Borroto among the 10 most sought-after models in Cuba's industry, because she has "as they say in the streets, God-level self-esteem".

She herself said then that her image was what led her to success: "It brought me to where I am, definitely this look, stepping away from the classic standards that we Cuban women had at that moment was what made me who I am".

Borroto was one of three Cuban women who participated in the Chanel fashion show, under the eyes of Karl Lagerfeld, who paraded the Cruise 2016-2017 collection down the Prado in Havana, following the thaw of Barack Obama's era.

"I debuted as a model in 2015 and to date I have worked for international clients such as Brownsshoes, Lambertz, IANN Dey, Puma and Chanel. Likewise, I have lent my image for the Cuban brand PRIETO'S Style by designer Samantha Chijona and for the collections of Jacqueline Fumero. For me, the most important work of 2019 was the Glorias Deportivas collection show by Clandestina", she declared in the Vistar article.

"I could never say that I am where I want to be, I believe you have to climb step by step, until the stairs run out, but I still don't know what the limit is", she concluded back then.

Yessica Borroto Peryman is naturalness and ease, strength. She imposes quite a presence in any pose. If you were to see her walking thirty paces away down the middle of a Havana street, it could seem like it's the landscape walking behind her.

It is the simplicity that captures the gaze and doesn't lose glamour. And she is, as the foundation of so many qualities, a bearer of an aesthetic that reclaims Afro identity, which speaks to her own search for identity. The synergy between all these qualities has made Yessica Borroto Perryman an actress and model of world stature.

Yessica is one of those versatile artists capable of working across multiple platforms in the industry: she has been an actress in two Netflix series; a model for Channel, Puma, Lambertz, Dey and renowned Cuban brands like Clandestina and Prietos' Style.

Her face appears increasingly frequently in Cuban television series and music videos. According to Vistar magazine, she is one of the most sought-after models in the Cuban industry. In this conversation with PanamericanWorld, Yessica talks about her beginnings, her career and the projects she is working on.

"I graduated in acting from the National School of Art and then entered the Superior Institute of Art. At that moment I didn't have many work opportunities and my economic situation was regular, until a friend told me about a modeling casting at the ACTUAR agency. I grabbed some heels, went there and was lucky enough to get in."

After a year at the agency, Yessica's modeling career solidified with her appearances in all the Fashion Weeks in Cuba where she showcased clothing by important island designers. In the world of acting, she debuted with the character of Cuqui in the Netflix series Cuatro Estaciones en La Habana. In this production she worked with great Cuban actors like Luis Alberto García, Jorge Perrugorría and Mario Guerra.

But this has not been her only relevant appearance on the small screen. Yessica plays the character of Martha in the third season of the popular Netflix series Narcos.

The first major moment in Yessica Borroto's career came unexpectedly. In 2016, the Channel brand was going to present its Cruise 2016-2017 collection at the iconic Havana Prado. She presented herself to a casting that was conducted through photos of the models, but to many people's surprise she did not make it to the finalists.

"For me I had to be somehow present at that historic moment in modeling in Cuba, so even though I didn't make the finalists, I presented myself to the casting for hostesses, the models who greet the event's guests. For that position they did accept me. When they saw me walk, the director of the event who worked with Karl Lagerfeld, asked me if I wanted to enter the show and I finally did. At first I was very nervous, that was a dream for me, but Karl spoke with me, told me to relax and simply walk the way a Cuban woman walks on the Prado".

According to Yessica, the Channel show opened the doors to many Cuban brands that she later worked with such as Clandestina and Prieto´s Style. Her career solidified even more, as she also modeled for Puma, Dey, Brownsshoes and Lambertz.

"Everyone knows that my walking style is quite relaxed. I walk on the runway as if I don't care about anything, and there's also the confidence in modeling, one of my trademarks".

But there's also her image. Yessica has said on several occasions that her appearance and that of other Afro-descendant models has been disruptive to the canon of the fashion industry in Cuba. Her current image is the result of a process of reflection and inner searching.

"I had a very difficult adolescence because of my insecurities. Walking in Cuba being so thin is difficult and at school I was surrounded by white women. I had too many taboos and things in my head until I started finding myself. I said to myself: why do I have to look like white people?, why straight hair?, why pluck my eyebrows?. I let my hair down and said stop, let's go, these are my roots, where I come from. When I did it there were few people in Cuba who had it and I had to fight with directors who saw that afro hair as something crude. But the modeling world has given me a lot of confidence in myself. In loving myself as I am and defending my Afro-descendance".

When Yessica embraced her tight curls and thin waist, she created what she defines as "a defense mechanism", which in the eyes of a random observer, is the overflowing confidence of a woman who walks the street as if the entire route from Havana to Paris were her runway.

In interviews they always talk about her "God-level self-esteem" and never about her past full of conflicts with the same body that today wears exclusive clothing. But she wants to be known in her entirety: as the one who walks proudly anywhere, the one with the histrionic and grotesque laugh who pulls down her mask so you can see her face clearly, and as the one who spent years fighting against prejudices.

"Some people tell me that the afro hair thing is just a trend. For me it doesn't matter, at least you're already defending it. You belong to a group of marginalized people, understood as those on the margins of society's stereotypes. You count for my part and I applaud it"

As a model Yessica is currently working for the Cuban accessories store Ama. Photo: Ismael Francisco

Yessica has had to fight for her recognition as an actress. Her stardom on the runways makes the public think that acting came after Channel, but she has been an actress since very young and it is the work to which she wants to dedicate herself fully.

"I am an actress by training -she points out-, with many hours of study and testing, to the point of seeing my hair fall out from stress. There was a moment when I had to say no to modeling jobs because I was not recognized as an actress. The modeling career apart from being ephemeral, is complicated. I always bet on doing things in parallel until I decided to focus on acting".

Yessica Borroto Perryman doesn't think about the future. Her focus is to work every day, be grateful for what got her to where she is, continue with the naturalness with which she lives and be humble.

"I have no aspirations, I am satisfied with working. It is difficult for a person with my characteristics—a woman, Black, Latina—to have work in this. It doesn't matter to me if it's a big or small role, theater, film, television or radio. I just want to work", she affirms.

FILM:
"SOUND OF FREEDOM" – Dir. Alejandro Monteverde
"CUATRO ESTACIONES EN LA HABANA" – Dir. Félix Viscarrete
"NIDO DE MANTIS" – Dir. Arturo Sotto
"NON É UN PAESE PER GIOVANI" – Dir. Giovani Veronessi

TELEVISION:
"DE AMORES Y ESPERANZAS" Seasons 1 and 2 – RTV comercial
"UNO" – RTV comercial
"CUERDA VIVA" – Host

THEATER:
"EL BANQUETE INFINITO" – Dir. Raúl Martin
"LA MISIÓN" – Dir. Mario Guerra
"EL ENANO EN LA BOTELLA" – Dir. Mario Guerra
"LA EXTRANJERA" – Dir. Hassane Kassi Kouyaté
"EL REY LEAR" – Dir. Jorge Alba
"DIOS NO FUE ANTONIONI" – Dir. Ester Cardoso

SHORT FILMS:
"IDA Y VUELTA" – Dir. Jessica Franca
"TIZNAO" – Dir. Andrés Farías

STUDIES:
Alicia Alonso National School of Ballet
High School Diploma in Arts from the National School of Theater of Havana
Bachelor's Degree in Dramatic Arts from the Superior Institute of Art of Havana
"Shakespeare" Acting Workshop with Sara Finch
Voice and Improvisation Course taught and directed by José Antonio Rodríguez
"Commedia del Arte" Workshop taught by the Italian theater group "Teatro di Commedia"
"The Body and Voice" Workshop taught by Tagen Larsen and Donald Kitt
"Acting in Front of the Camera" at the International School of Film and Television San Antonio de los Baños CUBA
Singing I, II, III, IV, professor Geomaris Rodríguez

LANGUAGES:
Spanish, English

INFORMATION
ETHNICITY Latino/Hispanic
GENDER Female
HEIGHT 176cm / 5´9"
EYES Black
CHEST 89cm / 35"
WAIST 61cm / 24"
HIPS 88cm / 35"
DRESS SIZE 34 EU, 4 US
SHOES 38 EU, 5 US