Camila Arteche Wants to Play Cecilia Valdés

June 24, 2022

Cuban actress Camila Arteche confessed that one of the great dreams of her professional career is to play Cecilia Valdés, the emblematic character of Cuban literature created by writer Cirilo Villaverde in the 19th century.

For the young actress, it is "an icon of Cuban culture," although she acknowledges that her desire "is always to have interesting work, always to receive a call telling me 'I've thought of you for this character'". "If there are awards, you receive them with joy, and if not, it doesn't matter, what matters is telling stories," she said in an interview with the independent media outlet Diario de Cuba.

Arteche recently won the award for Best Performance at the Hollywood North Film Awards for her role in the short film "Boxeadora," directed by Oldren Romero, for which she trained for three months and ended up "with bleeding knuckles."

"It's a sport that involves a lot of wear and tear, but above all the short film has a very heartbreaking emotional depth. So, more than the physical training, it was preparing myself emotionally for the character," she said.

Regarding the characterization, she noted that it was about representing a person with "extremely difficult experiences throughout her life." "At the moment the short film takes place, she finds out news that makes her make a very difficult decision," she noted.

The actress also thanked Romero for choosing her to take on characters that are completely outside her comfort zone. "With Boxeadora he wanted a woman who looked tough, older, and had boxer characteristics, nothing like me," she admitted.

"I like characters with a well-developed story and when it involves growth for people. I also hope it challenges me, which is always what happens with Oldren, who always calls me for characters that probably other directors wouldn't think are for me," she added.

At another point, she commented that she performs a ritual of kissing the stage before stepping onto it, although she confesses that she is not superstitious. It is, she said, a show of respect toward her profession. Similarly, she assured that she dedicated each performance to someone. "I do it because I believe I carry with me a beautiful energy from that person regardless of whether they are alive or have passed away," she explained.

In April, Arteche turned 32 years old and decided to celebrate it with a photo gallery on her Instagram page, where she has accumulated almost half a million followers. For years, her social media has been a space where the actress makes visible the empowerment of women and denounces harassment and other forms of sexist violence.

Despite this, the artist confesses that she does not like the use of the word influencer. "I'm careful that everything I say is verified and I also care about the message I want to give. I want people to draw their own conclusions, I don't want a community of followers, I want thinking people who discuss and debate," she said.

She also recommends avoiding becoming saturated with so much information and avoiding comparisons. "Everything you see there is not real, and I say it so that the people who follow me there also know it," she stated.