Wednesday, August 31, 2011

WELCOME NEW AND RETURNING MEMBERS - JULY AND AUGUST 2011

Below is a list of new (and returning) HOLA members who joined between July 1, 2011 and August 31, 2011. (Note that "returning members" refer those members who have returned to HOLA after having their memberships expire for some time and do not include renewing members.)

(Top row, left to right): Jason Aguirre, Dinorah Coronado; (second row, left to right): Taleen Dersdepanian, Loren Escandón; (third row, left to right): Delia Farizath, Edna Lee Figueroa, Dulcelina Frías; (fourth row, left to right): Cristina García, Alfredo Huereca; (fifth row, left to right): Raoul D. Luna, Carolina Miguel; (sixth row, left to right): Claudia Morales, Mel Nieves; (seventh row, left to right): Kevin Pérez, Jennifer Plascencia; (eighth row, left to right): Patricia Ramos, Leonardo Rodríguez, Richard Trujillo; (bottom row, left to right): Mónica Walter, Gabriela Zamora.

Tuesday, August 30, 2011

HOLA Member Bochinche

Bochinche refers to "gossip." In this sense, we use it to mention HOLA members who are getting acting and performance gigs. The names of HOLA members are in boldface.

Gilbert Cruz
e-mailed me to tell us that will be appearing in the Going to the River Theater Festival. The festival of ten-minute plays by women playwrights of color will take place in September at the Ensemble Studio Theater (EST) in the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan. He also booked an industrial shooting for a week in September.

Mateo Gómez booked a voiceover for Chef Boyardee and a national commercial for a pharmaceutical company.

Omar Pérez and Jesús E. Martínez can be seen performing with the Say What? NYC comedy improv group. For more information, click here.

J.W. Cortés appears in the Erik Montovano short film/music video for Sarah Fimm's song "Everything Becomes Whole." The video has been accepted into the Woodstock Film Festival in Woodstock, New York as an official selection. Below is a video teaser with behind the scenes footage.



If you are an HOLA member and want to submit a bochinche item, send us an e-mail at holagram@hellohola.org. If you are not an HOLA member, why not join?

SAG/AFTRA Merger Process Continues

Check out this article by Jonathan Handel of the Hollywood Reporter regarding the ongoing process of merger talks between Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) by clicking here.

Monday, August 29, 2011

2011 HOLA Awards Press Release

For immediate release
Contact: A.B. Lugo (212) 253-1015 ablugo@hellohola.org

LUIS GUZMÁN, RUBÉN BLADES,
DANNY PINO AND NATALIE MORALES
TO BE HONORED AT 2011 HOLA AWARDS

NY INT'L LATINO FILM FESTIVAL
AND HEINEKEN TO RECEIVE HONORS

Delta Airlines is the Presenting Sponsor of the 2011 HOLA Awards







2011 HOLA Awards to take place Monday, October 17, 2011
at The Battery Gardens in scenic Battery Park, NYC

BUY YOUR TICKETS ON-LINE HERE

August 4, 2011 (New York, New York) — The Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA), the nation’s longest running active arts advocacy organization for Latino actors, is pleased to announce that it will honor film and television star Luis Guzmán, singer-actor-humanitarian Rubén Blades and broadcast journalist Natalie Morales of “The Today Show” as Delta Airlines presents its Twelfth Annual HOLA Awards Gala and Benefit, sponsored in part by NBCUniversal. The Awards Gala and Benefit will take place on Monday, October 17, 2011 at 6:30pm at The Battery Gardens on the waterfront in New York’s scenic Battery Park (opposite 17 State Street). Sponsorships slots are still available and range from $10,000 for a silver sponsorship to $50,000 for the Presenting Sponsor. A limited number of individual tickets are available at $150.

Luis Guzmán will be honored with the organization’s inaugural HOLA Excellence in Film Award. Guzmán currently stars in the HBO program “How To Make It in America,” and was most recently seen on the big screen in Arthur starring Russell Brand. Guzmán’s distinguished career spans decades across the small and big screen.

Rubén Blades
will receive the Raúl Juliá HOLA Founders Award. Blades’ career across the disciplines of music, politics and acting make him one of the Latino community’s most compelling and iconic figures. In addition to the wide breadth of his artistic accomplishments, HOLA is singling out for recognition his many accomplishments and contributions resulting from his humanitarian efforts.

Danny Pino
, the most recent addition to the cast of NBC's "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit," will receive the José Ferrer HOLA Tespis Award. Danny's past work across film and television has served to propel him into his new role on "Law and Order: SVU," one that places him squarely in the ranks of the much beloved current and past actors who have left indelible marks on this hit TV franchise, and the television landscape as a whole.

Natalie Morales
of NBC’s “The Today Show” will receive the HOLA Excellence in Media Award. On May 9, 2011 NBCUniversal announced that she would permanently replace Ann Curry as news anchor for "Today." Ms. Morales prominent new position is a true accomplishment and one that HOLA is proud to recognize and applaud.

HOLA will also honor the New York International Latino Film Festival (NYILFF) with a Special Recognition Award for their remarkable achievements in promoting the work of Latino filmmakers and actors throughout their distinguished history as the premier urban Latino film event in the country.

The HOLA Awards Committee has also chosen Heineken as the inaugural recipient of the HOLA Award for Distinction in Corporate Arts Philanthropy. This award honors those corporations whose philanthropic endeavors serve to further and promote Latino arts and artists. HOLA is happy to laud and highlight Heineken's efforts to create opportunities for Latino actors, in particular through its Voces Grant held in conjunction with the Tribeca Film Institute. "As an arts advocacy organization we are deeply cognizant of and appreciate the wonderful opportunities that the Heineken Voces Grant represents for Latino actors and we find it fitting to honor Heineken in recognition of that impact," said HOLA Executive Director Manny Alfaro.

In addition to the aforementioned awards HOLA will also continue its yearly tradition of honoring the best of Latino theater in New York with noncompetitive awards encompassing multiple winners in each category. HOLA is at the forefront in recognizing the high caliber work being offered across New York’s thriving Latino theatrical stages and, in that same spirit, is recognizing entertainment veteran Teresa Yenque with a Special Recognition Award for her over 40 years of excellence in the entertainment industry. A list of the 2010-2011 theater awardees is shown below (click on each photo to see it larger).

The Twelfth Annual HOLA Awards will take place on Monday, October 17, 2011 at 6:30pm at The Battery Gardens in scenic Battery Park (opposite 17 State Street) located in New York. Individual tickets are $150 and can be purchased in advance by calling (212) 253-1015 or by going to www.hellohola.org. Table sponsorships are also available and can be purchased by calling María F. Nieto at 212-253-1015 or by e-mailing her at MariaFNieto@HelloHola.org.


2011 HOLA Awards for Excellence in Theater

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A MALE ACTOR
Alfredo Huereca, Cayendo con Victoriano
(World View Productions)

Francisco Reyes, Way To Heaven (Himmelweg)
(Repertorio Español)

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEMALE ACTOR
Vanessa Aspíllaga, underneathmybed
(Rattlestick Playwrights Theater)
Susanna Guzmán
, La luz de un cigarrillo
(Teatro LATEA)

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEATURED MALE ACTOR
Ismael Cruz Córdova, La luz de un cigarrillo (Teatro LATEA)
Israel Ruiz
, La Strada
(Compañía La Strada/Teatro IATI)

OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY A FEATURED FEMALE ACTOR
Arisleyda Lombert, La luz de un cigarrillo
(Teatro LATEA)

Eva Cristina Vásquez, Sabina y Lucrecia
(Teatro Círculo)

OUTSTANDING SOLO PERFORMANCE
Inma Heredia, My Audition for Almodóvar
(IATI Theater)
Lauren Vélez
, They Call Me La Lupe
(Teatro LATEA/Dura Vida Productions)


OUTSTANDING PERFORMANCE BY AN ENSEMBLE CAST
Iván Camilo, Sunilda Caraballo, Juan Carlos Díaz,
Mateo Gómez, Modesto Lacén, Graciany Miranda,
Manny Pérez, Ruperto Vanderpool,
La barbería (David Maldonado and Juan Toro/New World Stages)

Rosie Berrido, Zulema Clares, Dalia Davi, María Helan, Flor de Liz Pérez,Teresa Pérez-Frangie, Fermín Suárez, En el tiempo de las mariposas (Repertorio Español)


OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN TECHNICAL PRODUCTION
Raúl Ábrego, for his scenic design of La barbería
(David Maldonado and Juan Toro/New World Stages)
Yanko Bakulic, for his scenic design of La luz de un cigarrillo (Teatro LATEA)

OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN PLAYWRITING
Florencia Lozano, underneathmybed
(Rattlestick Playwrights Theater)

Marco Antonio Rodríguez
, La luz de un cigarrillo (Teatro LATEA)


OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTION
Aminta De Lara, Aviones de papel (Paper Airplanes)
(Teatro LATEA/ Zer0Compañía)

René Buch and Jorge B. Merced, La Strada (Compañía La Strada/Teatro IATI)

SPECIAL RECOGNITION
Teresa Yenque
, for over 40 years of excellence
in theater, film and television

GILBERTO ZALDÍVAR HOLA AWARD
FOR OUTSTANDING PRODUCTION

Aviones de papel (Paper Airplanes)
(Teatro LATEA)

De Fuente Ovejuna a Ciudad Juárez
(Thalía Spanish Theatre/The Cross Border Project)


The Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) is an arts service and advocacy organization dedicated to expanding the presence of Hispanic artists in entertainment and media through the cultivation, education and recognition of emerging artists. HOLA strives for an accurate, informed and non-stereotyped portrayal of the full spectrum of Latino culture and heritage in all entertainment and media industries.

HOLA Member Bochinche

Bochinche refers to "gossip." In this sense, we use it to mention HOLA members who are getting acting and performance gigs. The names of HOLA members are in boldface.

Manny Alfaro, Oscar A. Colón, Míriam Cruz and Frank Rodríguez, shown above and at right clockwise from top left, booked a commercial and print campaign for AARP. (HOLA assisted the casting director with some of the casting referrals.)

Abraham Makany is set to open in the play The Birthday Boys. Written by Aaron Kozak and directed by Montserrat Méndez, the play is produced by
ArtEffects Theatre Company (Phil Newsom, Kristi McCarson) and scheduled for a September run at Access Theater, located in Manhattan's Tribeca neighborhood.

Teatro Círculo and Grupo del Sur is presenting Passport:
regreso al sur. Written by Gustavo Ott and directed by Alfonso Rey, the play is produced by José Cheo Oliveras and is scheduled for a Spetember run in Teatro Círculo's space in Manhattan's East Village neighborhood. The show features Beatriz Córdoba, David Crommett and Gabriel Gutiérrez in the cast.

Marco Antonio Rodríguez e-mailed us to let us know that he booked an American Airlines national commercial, ongoing commercial campaigns for Wingstop and Reliant Energy and work on national training videos for J.C. Penney. As a writer, he has a screenplay optioned by a Canadian production company. In addition, his HOLA Award-winning play La luz de un cigarrillo, will be added to this year's curriculum for the Departamento de Español, Facultad de Estudios Generales for the Universidad de Puerto Rico, Río Piedras.

If you are an HOLA member and want to submit a bochinche item, send us an e-mail at holagram@hellohola.org. If you are not an HOLA member, why not join?