Actress, producer, assistant director, multi-talented creator Laura Rodriguez gives us a few minutes of her time to answer our questions:
To start, please introduce yourself:
My name is Laura Rodriguez. I am an actress, producer, and assistant director. I mainly work on horror genre because I love it. I grew up in California, Texas, then made a weird circle with NYC and North Carolina. I love traveling apparently.
What is horror to you, what makes a work of art one in the horror genre?
To me the fantasy of the hunt is a big one with plenty of jump scares. Darkness is a key element. It is why we are afraid of the dark. The story can play out during the day, but most of the fun stuff happens after sundown.
What made you want to work in horror?
I feel like being in some control over the outcome is what draws me to it. I get to die many deaths while still being alive. Doing film is fantastic. I have lived so many different lives and made people feel some way about it.
Where do you get your inspiration?
My real life is filled with anxiety and depression over situations I couldn’t control. But I use those feelings to draw out characters I play. I often watch horror in the background while I do work throughout the day. If something is done well I remember it. Build off of that. So I use bits and pieces of work I believe to be great when I play a role or set up a scene. I envision everything in my head beforehand.
What would you like your legacy to be in the genre (or elsewhere)?
I honestly just like helping people. It makes me feel good. When I am gone from this life. I just want to be remembered for what I did for others. If people appreciate that I have done a good job.
What is Women in Horror Month to you and why is it still important this many years later?
I feel like women are still a minority on a lot of things. Playing strong lead roles is still relatively unheard of. Most strong characters are male. While it’s getting better, it is still custom to have women be the lesser character. We need to break out of the bubble that we are just a pretty face.
Who are some of the Women in Horror who you look up to and who do you want to bring attention to in your field or others?
Jamie Lee Curtis and Angel Bradford are both amazing actresses in horror.
What are you currently working on that you can tell us about?
We just released “The Woodmen” on Amazon. I worked as an assistant director in that film. Joshua Brucker was the director on that one and it also featured another member of the Horror Dadz group. Currently I am working as assistant director on “The Plantation,” I also play a small role in it as well. That is from director Bill Howard. Anamoly will be my first ghost investigation series. We are currently in talks on distribution. Mike Roberts is the mastermind behind that series.
We finished “Likes” a couple months ago it was the first feature length production for Citizen Studios.
Today I am actually about to leave for set on a new vampire series pilot called “For the Night” by first time director Detron Phillips.
You can currently find me on many streaming networks with The Wendigo. I hear my character is someone you will hate.
My Instagram is @healthybeeotch
Facebook: Facebook.com/lauraghayes
Tiktok is @laurarodriguezishere
On x: @itslauragr (I don’t use it unless I’m banned from Facebook for posting a meme that’s not offensive, but AI thinks it is.)
Thank you for taking the time to do this, we greatly appreciate it.
Photo credits: Bryan Edwards, Ellie Rodriguez, Gray Whitley, and Kearsten Leder