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Meet Christian López Lamelas

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Christian López Lamelas.

So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started studying acting in Barcelona (Spain) at the studio Nancy Tuñon I Jordi Oliver where I trained for three years. At the same time, I was finishing my music studies at the Conversatori del Liceu and after graduating from music school I moved to New York. I was 21 years old when I left Spain.

I always knew I wanted to come to the USA. I kept hearing that phrase –If you can make it in New York you can make it anywhere- and even though the world has opened up so much, that you can work for Hollywood in Europe, being in the US certainly was going to give me a lot of lessons I would not have never learned if I’d stayed at home. I feel like living your place of birth makes you grow faster. You understand things from a different perspective and you have to solve problems that were never in your way back home. You certainly toughen up.

I went to study at Stella Adler Studio of Acting where I graduated in 2016. Then, became a company member of the off-Broadway theatre Repertorio Español at the Gramercy Arts in Manhattan. I stayed there for two and a half years where I acted in several plays. I worked in the play “Aun Julia and the Scriptwriter” which made me win my first HOLA Award.

At the very end of 2017, I moved from my student visa into an Artist Visa, signed with a Manager from LA, Kerry Jones Management, and started auditioning for film and TV in the states. Two months later, we booked my first TV project in National Geographic’s series “Genius: Picasso.” They were almost done shooting this season but the director and showrunner, Kenneth Biller, saw that something was missing in the first episode and decided to add a couple more scenes. Thanks to that I got my TV debut in a scene with one of my biggest Spanish idols who made in Hollywood… Antonio Banderas. And it was funny that I was playing an architect that was also born in Barcelona like me. Looks like that role was waiting for me.

After shooting with Banderas in Budapest, I was invited to the world premiere of Genius: Picasso in Malaga (attached pics) where I walked in my first ever red carpet. It was exciting! I could not believe I was with these people. I felt like I was in a dream. If they would have told me five years ago, when I moved to NY, that I was going to be in such project with such professionals I would have… believe it! Hahaha, that is the attitude after all, right? Kidding aside, it is not easy to move from your hometown and face the real world, it can be scary. Now I’m addicted to that feeling. I just love moving around and meeting new people and places but man if it isn’t something else when you first experience it.

After that, things started to move a bit faster to the point where I am right now. I am getting great auditions and I signed with an agent in London (Lee Morgan), an Agent in Mexico (Jerry ML) and still working with my agent from Madrid (Delphoss Actores) and my Commercial and Voice Overs Agents in New York (Innovative Artists). It’s funny how easy it is to write about it but how much effort, patience and dedication it took me to be working with all these marvelous people who are taking my career to the next level.

If you want here is my biography. I sum it all up.

Biography:

Christian López Lamelas is an actor and a musician from Barcelona, Spain, based in New York City. He graduated from the Stella Adler Studio of Acting in 2016.
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Christian’s TV debut was in 2018 acting in a scene with Antonio Banderas in “Genius: Picasso” (NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC / 21 FOX TV STUDIOS / IMAGINE TV). Christian portrays renowned Barcelonan architect Joseph Lluis Sert in the first episode of Genius’ second season directed by Kenneth Biller.

He won his first Award (IMMA 2014 Festival) for Best Actor for his role Bill Rodrigues in “That Will Be the Day” by Albert Escuder. He is currently 25 years old and has already worked on more than 50 productions, including short films, web series, TV-shows, commercials, and off-Broadway theatre. He also has an HOLA Award (2016) and an ATI Nomination (2016).

He started his training in Barcelona, Spain, at the Studio of Acting Nancy Tuñon I Jordi Oliver from 2011 – 2014. Christian has also worked with coaches Carlos and Enedina focusing on emotional and personal growth.

His passion for piano and music started at the age of six. He has studied at the Conservatorio del Liceo de Barcelona and got his degree in Professional Classical Music in June 2014. He is a passionate piano and guitar player, and composer for both instruments.

Has it been a smooth road?
I have always been a very optimistic and positive person. So, those challenges that life puts in my way, I see them as lessons that I need to learn in order to get closer to my objectives. I could give you many examples of situations where I could have thought that things were going wrong… only to find out later that those events were needed to let something greater happened. So, I wouldn’t call them struggles per se but rather say these are important steps in the staircase that leads to success. I know it may sound very philosophical but it is not. This has to be the kind of mindset artists should develop. I think life works that way. And if it is not how it’s supposed to work it sure has become a reality to me.

One of the biggest struggles an actor/actress can face during their way to success is how to deal with patience. Okay, yes, finding an agent, a manager, getting to know casting directors, producers, directors… are incredibly important points. But none of those will happen if you don’t work out the muscle of patience. Being patience is a talent in itself. And I’m aware that it is not easy. For instance, you do an audition you know you are perfect for, nail it, get awesome feedback from the casting director and maybe not book it. But hey! This is great! That is the way to go. This casting director will remember you for another project. Believe me, it happens! It is a constant investment you have to keep doing. And the longer you keep insisting the more people will remember you.

As an international actor, I have had to have a plus of extra patience with all the paperwork and bureaucracies that foreign artists need to take care of. Which I could have seen as an obstacle. I could have just go back home after finishing my studies at Stella Adler saying it was too hard to stay or… work harder to get all my papers done and get my current visa: Artist Visa.

Please tell us more about your work, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
A lot of artists have a hard time understanding that we are a product. And that doesn’t have to be something bad. It is not like we are an inanimate object that people use, not at all. If you want to put it differently we are a brand, but the main product is yourself.

Now, I’m focused 100% on acting but my objective, in the long run, is to become a director, screenwriter, music composer and producer, who also acts in his own productions. I want to work for others indeed, but I also want to create my own projects. When I started, I thought the best move was to first become an actor and then eventually do all of those other things I mentioned. Ambitious? Yes, it is, but in the end, all the things I want to do can be summed up in one word: FILM.

I have already written shorts and many sketches. Last year I directed “Croquetas” my first short as a Director, which I co-wrote with my friend Maite Uzal. She also acts in the movie and does a terrific job. It was an amazing experience and it only reassures what I already knew: I love directing, writing, acting, and doing all of that. And it is easy when you surround yourself by the most talented people. Then your product becomes exquisite.

I also compose music. It started when I was a kid. But at a very young age, I would only write short melodies or ideas. I didn’t compose my first song ever till my first girlfriend broke my heart when I was a teenager. I guess drama also helps to get inspiration hahaha. Now, I am focusing more on composing soundtracks. It is incredible what you can do at home with a keyboard, a computer, and good music software.

I also created a production company with my parents and one of my siblings, who is also an actor. The name of the production company is Family Roots Productions. My short “Croquetas” was the first project we put together as a production company. My objective is to direct two more shorts in the next two years and do my first movie as a director before I turn 30.

How do you see yourself in the industry in the next decade?
I see myself working internationally in doing Film and TV in Hollywood, Europe, and South America in high profile projects for companies such as Netflix, Amazon, HBO, Apple and the like.

Also, I see my family production company (Family Roots Productions) making original content for Film and TV. And making co-productions with other big companies.

I am positive that if I keep working hard and aiming this way I will get there soon. I think the show business is like any other business, especially when it comes to timing. You are betting and investing time and lots of efforts. And so you must till you get there. You have to do things with passion and keep trying until you get it. If you only try for a short period of time, you are in the hands-on luck. Whereas if you work hard and you are constantly persistent you control your own luck. It took millions of years for our species to exist and now people want things to happen ASAP, which is understandable but everything needs its proper time to get cooked.

What’s your favorite memory from childhood?
I guess my favorite thing was that feeling of eternity. Somehow, I felt like life was timeless and that I would have time to do anything I wanted for the longest time. Now, I still believe we have all the time in the world, but for some reason, there are not enough hours in the day to do all the amount of work that I want to achieve. But I will get there eventually.

I know what it is, I think that as kids everything looks new to us and that makes us be in the moment 100%. As adults, we get used to life and we forget to see everything with the eyes of a child. That should be a must-do exercise for everyone, we would enjoy life much more, we wouldn’t pay attention to minor problems and we wouldn’t let time mess with us.

Also, I love how many time I could watch The Lion King without getting tired of it. Hahaha.

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Image Credit:
The two professional headhosts were taken by Tom Hardy

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