Meet Maria Corina Ramirez: Actress, Filmmaker, Storyteller & Yogi

We had the good fortune of connecting with Maria Corina Ramirez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Maria Corina, what inspires you?
I am inspired by people. I am inspired by life. As generic as all of that may sound, it’s true. The fact that I feel there is an endless source of magic in the universe that we’ll never really be done discovering inspires me. It feels like we will forever be in the process of learning and understanding all the life around us. When I think about how atoms work, for example, or how a life is conceived, even if I understand the concepts scientifically, there is a miraculous element to it all that keeps me in perpetual awe and yearning to know more. When I think about human behavior, the human experience, the psyche, I am inspired to dig some more. That is why I do what I do. I heard this before and I totally subscribe to it, that artists are “scientists of the human condition.” I am inspired by that. I am inspired by the exchange of our perceptions of that condition that happens when we share our art with another. Through art, we exchange souls. It happens any time we hear a good song or watch a moving play or laugh during a movie or witness someone do miracles with their bodies when they dance or get a peak into someone’s head through a painting they made. There’s a connectivity there that makes me feel like we really are all one. That has inspired me since I was six years old. And to this day, it still is the engine for my sticking around in this business. It’s still the real reason I do what I do. 

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I am really excited about premiering my debut feature film, Bridges, at the Miami Film Festival 2021. I have written, directed, produced, and starred in this film, with the help of many generous, wonderful people along the way. The road to finding the courage to tell my own story was long and beautiful, though no less bumpy. I’ve counted on the good grace of many helping hands along the way, including my family’s on-going love and support, my manager’s never-ending backup, and many, many colleague’s contributions to help make the journey smoother. One of the things that has helped me most on my journey has been the set of tools I’ve amassed over the years in my spiritual practice. That has served to remind me that anything I do is an extension of source, that things have a higher purpose than just my own benefit, and that nothing, good or bad, is ever personal. Looking at the journey through this lens has helped me stay the course, even when the going gets challenging. Always going back to real reason I started making art- for the love, for community, and for what it does to our hears, beyond any other end gain- has helped me find balance even while dealing with contracts, money and the business of it all. I’d like to continuously create conscious work that is conducive to our collective healing, I’d like to continue to be a vessel for source to move through me. I am honored to have been able to do that across different genres and through different mediums (film, theatre, t.v) and I look forward to continuing to do that.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
Miami is magic!! This list could get endless but I’ll try to be succinct. I’d start with french toast at All Day. I’d cross the bridge to the beach and dip in the water at South Pointe. I’d rent bikes and ride up from South Pointe to Surfside. I’d cross back over and pick up Haitian food from Naomi’s in Little Haiti or some Arepas from La Latina and eat them at Margaret Pace Park. I’d make the obligatory Wynwood stop and then scroll on to Design District for some boozy dessert. I’d go to the ICA museum there and scope some more art. I’d go to Calle 8 for dinner and stop at Ball & Chain to bust a little move. The next day, I’d spend the day in Homestead at the Berry Farms for a nice little green juice and the quiet side of the bustling city. 

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
My family, no doubt, have been my cheerleaders from day one. My manager, Carlos, too. Besides them, on this particular occasion, I’d like to shout out a mentor and friend that has dedicated her career to uplifting female voices in the industry and has time and time again urged me to lift my own and step into my power. This mentor, colleague and friend is Fanshen Cox. Thank you, dear, Fanshen, for planting seeds for me. For paving the way!

Website: mariacorinaramirez.com

Instagram: mariacorinaramirez

Twitter: mariacorinarami

Image Credits
poster image credit: Eduardo Perdomo, Simon Torres, Anna Lee Schmand.