Catch Nunez Leading Man Acting Debut in ’30 Days With My Brother’ On April 8th, 2016
Los Angeles, CA – Adrián Núñez was on his way to becoming a diamond specialist when he first came to Los Angeles nine years ago. Now it’s Nunez who will be shining as he gets ready to make his leading man acting debut in the much anticipated independent feature film 30 Days With My Brother, written and produced by the up-and-coming actor/writer Omar Mora and directed by Michael May. 30 Days With My Brother will release nationally on April 8th through the AMC Independent program in the U.S. and will also be distributed in Puerto Rico by Caribbean Cinemas.
In 30 Days With My Brother Adrián plays the emotional lead of Jonathan, a young man who is reunited with his brother (Omar Mora) after 17 years of being estranged at a very young age. The two are forced to confront their emotional and damaging past while trying to restore their relationship as brothers. The emotionally laden film takes you through the many stages of anger, denial, acceptance and in the end, love.
Born and raised in Puerto Rico to Cuban parents, Adrián knew from a young age that he was passionate about the arts. It was from his discipline in sports activities and working for his parents’ successful jewelry business that Adrián created an exceptional work ethic. He graduated from high school Suma Cum Laude and went on to attend the University of Puerto Rico. Passionate and motivated to start his acting career, Adrián moved to Los Angeles in 2008. He has studied his craft at several renowned acting schools, such as The Groundlings, The Bramon Garcia Braun Studio, and The Imagine Life by Diana Castle. He also had the amazing opportunity to study with actor, director, and writer Nate Parker of the new upcoming highly anticipated feature film, Birth of a Nation.
So landing a lead role in the relatively “short time” of nine years is a quite an accomplishment in Hollywood, albeit, a role for which Adrián has been vigorously preparing for. The World Premiere of 30 Days With My Brother will take place at a star-studded Red Carpet event at the famed Egyptian Theater in the heart of Hollywood on April 6th . We wanted to talk to Nunez before his breakout debut in 30 Days With My Brother, a moment in time that will live in his memory forever.
Latin Heat: What was your first impression when you read the 30 Days?
Adrián Núñez: I connected with the story right away, it’s just a very universal, a very human love story that takes us on a deep emotional journey through both the challenges and the value, the beauty of brotherhood. I think that as an actor we all want to have the opportunity to sink out teeth into a character that has so much depth and that is so multidimensional. The character of Jonathan has this huge inner conflict, and it just seemed very interesting to me to be able to dive into that and I saw some challenges in there, it was exciting to me.
LH: Tell us about the Omar Mora connection and how it lead to a starring role in 30 Days?
AN: Omar is the first Puerto Rican I met when I first came to Los Angeles nine years ago. My parents sent me out to take a course to study gemology and become a diamond specialist. [But] then I used my savings to take an acting class while I was here which may be the reason why I insisted that I come and do the course in L.A. (He laughs).
At acting school, there was only one other Puerto Rican and when they asked me where I was from, they told me “Oh, we want to introduce you to the other Puerto Rican here.” Omar was not only the first Puerto Rican I met here, he was actually one of the very first people I met in L.A! We’ve kept in touch over the years. When I finally moved out to L.A. [to pursue acting] we hung out; we shared a lot of really cool experiences and we were good friends.
After [working together in] 30 Days we are closer, we talk more often, sometimes we don’t see eye to eye and we get upset each other but like brothers, but you get over it quickly, because one disagreement is not going to mean that you are not going to be friends anymore. We value and respect each other much more than we used to, its really cool.
LH: Do you have brothers or sisters?
AN: I am the middle of three siblings. I have an older sister, Vivian who lives in Miami and a younger brother, Gabriel or ‘Gaby’ who lives in Puerto Rico. I have a very different but very close relationship with both my siblings despite the fact that we live thousands of miles away from each other so I know how deeply you can love them and how strong those bonds can be. Of course we have our differences, you know all brothers and sisters have conflicts every now and then but we really love each other very deeply and I am extremely fortunate to have them.
LH: How do you think you personally would react if your brother or sister showed up after years of you being “abandoned”?
AN: Personally, I like to address things right away, I like to confront situations and talk things out in detail; get to hear the other person’s perspective and point of view. Despite the fact that I would be very hurt and likely that pain would evolve into anger, I can understand and hopefully that allows me to forgive them because fortunately I forgive easily.
LH: This leading role has the potential to really boost your career. Is fame important to you?
AN: I have been working so hard for many years. I would hope it helps me get more work. As an actor, we just wanna work, we want to do what we love and I would hope that this becomes a credit that allows me to be considered for roles in bigger projects.
Fame is not important to me. However, there are some really great things that I find in having that level of success, when you are recognized. I feel that it would put me in a position to be able to influence people to do humanitarian work, to give back, to be of service, to set a good example for people to speak about causes, and how to be in a place where I can significantly contribute to different humanitarian causes.
LH: Were you allowed any input into your character? Were Omar and director Michael May flexible in that way?
AN: Yes. That’s one of the things that I loved about working on this project most. They were both very flexible in molding the character and the dialog, more specifically to fit my interpretation of the character which is beautiful, its such a gift. More than being flexible, Michael actually gave me the opportunity to give my input and contribute on a bigger scale. He was really interested in knowing what suggestions I might have. He was very supportive that way, which was great. I feel that I grew a lot by being able to be in that position where my opinion and suggestions were valued and taken into consideration.
LH: What insight might 30 Days give persons coping with being separated from family, as is now more common with the immigration issue?
AN: These kinds of stories cause people to reflect and to think. That is the most powerful thing about our art form. I think this goes beyond just siblings, it could be with your parents, it could be with your cousin, it could be with your friends. I think to be able to see something that you identify with, which is very real and very common helps you gain a different perspective. These situations give you hope that it does not matter how difficult the situation is, you can overcome it if you decide to and you work on it. [In the case of 30 Days] love conquers all, and it sounds like a cliché and cheesy but really, if you choose to love instead of to remain hurt, angry and to remain resentful, it does. Life is just so much brighter, and so much more fulfilling and beautiful and I hope that families who face these kinds of situations can connect with it and see themselves in it and hopefully spark a little change in their lives.
LH: What is next for Adrian Nuñez?
AN: I have a recurring role in a new series called Start up starring Adam Brody and Martin Freeman, which is a Sony Pictures television production airring through Crackle, the streaming platform. I also have a short film on which I had the opportunity to work with Reynaldo Pacheco (Our Brand is Crisis, Beginners) and who is now actually a really good friend. This show is going to be hitting festivals later this year, so I am really excited for that too.
LH: You mention you want to “contribute to different humanitarian causes”. How are you doing that now?
AN: I am also collaborating with Reynaldo, we are partnering up to take his acting school, which already has over four hundred students in Bolivia, to Puerto Rico because there I did not have the opportunities and the choices to start training. I waited until I got to L.A when I was 21-years-old. I want to offer that option and make it accessible to younger people and adults for them to have good training, to have a solid foundation and be able to provide that for them. In fact I am also working with him on getting some sponsorships to create a scholarship program where we give a free ride to two to three students per course. The course is a two year course, so we want to give them a free ride for those two years every new group that starts. If somebody is really passionate about it (acting) then I would love nothing more than to be able to help provide that for someone that I see that part of me as well.
LH: Tell us about your big dreams?
AN: Well the major one I have is to be a father, have a family. I love kids, and I would love to share my life and everything that I want to accomplish with them. I want to teach them and learn from them, that’s a beautiful gift that I very much look forward to.
On the professional side, my dream is to be able to work consistently in films that tell stories that provoke thought, so people can question, reflect, and to challenge their ideas and themselves. Films which will create awareness and spark some change in people. I want to be able to work on bigger films that allow me to reach people around the world. Ultimately my dream which is bigger than myself, my career and family, is to do humanitarian work. I want to be of service and I want to get back. It is the road map I was given, this passion that I was born with is what will drive me in to the direction of being able to do that humanitarian work. Getting a certain amount of success and recognition puts you in a position to be able to have a stronger voice. It’s important to have the opportunity to be in that position in the media and use it to motivate and influence people to do good, to give back and to promote ideas that are worth hearing. I feel good. I feel pretty optimistic and I have faith that I will get there.
Follow Nunez on social media
https://www.facebook.com/adrian.nunez.77
https://twitter.com/AdrianNunez03
https://www.instagram.com/adrian_nunez/
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