The following is taken from the award-winning 500-page book
"How To Become A Magnet To Hollywood Success"
The book features dozens of interviews with major producers, directors, and stars.
Following are excerpts from the interview with
TV star Masiela Lusha

An Interview with
Masiela Lusha
Star of the hit ABC-TV Prime-Time Series "George Lopez"
                            by Michele Blood         

I am so happy to bring to you an interview with a truly rising star, Masiela Lusha.  Masiela plays George Lopez's teenage daughter, Carmen on "The George Lopez Show". An accomplished actor, author, model and artist, Masiela first gained attention modeling in Michigan, and shortly thereafter made the move to Los Angeles, where she met Rock Riddle. Masiela, along with her mother, (Masiela was thirteen at the time) took action on all Rock taught them. Of course it worked, and the rest, as they say, is history. See, my friend, if you truly study this book, you too can take the right positive action and have your dreams come true as well.

Masiela is a charming, intelligent, lovely young woman. Her film and television work includes voice work on "Clifford, The Big Red Dog"; a guest-starring role on Disney's "Lizzie McGuire"; the host of "Real Life Teens", an educational program; and starring roles in "Down With Me", "My Father's Eulogy", and "7th Grade: Young James Bond Chronicles". In addition, she has had many supporting roles in such films as "Summoning", "Living with Meshuginah Shiksa" and "Spirit Rising". Her theater work includes "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", in which she played the Queen of the Umpalumpas, "Snow White", "Last Dress Rehearsal" and "The Buzz".  Masiela was named "the youngest author in the world to publish a book" and "one of the best top ten talented poets for North America", for her book "Inner Thoughts", which was published in both English and Albanian in 1998. She was twelve years old at the time. She views writing as an extension of herself, a means of creating worlds without boundaries. She is currently applying her impressive talents to crafting several screenplays.

Born in Europe, Masiela now resides in Los Angeles with her mother. She attends UCLA where she majors in English and Business. While her first love is acting, she also enjoys dancing, gymnastics, biking, boating, bowling, cooking, singing, rollerblading, skiing and volleyball. She also speaks German, French and Albanian.

Masiela Lusha:  Thank you so much Michele. I am happy to do this interview for you and Rock.

ML: Nineteen.

ML: Carmen just turned sixteen.

ML: Thank you very much.

ML: Well, ever since I was growing up, I always loved to be in front of the camera. I still have home footage where I’m hogging the entire camera, the entire lens. It just had to be my face or nobody’s face and doing cartwheels and kidding around. I guess I always had that feeling that I always needed to be in the spotlight, and, yet, to this day, I still never feel comfortable being physically in the spotlight, as in people surrounding me. That still makes me feel a little uneasy, but I don’t mind people talking about me. So, yes, I did grow up having that feeling ever since I was real young, but I didn’t start pursuing it, nor did I start considering Hollywood until I was about twelve or thirteen, when my looks could get me modeling jobs.

ML: Yes, I went to a big modeling company, and I auditioned, and I got into the class, and from there I met the photographer. I guess that was my first taste of realizing how intricate and how Hollywood really is just a web of connections, because, through the modeling company, we met the photographer who told us about an agent coming from California to look for new clients. We went to this seminar where there were about 600 kids, and we stayed there till about 5:00 in the afternoon, and we’d gotten there at 9:00 in the morning. Finally, he chose three to come back with him, and I was one of the three he liked, so we just packed our bags and left for California.

ML: Michigan.

ML: No, just my Mom and I.

ML: I’m so blessed.

ML: Yeah, it is a tough business to do all on your own. You always need some support, you always need someone to back you up and to remind you that another day’s going to come.

ML: Daniela Haglund.

ML: I know, I still say, to this day, how blessed I am to have my mother to support me and to be there for me 24/7.

ML: We got with the agent and then we started looking for a photographer to get some head shots, and then, you know, it’s so funny. Rock Riddle had been going on for a while, and all our friends knew about him, but nobody told us about him. They wanted to keep him a secret. He was giving such good advice and such great input about going into Hollywood and having all these great connections, that nobody wanted to share it. We finally found out, eventually, and then it turns out that all of our friends had been attending his seminars for, like, a year, and then we realized that this was a guy we should know. So we went to the first seminar, and he served us pizza, and we were like, "Wow, pizza and a free seminar-this guy’s awesome!"

ML: Yes, he sure does know this business. So, Rock started talking about Hollywood and how Hollywood was a business, and just his insight and his enthusiasm really brought us to our feet, and we said, "You know what? We can handle this, we can do this." Hollywood is a business in the end, and Hollywood is a web of connections, and in addition to talent and looks, it’s a business, and that’s what he showed us. It was a very, very original point of view. We’d read a lot of books before we came to California, my Mom especially, and she saw that you have to be talented, you have to go to acting classes, a good photographer for head shots, a good personality, but in the end, it is about the business. We didn’t realize that until Rock Riddle told us, and I have to say that was the best advice I was given, and to this day, I still say in interviews that Hollywood is a business and you should be considering it as a business. When you go in the morning to your work, you have to know your lines, you have to know your place, because so much money is betted on top of your head, and you have to be able to handle it. It’s a gamble, and you have to remind the people that they’ve hired a good person to keep.

ML: Seriously. You know Michele, when Rock Riddle introduced us to the financial side of Hollywood, he stated that every hour over $15,000.00 goes down the drain. Every single hour they loose $15,000.00, so, if an actor is acting up and doesn’t want to come on the set for some reason, every hour counts to them, and every hour they’re going to remind themselves that this is what we put up with, this is who we hired, and now we’re losing money because he or she doesn’t want to come out of his dressing room. Things like that are so important. That kind of advice saves or kills careers.

ML: We were so blessed to get this advice right before we actually jumped into the pool of Hollywood.

ML: Oh my gosh, I was taking so many acting classes, so many different kinds. My Mom gave me good advice too, she said, "You know, you shouldn’t stick with one acting coach for a very long time, you should stick with him until you understand that he gave you all his knowledge. You have to find some of the other acting coaches who have different insights and knowledge about the business and different ways of approaching Hollywood." So I was able to go to so many different acting classes, I was able to understand each of their viewpoints, and I was able to use them all, and somehow create my own approach to Hollywood. In the meantime, I was breathing, living, eating, acting Hollywood, and I made sure that every single day from school, I asked my Mom, "Was there an audition today? Did I get a callback?" Everything was all about Hollywood.

ML: I started getting auditions when I got with my manager, Beverly Strong, and it was because of Rock Riddle. We went to one of his seminars where the producers get together with the actors and they network. That was when I met one of the people who knew my manager. Some connections were very direct and very complete, and some took another person to get to know, and that was how I eventually met my manager. There are just so many different ways, and it just reminded me that Hollywood is a web of connections.

ML: Yeah, his events really are.

ML: I do. Oh my gosh, now that I think back, I was auditioning for ABC’s "Once and Again", and I didn’t realize it was a drama. I go in there, and I have this, like, comedy flair to the scene, and the casting agent just starts laughing, and I didn’t realize why she was laughing. Later I realized what kind of a TV show it was, and I was, like, oh my gosh, I just made a fool of myself in there. That taught me to really study each and every show that I auditioned for, because, even though it’s your own individual acting, it’s still part of the show, and it still has to go along with the feel of the show. I learned that the hard way, but I learned it.

ML: That’s right, exactly.

ML: That’s so true. I wish I would have known this earlier when I first started, because I very intimidated, even though I was very young going out. I was insecure a little bit, because I wasn’t raised to want to be the center of attention. I just had this natural instinct to want to be, but I wasn’t raised that way, so I never really felt comfortable going in front of people I just met and spilling my heart and guts in a scene. I realize now, I realized too late, and I hope that other aspiring actors don’t realize it too late, that every casting director when you go into their office, they want YOU to be the one!

ML: Thank you. I do want to help others. And, yes, as far as casting directors: YES, they want you to be the actor for the part they are casting, as that IS their job. They want to say, "Yes that’s the character. The producers are going to be so happy that I’ve found this actress or I’ve found this actor." They want you to be the one, so basically you go in there with a clean slate and optimism, and then maybe you might get it. I was just discouraged a little bit, just my own insecurities discouraged me a little bit.

ML: I finally realized, Michele, that this is all a business, and that they want you to be the one. It’s not about making fun of you when you leave the room, it’s about finding an actor for the scene and for the part.

ML: That really helps a lot. That really encourages the actor to open up and do the scene the best they can.

ML: It was a J.C. Penny commercial, and it was supposed to air in Mexico and South America. I went in there, and you just have a feeling. You understand the scene, or you understand what’s going on, and you understand the character and what the motivation is. When you know that person so well that it’s almost you, you have a feeling that you’re going to get it, and that’s basically how it was. I went in there, I knew the motivation, I knew the scene, I knew what I was supposed to do, and they liked it, and they called me back. The more they called me back, the more confident I became and the more I gave them, and, so finally they said, "She’s the one." That’s how I got it.

ML: Yeah, I was sweet. I was able, for the first time, to be on a set and to watch the director work, and it was so cool.

ML: I was thirteen.

ML: No, besides doing cartwheels with family home videos (laughs), that was my first.

ML: Thank you.

ML: That’s so true.

ML: My second audition was actually an audition for modeling from my first agency, and it was with the wonderful Ben Affleck -- print work actually with Ben Affleck because he was writing an article for a glossy cover magazine, and they were looking for some models. So I got it, and I went there, and I did it, and I got to meet him, and he tapped my head because I was wearing this little hat because it was supposed to be cold outside in the ad, and I was like, "Hey man…" He was so cute.

ML: So, I got to meet him. He was the first big actor that I got to meet in Hollywood.

ML: Sure was. He came in on his motorcycle, and he took off his helmet. He was all set to go. It was so cool.

ML: The next thing was "The George Lopez Show", I think, after I got with my manager, Beverly Strong, whom I found through connections. I went to the audition, and, again, the casting director was so warm and friendly. I was a little nervous at first because of the ABC audition where I did something funny for the drama, but then the casting director made me feel right at home, and I just opened up right away. I could sense that she saw me as the character, so she told the producers. Then a week later I went with the producers, and then I didn’t hear anything. I didn’t hear a single thing for like over a month, nearly two months, and, finally, I gave up and decided to not think about it anymore, because I had other auditions to go to. Then suddenly my manager called, and I thought she was going to fire me because I hadn’t gotten her a single job yet. So I said, "Gosh Beverly, what’s going on, we’re not getting any jobs here?" and she said, "Oh don’t worry, honey, they’ll come, they’ll come," and she sounded so enthusiastic. It turned out that they were considering me for negotiation for the ABC network and Warner Brothers. I didn’t realize this was a sign, nobody told me. I see now it’s because nothing is for sure in Hollywood until it’s written down on paper.

ML: That is so true. My agent didn’t want me to think I might get a part in this TV show and then have it turn out that I didn’t even get close to it. So she kept it from me for about a month or so, and, finally, I found out that they wanted me for negotiations. I went in the very first time ever in my life to go to negotiations and to go to the network. I had no idea what I was doing, and then there were four other girls including me. I was a nervous wreck, and then I ended up getting it. Then they went down to two girls, it was between me and another girl. I was really nervous, and at that point I told myself, "I don’t care anymore, I don’t care. Just leave me alone. I don’t want to do this any more. I don’t want to go in front of all those people I’ve never seen in my life. I don’t want to do it." Then it turns out that they asked me to come back, and I got it, so I was real excited.

ML: Oh, my gosh, every single day is a new experience for me. I feel so lucky, because I work with these people who are veterans in their field, and they know what they’re doing. These professional, amazing actors and I just feel like every single day I learn something new because of them. I feel lucky that I realize, once again, that Hollywood is a business and these people are so professional. It just makes me proud that I’m part of Hollywood because of them.

ML: Oh films, I love films too. I’ve done a few films also, and I’m in negotiations for a few films right now.

ML: Oh sure. I went to auditions as usual, and I got cast. I remember the very first film I got is called "My Father’s Eulogy", and I had to play a young girl, and then, they already had the actress playing the older version, but I was playing the younger. I had to wear these blue contact lenses and darken my hair to brown. I was acting for the first time. It was so exciting for me.

ML: Yeah.

ML: No, I was sixteen when I got signed for the "George Lopez Show", and for this film I was fourteen or fifteen..

ML: Oh yes, a lot.

ML: Yes, that was so much fun. I had to do cartwheels and leaps and turns. It was cool, it was really cool.

ML: It was an independent from USC. The graduates of USC were doing their short film, and they were going to do "Double 0 Seventh Grade", and I was cast for it, so that’s how it started. I was just basically having my experiences as much as I could. Every singe weekend I would do another student film or another independent film just to get more experience, just to understand the technical side of Hollywood -- how you’re supposed to look into the cameras, and how you’re supposed to stand, and the blocking involved and so on, things like that. That really helped me a lot when I got "The George Lopez Show". I understood a little bit. Even though I didn’t get a big part yet in any other movie, I was able to not feel so overwhelmed with this whole new world in front of me.

ML: Oh my gosh. That’s great.

ML: That’s right, it’s all experience, and you never know. I was actually considering doing my own film because I wasn’t getting any real big jobs, and I was getting a little confused, and I asked my Mom, "What can I do?" So I thought to myself, "Hey, how about I do my own script and how about I produce it and how about I get it sold and maybe I could star in it and that’s how my career will take off. Ba da bing, ba da boom-all set." My Mom said, "Are you sure?" and I said, "Yeah, how many pages is a script?" She though probably about 500 pages and I said, "OK, 500 pages, I think I can do that."

ML: I was so ready to tackle Hollywood; I was so ready to book something, to be a star.

ML: Oh yeah, and then finally my Mom said, "No, not 500 pages, 120 pages."

ML: So, I wrote a couple of scripts, a couple of screenplays and Aaron Spelling was interested and things like that.

ML: Yeah?

ML: I didn’t know that.

ML: Yeah, I had a supporting role in "Summoning". We had to stand up on top of the roof, and they had a social worker there, because most of us were under age. We had to smoke, but they had some herbal cigarettes, but they weren’t real, they were 100% organic. There was nothing toxic about it. They’re made specifically for scenes in movies. I was really nervous, and I had my blonde hair, and that’s why I’m known as "the blonde girl". Then, I was supposed to smoke, and I’ve never smoked in my life. Again, it was another great experience, because I got to see the camera work, I got to see the director and the writer collaborating on the side. You could see how enthralled they were about the scenes and about the script, and they were so ready to make changes right then and there. They were always working, and that, again, showed me how many hard workers there are in Hollywood. In the end, that’s what it all is. You don’t just get a big movie, a big budget film, with no collaboration. You could tell they were living and breathing that film. If there was anything that they didn’t like, they just wanted to tackle it and just wanted to make it perfect.

ML: I was a friend in there, and, again, it was just another great experience to be on the set.

ML: That was another Independent film, and I had another small part in that. I basically just threw myself, with Mom’s help, into any project I could get my hands on, because the more projects I got, the more was on my resume. Rock Riddle always reminded us, your resume is your most important tool, along with your headshot. That basically tells them who you are, and there’s no room to be humble. You have to do show everything you can do on your resume. So having said that, we basically just threw ourselves into every single opportunity that we had to do another film, to get more experience, to see more producers and directors. Rock Riddle just made it much easier for us by introducing us by networking with all the producers he was involved with.

MB: It’s really wonderful. That’s why, when Rock and I met, we thought adding our shared experiences -- me with my coaching and metaphysical/spiritual/success teaching and positive thinking and he with his knowledge of the nuts and bolts of Hollywood -- we knew it be a powerful combination to truly help people. Have you ever used affirmations? You’re obviously a positive girl anyway, but have you ever used visualization techniques or anything like that? To visualize the things you wanted or written down goals or anything like that?

ML: Oh, definitely. I always had a pretty clear view of how I saw myself in 5 years and 10 years. Even though I took one day at a time based on experiences and fallbacks and stuff like that, I just picked myself up and went at it again. I never really got discouraged by that. I always had a clear view of my destination, my goal, what I wanted to reach by the end of the year. That really helped me, because I was able to say, "Okay, well, I’m so close to my goal, or I’m lagging, I’ve got to pick up the pace, I’ve got to continue on and plow ahead." That really helped me just visualize my goal.

ML: I guess when you want some thing so badly, you create your own waves through your imagination.

ML: Yeah, I had to move on. I had to find other jobs -- picking yourself up and just continue.

ML: That’s true. I completely agree. Sometimes you do have to let it go, and let the Cosmos do its work. Sometimes you have to leave it in the hands of God, or sometimes a bit of luck maybe.

ML: Exactly, that’s true, and, yes, I guess that one means when we say we make our own luck.

ML: Find another avenue.

ML: I didn’t consider "The George Lopez Show" anymore, because I told myself, "I don’t have time to start dwelling on the past, I have to continue. I have to go find another way, I have to book another film, I have to practice, I have to study for another scene." Then, in the end, I guess the so-called luck had it’s way.

ML: I agree.

ML: Fourth.

ML: I know, I can’t believe it. We have one more season and we’ll be reaching our 100^th episode.

ML: Oh, my gosh, every single day we learn something more about each other on the set. Every single day we learn to appreciate each other and just respect each other. We’re not there to judge, we’re just there to enjoy each other’s company and workmanship.

ML: TV shows give me more freedom physically, which I love. I love physical comedy, I love moving my body and expressing a scene and the character in more ways than my voice or my face. I love expressing it with my hands, with my body, with my legs, jumping, and the different ways of expressing emotion, and that’s what the sitcom allows me to do. The sitcom allows me to jump around and to express the entire emotion of Carmen through one big jump or one big hand swing, and that says a lot about a person. Not everybody just acts with their face in real life. We all move our hands sometimes without thinking. We all move our bodies. We all tense up, or we all loosen up, and because the cameras are so wide, it’s almost like theatre. Every single week we have an audience, and we have a theatre, and we interact with the audience. When the audience laughs, we take that laughter and stretch it to make it longer for the scene, or cut it off, or whatever. We basically manipulate the laughter. Once we get it in our hands, it’s like putty, and I love that. That gets you as an actor.

ML: Yeah.

ML: Features allows me to really sink myself into the character and to actually become the character. Even in sitcom, I do become the character, but it’s in a different kind of plain that I act in. It’s as if I literally feel what the character feels, and, even to my fingertips, I become the character. It allows me, on a more emotional level, to interact with the other actors, to take in what they’re saying, and to respond. With sitcom, it’s a little different, because with sitcom you have to have the joke right, because if the joke doesn’t work, the sitcom doesn’t work. It’s all about the jokes, it’s all about making it funny and entertaining and upbeat, but yet having a good message in the end. Movies seem to have more freedom to just act and more freedom to become. Sitcom just allows me to just engulf myself physically.

ML: You know, I love Hollywood, I love the business, I love every bit of it. I’m not much of a party person, so I don’t really enjoy the parties as much, but I love the people. I love the art, and I do think that acting is a beautiful art. Anyone can do it – anyone -- if they really, truly love and appreciate acting, they can do it. I believe that’s just the mentality you hold within yourself. I just want to be part of Hollywood. I want to write, I want to direct, I want to star, and I just want to be there, and I want to experience every avenue that Hollywood has to offer.

ML: Yeah, I do, but we don’t know yet, and I don’t want to say anything, because nothing is for certain until it’s written on paper.

ML: Thank you so much, Michele. It has been my pleasure. I can’t wait to read the whole thing.

ML: Thanks, that will be great!

Copyright:  ©2005 Riddle/Blood, Musivation Int'l. LLC, Hollywood Success, and APS Entertainment -- All Rights Reserved