Laia Manzanares: "If I saw people with pimples on TV like me, I wouldn't have that insecurity."

BarcelonaLaia Manzanares is a theater, film, and television actress. She rose to fame for her role as Oksana in Marline and this year he starred in the RTVE series Internal Affairs. The film will also premiere What remains of you and Orlandoat the National Dramatic Center theater in Madrid.

How was that experience?

— It was my first leading role in a series, and when you get something like that at work, it's very sexy. It's not easy to work in this field, and a role like this is incredibly rewarding. I honestly had a blast. Plus, the technical and artistic team was really cool, so it was very easy to film and spend a few months in Madrid. Plus, there are action scenes, which I really like because I love dancing, and everything that involves action and fights is like choreographing.

In Internal Affairs You play Clara Montesinos, a pioneering female police officer who enters a man's world. Did you hear yourself like that while acting?

— Making this series, we said, "Okay, we've evolved a lot, we've changed a lot, but there are many things that haven't." However, as in all professions, there are many men dinosaur They complain, take up space, and when you arrive, they infantilize and despise you. In short, we still have work to do here. There are also wonderful people, and I've worked with incredible people.

The series touches on very current issues even though it's set in 1979. How do you think it connects to today's social issues?

— It's inevitable that it's a political series. Because it deals with a historical moment that is purely political, where everything that happens is political. And there's a look at a woman entering a male-dominated environment at a time when it was even worse than it is now. Or we talk about drugs, a problem that's also incredibly difficult today and one that you can't look at uncritically. It's a series made with a lot of commitment.

Have you ever heard yourself as an imposter while recording the series?

— It's something that happens to me in general. Now I also have to do theater, and I think I don't know how to do this job. There's always a moment of doubt, but I've stopped feeling that way, especially if it's an age or gender issue. A while ago, I recorded The unknown with Manolo Solo, an incredible actor. I thought: "But it can't be, they made a mistake!" And suddenly I said: "What are you saying, they chose you because you auditioned, just like Manolo Solo." I mean, I started to give myself the right to legitimize myself. Last year I did a play and there were two children there, aged 7 and 9. And they had the same right to be there doing the work as I did. I've tried to do a lot of work on that, because in the end, I'm valid to exist and I'm valid to work. I'll do it better or worse, I'll be more or less liked, it doesn't matter to me, but as a professional I try to give 100% of myself and be up to par, so... I don't impose, I do.

You became famous and employed very young. Have you ever felt undervalued because of your age?

— Yes, there are people who respect me a lot and understand that you can work with a 7-year-old or an 80-year-old, and we're all colleagues doing the same job, but I have found myself. More at the beginning, maybe... One day, when I did my first professional theater job at the National Theater, someone said to me: "Why aren't you screaming with joy?" And I replied: "Because it's my fucking job." I got over it, did a photoshoot with two people I admire, who have been in the industry for years, and I was calm instead of nervous. I'm very surprised that another person, an older man, would say this to me. And why wasn't he screaming? They're small steps toward legitimizing myself, and it's becoming easier and easier. Until one day, it won't be difficult anymore.

The series is set in 1979, a very turbulent period in Spain. What was it like to immerse yourself in it?

— The Transition is a historic moment in this country, where a covert dictatorship basically exists. We still have a long way to go, but it seems that before we leave, we're entering again. It's important to review the history of where we come from, because otherwise... we might end up repeating it. It's important to make period series about this country based on real events to ask ourselves: "Hello, do we remember that or not?" They also show how heroin killed thousands of people and wiped out thousands of families... Even now, so much drug use is still going on, and it's as if we haven't understood anything.

What was it like entering 1979 aesthetically?

— The clothes are gorgeous, although somewhat uncomfortable. It was a really cool thing, getting into character. Something happened while filming, and I had an acne breakout. I'm prone to acne; I always have a few spots, but there are moments in the series where I have a lot of them. This made me feel quite insecure. The girls who appear on TV have perfect skin. And I, making the series, don't. And the makeup artist and I talked about it, and she covered them up a little. And I said to her, "I think it's fucking great, because if I saw people with spots on TV now, I wouldn't have that insecurity."

Has this happened to you before?

— Yes, I remember another series where I had acne, and I treated myself terribly. I would look at myself in the mirror and say, "Dude, that's disgusting." I really liked the process at the time, because I said, "Fuck it!" I'm not here to be pretty, but to play a character. Now, looking back, I see myself as super pretty. While filming the series, I felt horrible, but I told myself, "It's okay. You don't always have to be gorgeous." Now I look back and think, "Well, look, I'm interested in that face."