Josep Linuesa's Mexican adventure: "Life takes you to places you never imagined"

BarcelonaMore than six years ago, actor Josep Linuesa (Barcelona, ​​1966) went to Mexico City to work on an audiovisual production for Telemundo. The pandemic caught him and his partner, actress Mónica Corral, on the other side of the Atlantic. Then the actor He tweeted asking for help. To launch a YouTube project, he wrote: "Friends, I'm 54, I'm an actor, and I haven't had a job in over a year." The message went viral, and he laments that it was also misrepresented: "Some newspapers said I was begging in Mexico City! I was just asking for followers!" His channel aimed to document life in Mexico and its ties to Catalonia. "We interviewed refugees from the Spanish Civil War; I learned incredible stories like that of..." Rosa Duran, But after all that work, it didn't bring in a single euro. It was maddening, hence the call for help."

In any case, Twitter worked its magic. Linuesa gained thousands of followers, but they weren't watching the content, and "what makes money are the views." "It was obvious that it wasn't going to work," he recalls. At the same time, they had opened a second channel. Parents and Dolls in 2017. The channel In Monica's ShoesWith a more informal and popular tone, it began to work among the Mexican public. "It was very popular to have a girl from Vilassar de Mar tell them about the wonders they have in Mexico," she explains.

A second life

Today, Linuesa is the cameraman for the shoots starring Mónica Corral throughout the country, where she has become a celebrity. "I've experienced popularity in Catalonia and Spain, and the popularity she has here is the same as someone who has done a lot of television. She appreciates coming to Catalonia and not having anyone stop her in the street to take pictures!" says Linuesa. The roles have been reversed.

Mexico is the second country in the world with the highest YouTube consumption, which, being free, has become the main source of digital entertainment for Mexicans, with 75 million users. In Monica's Shoes He has 560,000 fans. They've uploaded 500 videos; the most viewed have 4 and 5 million views (in one of them, they recorded how they experienced the September 19, 2022 earthquake). His Instagram account has 115,000 followers. "I'm incredibly grateful to the Mexican public, who have opened their hearts to us and trusted the content we create with so much love and respect," says Corral. His daily life involves traveling throughout the country, visiting interesting places, trying different foods, and sharing typical traditions, from the colorful streets of San Miguel de Allende to Day of the Dead celebrations in the Zócalo. "There are some more problematic areas, but we haven't had any issues. We travel with locals who help us," the actor explains.

Josep Linuesa, who became popular on TV3 thanks to legendary titles such as The farm, playing Marçal Nice of power oa The hockey players and in Madrid with series like Without fear of dreaming and To love foreverShe has taken a break from her audiovisual career. "I told my agents in Madrid that I'm on a different page in my life," she admits. This doesn't mean she's forgotten about acting. For the past three years, she's been writing and rehearsing a theatrical monologue, which she finally premiered this October in a small venue in Mexico City, Un Teatro.

The comedy Call crazy This is his debut as both author and solo performer. "I create a character, but 80% of it is based on true anecdotes, and the rest on real events. My work and personal failures have come out most of the way. I suppose I needed to laugh. I realize that it's from my failures that I've drawn strength, from my successes—a lot. Yes: money, owning an apartment in the Eixample district, having lived comfortably from my profession. But they haven't affected me at all; in the play, for example, he recounts his first destructive criticism. And he tells the producers that he's eager to perform it in Barcelona next year.

In any case, for now, they don't plan to return permanently. "Going out on the street and having people recognize me and hug me makes me happy and moves me," Corral says. "Being here in Mexico fills me with joy, and coming to Barcelona is an oasis of tranquility." "I'm thrilled to be living between two realities." "We've found a family business that's profitable and growing every month. Mónica didn't have any opportunities in Barcelona or Madrid, and here she works in audiovisual production, she's in charge, and we've found that doors are opening for us everywhere. And I wanted to experience something different, not be tied to the tyranny of casting calls. Mexico offers us possibilities we don't have where I live. I never imagined it," Linuesa concludes.