Michaela Jaé Rodriguez chats with THR on the carpet for Raising Our Voices and shares what she hopes people will take away from the conversation at the Trans Visibility panel. Plus she shares a message with Trans rights allies in Hollywood.
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00:00You're participating in our Trans Visibility Panel, what do you hope people might take
00:04away from or learn from this conversation today?
00:06I think the most important thing is that we are finally in a place where we can showcase
00:11our talents in the best way possible.
00:13There's no more of the fight against our struggles.
00:17Now it's a fight for our happiness and showing it and showcasing it on the television screen.
00:21So I think we're in a great place to talk about all of the new upcoming things, the
00:24things that we can work towards and yeah, the great wonderful future that we have ahead
00:29of us.
00:30This event is all about equity, inclusion, representation, accessibility and diversity
00:35in Hollywood.
00:36How do you think it just makes the content coming out of Hollywood better when the industry
00:40embraces those principles?
00:42When there's more opportunity, when there's more diversity, it creates more inclusion,
00:45right?
00:46So I think that is the main goal is including everyone who has a stance, who has space and
00:50who has courage to talk and speak up.
00:51So I think that's the space right there.
00:54You've been a trailblazer in the industry.
00:56For you, when you won a Golden Globe, what was that response like for you and how did
00:59people share with you that it maybe made them feel seen and that they could achieve their
01:04goals in the industry?
01:05You know, at first it was hard to accept, but as time went on, I grew to understand
01:10that I was deserving of it and when people saw that, it gave them space to know that
01:14when they get into a space like this and they work hard and get there, they're deserving
01:17of it as well.
01:18So that's all I wanted to do.
01:19I wanted to influence, inspire and love.
01:22And finally, what's your message to allies in Hollywood?
01:24This is the Raising Our Voices event, but why is it time to raise their voices and
01:28stand up for trans rights in Hollywood?
01:29I think it's so crucial for our allies to stand up.
01:32There's not a lot of space for us in Hollywood.
01:35It's for the trans community specifically.
01:37I mean, we are making strides, but when we have our allies on our side, it just constantly
01:41continues to grow the dynamic and makes the space wider.
01:44So I think that's what we can do and I just shout them out too.
01:47We have them.
01:48They are here.
01:49We love them and we thank them.
01:50One last question.
01:51Congratulations on LÜT being renewed.
01:54What's your hopes for SOFIA in the next season?
01:56There's so many hopes for SOFIA.
01:58There are a lot of things I know, but I can't share just yet.
02:00But there are some wonderful twists, plot turns that we didn't expect and I'm excited
02:05for everybody in the audience to see it.