Please introduce yourself. What do you do? Why? What do you want people to know about you?
I’m a multi-award-winning writer and fashion model from Spain who now calls Los Angeles home. My historical and adventure scripts have garnered more than 100 writing awards, and, as a professional model, my work has been published in over a dozen countries. Since I was a kid, my ultimate objective has been to win an Oscar for best screenplay, and I’ve never found a reason to give up on my goal.
What qualities make you different and unique from everyone else in the industry?
Before moving to Los Angeles, I studied Law, Business Management, and Filmmaking in five countries, and I have visited over 50 to this day. This has undoubtedly shaped my adventurous personality and curious soul, as well as contributed to my writing technique and passion for history and cross-cultural experiences. At this point in my life and career, I believe I can convey all of that to you when you read my screenplays. Furthermore, my dual persona as a writer and a model is unusual. It is the result of my determination to achieve mental and physical balance, as well as my own interpretation of Greco-Roman philosophy, which serves as the implicit thematic backbone of my work.
Describe THAT moment when you realized you’re doing what you were born to do.Â
My parents are extremely creative, and I inherited their talent. When I was five, I made my first film and fell in love with storytelling. Inspired by Indiana Jones, my father assisted me in building a massive LEGO scenario, after which I photographed each of the characters in various poses and situations. The goal was to tell my own story and create a rudimentary graphic novel. Using a laptop, I assembled all of those photos into a digital comic book, with many panels presented one after the other. I performed and recorded different voices, playing the dialogue of each of the characters, with the help of my mother, and together we put the sound over the images. It worked! I had made a movie!
What’s been the biggest challenge you’ve had to go through and how did you grow through it?
I recall vividly the day I left Madrid for Los Angeles. It felt different from any of my previous trips because I knew I wouldn’t be returning until at least that goal of mine was met. It is difficult to leave behind people you care about, your home country and family, your routine… in pursuit of a crazy dream in a foreign land. The cost of opportunity was enormous, and the fact that many people believed in my goals added to the pressure. Many people, I understand, prefer stability in their lives. To feel safe in a nest they’ve been building for years because starting over can be difficult. But I know L.A. is where my dream lives and was the right step to take.
But I was unable to resist the call of adventure. I want to feel proud of myself and every effort I made in pursuing my passion when the time comes for me to die away. I believe that my stories have the power to improve people’s lives, and, to be sincere, my goals are more important than my feelings.
Who are the TOP 3 people you’d want to meet that could elevate your career or business? Â Why these specific individuals?
Steven Spielberg will always be a role model for me. It would be meaningful just to hug him, and thank him for inspiring my desire to become a filmmaker. Spending a day discussing movies and handing him one of my scripts would be an unforgettable experience. If that happens, it will be difficult for me to control my tears. He is a fantastic source of inspiration for my stories and career.
However, Eichiro Oda has had the greatest influence on my work. He is the creator of One Piece, a manga that is extremely famous in Japan. My attachment to his work is particularly strong because I grew up with it. Both One Piece’s manga and anime began when I was a child, and they are still in production. Devoted, I’ve been following this story on a regular basis, and the day it ends, my life will never be the same. Its protagonist, Luffy, aspires to be the Pirate King. He is the biggest inspiration for my dreaming spirit, and his journey has become a part of mine, a link that connects my present and future with my childhood.
Finally, I’ll lump Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio together. These two creative minds wrote the screenplay for Pirates of the Caribbean, which is my favorite film, along with Life is Beautiful. The final push I needed to relocate to Los Angeles and pursue a career as a screenwriter came from watching Jack Sparrow’s adventures. They reimagined an oxidized genre and gave an aspiring writer wings.
Drop your social media links.
IMDB: https://www.imdb.me/jacobofegismera
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jacobo-fe-gismera/
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