At 42 years old, Alfonso Herrera has given us a career full of interesting nuances, with brutal and demanding characters at an interpretive level. And this year we have been able to enjoy his talent in several large-scale projects with productions that have made specialized critics hold their breath.
Now, hand in hand with High Video, Alfonso Herrera will become Esteban Trueba. A character with a strong narrative line, with intense emotions and even worse actions. In Allende’s book, Trueba is someone you want to know and understand, but there is a moment when not all of us can accept who he is and how everything operates within him.
Since High Video started working on this project we managed to get closer to production. We traveled to Chile to see some scenes already recorded and others in progress, with the protagonists in action. From the outset, what impressed me most about the filming was the setting of the most impressive spaces that we found in the book. The house. The mansion. The blue room.
Once the impact of the visual aesthetics had been overcome, the first character I saw arriving on stage was Herrera, impeccably dressed as Trueba. For those of us who read the book, her clothes, her image, her posture… really evokes what we could once imagine. But at that moment I only had the hanger before me! The one who greeted me with courtesy, kindness and education was Poncho Herrera.
At the outset he recognized journalists with whom he has spoken all his life. He was grateful for the arrival. The appreciation, work and space of each future coverage. He recorded several scenes in front of us, always making sure that we were not only attentive, but also well within the filming environment.
We spoke with Alfonso Herrera…
At the time of the interviews, time was running out and he had to talk to us in the middle of his lunch. I managed to see vegetables on his plate. They seemed more like snacks to me, but he was happy and not at all uncomfortable to share his lunch time to talk to “La Opinión”.
Seeing his characterization, I asked him about the process of physically becoming Trueba, a man with an unsympathetic face and a sharp, almost accusatory look. He smiled at me and appreciated the direction of my question. He told me that this part of fine-tuning details to give credibility to the character he brings to life is one of the parts he most appreciates about his job.
He also explained to me that despite all the conceptions we may have from what we read in Allende’s book, he tries not to judge the character.
Poncho knows that Esteban Trueba has no justification for his actions, but he understands the process that led him to become what he ended up being, because that is what his work is about: seeing its reasons, processes and humanizing it as much as possible.
He explains that Esteban’s frustrations are in the process of idealization that he built around Rosa. And how when possessing he seeks to have the preserve to watch on everything. Something he never achieves absolutely. Plus, there’s this whole family dynamic around his sister and mother that complicates his life and processes even more.
In the midst of this process of internalizing Esteban, he recognizes that his character will be judged by the public and deserves to be. He knows that the issues under which Trueba gloats are being highly criticized today and deserve to be. Being able to move those fibers in terms of reaction to your work is something that any actor aspires to, because it indicates that you are doing it well. The point is to generate emotions, even if these include censure and rejection.
Accepting that the few minutes of conversation were coming to an end, I decided to highlight the good acting decisions that have led him to build a significant name in the television industry. And Alfonso Herrera has made his name as an actor through hard work and with a powerful awareness of his interpretive scope that leads him to be just that, an actor, not a celebrity.
Last year, for example, we were able to enjoy him in “The Dead”. This year we will see him in “The House of the Spirits” by Isabel Allende with High Video. Productions such as “Sense 8” and “Ozark” have served to validate and cement his career. For this and more you can’t miss it like Estefan Trueba.
Who is in the cast?
Along with Alfonso Herrera, we are presented with a luxury cast such as Dolores Fonzi, Nicole Wallace, Juan Pablo Raba, Fernanda Castillo, among others.
The series was filmed entirely in Chile and production was carried out by FilmNation, whose team was awarded the Palme d’Or (Anora, Promising Younger Girl), with the support of Fabula, the Oscar-winning Chilean production company.
Behind the production we have that Isabel Allende and Eva Longoria are part of the production as executive producers, along with the showrunners Francisca Alegría, Fernanda Urrejola and Andrés Wooden.
“My first novel, “The House of the Spirits,” has been published worldwide for 40 years and will now be a wonderful series on Amazon with Eva Longoria leading an unparalleled creative team. I hope everyone enjoys it,” commented Isabel Allende, author of the fashioned novel and executive producer of the series.
“For us it is more than a dream come true to bring “The House of the Spirits” to life for audiences around the world,” said Javiera Balmaceda, head of Local Originals for Latin America, Canada and Australia at Amazon Studios.
Continue reading more from High Video here:
Amazon increases High Video rate without advertising to $4.99 per month
The trailer for the final season of “The Boys” is here
Let’s talk about “Cometierra”, the premiere series of High Video in which Yalitza Aparicio participates.
