Earlier this year, Ashley Ciarra made her major screen debut when she played Luna in the new feature film Chupa. The film follows the story of Alex (played by Evan Whitten), who finds a chupacabra at his grandfather’s (Demián Bichir) ranch, and Ashley plays the supporting role of Alex’s cousin, which saw her film in New Mexico for four months and be directed by Jonás Cuarón. With Chupa having been released on Netflix in April, Ashley reunited with some of the cast in March for the Netflix film premiere. Ashley has recently filmed for the upcoming Amazon Prime film A Million Miles Away, with a release date not yet announced, and alongside acting, she is part of a musical theatre dance group and performs in shows throughout the year. Talking with us, Ashley spoke about making her major screen debut in feature film Chupa, playing Luna in the Netflix release and attending the film’s premiere in March.

For your first professional major acting role on screen, you play Luna in the new Netflix film Chupa, was there anything that drew you to the script and how did you feel finding out you’d booked the role?

When I got the audition for Luna, I was super excited. I loved the idea of being in a movie about a chupacabra in Mexico. I also loved the idea that my character would drive a car. I was only 12 at the time, so this is the part I was most excited about.

Sometimes in acting, you can wait weeks or even months to find out if you’ve booked a part or not. Chupa casting was fast. I found out I got the part just days after the first self-tape request. The callbacks and chem reads and director’s sessions all happened within a few days and are a blur. My parents broke the news by giving me a cake that said “Congratulations, Luna!” on it. I cried, I was so unbelievably happy. Then I found out I would be flying out to New Mexico to film for about four months a few days after that. It was like a dream!

Can you tell us about the film and your character, and what is Luna like to play?

Chupa is a story about a boy, Alex, who goes to Mexico for the summer and finds a baby chupacabra at his grandfather’s ranch. I play the part of Luna, Alex’s cousin. Luna wears crazy clothes typical of the 90s, listens to Nirvana and the Beastie Boys, and spends her time singing and playing the ukulele, learning to drive, and setting off firecrackers.

Luna is smart, confident, and musical. She can also be a little bossy. She has a little brother named Memo (played by Nickolas Verdugo). I could relate to that part easily, because I also have a little brother around the same age. I know what it’s like to be the oldest and to be in charge all of the time, so I could relate a lot to Luna in that way.

How did you find the experience on set of Chupa and being directed by Jonás Cuarón?

I feel really blessed that Jonás was my first director. He’s an artist with a vision, and he’ll do everything he can to bring that vision to life. On set, he is always in the zone, and he works really, really hard. But even as busy and focused as he is, he was always so patient and kind to us.

When Alex meets Luna for the first time, she’s playing the ukulele and singing on the rooftop. I guess they could have faked it and had me pretend to sing and play the ukulele, but Jonás wanted it to be real. The thing is, I didn’t know how to play the ukulele – much less, how to play the ukulele while singing! But Jonás was confident I could do it. I got to have ukulele lessons with an amazing teacher and before long I was singing and playing the ukulele. I learned the song and we filmed the scene, and I felt so proud of myself. I am grateful that he believed in me and knew that I could do it.

What did you enjoy most about filming with the rest of the cast?

Evan (Whitten), Nicko, and I had so much fun on and off set. We got really close and it felt like they were my actual brothers. We had about a million inside jokes and were always laughing and having a great time everywhere we went.

We also spent a lot of time working with Demián Bichir, who is hands down one of the greatest actors in the world. He was so nice to us and set such a great example of on set professionalism that I will never forget for as long as I live.

One of my favourite memories of Demián Bichir is when we were filming the pipe scene on top of a canyon in the middle of nowhere in New Mexico. Because we were so high up, we didn’t have trailers to rest in between scenes and instead we only had these tents and tarps to sit inside or underneath all day. It was freezing cold, like below zero or close to it, and the crew was wearing ski jackets and boots, gloves, hats, etc.

But Demián was dressed as Chava, the wrestler, AKA “el Relampago Azul”‘. This means that he was wearing wrestling underwear, a cape, and nothing else. Again, it was FREEZING up there. And I know he hates the cold, because every time we were in hair and makeup and the A/C was on, he would ask them to turn it off. But those days that we shot those canyon scenes, he never complained, not even once. He just did his job, take after take, and absolutely killed it every time. Off camera, he was always smiling and in a great mood. I will never forget it and I will always strive to be as professional as he is.

Why would you recommend watching Chupa and how has it been seeing the response to the release so far?

I think that Chupa is the perfect movie to watch with your family, especially for those that have younger kids. Little kids really love this movie! I know a lot of younger children that have watched Chupa several times a day, every day since it was released. The response has been amazing. So many people loved that movie and I feel proud to have been a part of it.

Can you tell us what it was like attending the Netflix film premiere in March and how did you feel watching Chupa for the first time?

I was not looking forward to seeing myself on screen. In fact, I was dreading it. However, I went to the first screening in March and was shocked by how much I loved the movie. I walked out of the theater feeling very proud of the movie we made and excited that the world was going to be able to see it soon too.

What are some of your favourite memories from your time filming as Luna?

Every second I spent on set was like a dream come true. Even the hardest days of shooting were just so much fun and I always felt so grateful to be there. If I have to choose though, I think my absolute favourite scenes were the car scenes. Not only did I get to pretend to drive, we had fun hanging out together in the car while the crew set up between takes.

A lot of other memories about filming in New Mexico are related to the weather. The desert weather in New Mexico helped to create a lot of interesting moments for us. On one of the first days of shooting, a crazy storm hit and the electricity went out while we were shooting in the ranch house. They don’t have storms like that in California! Shooting was cancelled for the rest of the day, but it was too dangerous to leave because of the lightning and all of the equipment we had, so we had to wait until it died down before they would let us leave. Someone turned on some solar powered lights and we sat around hanging out and having fun while waiting for the storm to pass. It was exciting and a really great memory.

My absolute favourite scene to shoot was the night scene with Evan, Nicko and Demián, when we make fun of him for being scared of a rabbit. We shot that one late at night. Night shoots have a different energy than daytime shoots, and I’m a night person, so it felt even more exciting than usual.

I also turned 13 while filming, and the cast and crew surprised me with a beautiful cake. It was really special. I couldn’t have asked for a better way to spend my 13th birthday.

We understand you will be in the cast of A Million Miles Away, is there anything you can say about this and what are you looking forward to most for the release?

I can’t say much about my character or my scenes, but I am excited for the release! I don’t know when the movie is coming out (it’s going to be on Amazon Prime), but I think it will be sometime this year. I am hoping it comes out soon because I can’t wait to see it!

Where does your love of acting come from and how did you get into it?

We have a lot of artists on my dad’s side of the family in Mexico. My mom’s side of the family is very creative as well. My family has been a huge source of inspiration to me and everyone has always encouraged me to follow my dreams.

I believe that acting is in my blood. Acting has always been something that I have always just done, whether I’m being paid to do it or not. I am always practicing. Even when I watch TV, or a movie, I study the actors and their facial expressions and try to mimic them. Sometimes I don’t even realise that I’m doing these things, I just do them instinctively.

When I was very little, I used to make up characters – I’d give them names, personalities, and costumes – and then I would role play as those characters for hours, and sometimes even for a couple of days at a time. Around that time I started making skit videos and acting out little scenarios for my characters.

Have you been given any advice over your time as an actor so far that has stuck with you?

I get really nervous before interviews, so Nickolas Verdugo (who played my little brother Memo in the movie) gave me some advice that I will never forget. He told me not to worry about a thing, and that all I needed to do was to remember to never, ever give my opinion in an interview, unless it’s the right one. He is so funny.

What are some of your favourite films and TV shows to watch?

My favourite movie at the moment is Inception with Leonardo DiCaprio. My favourite TV shows are The Good Place, Breaking Bad, The Office, Malcolm in the Middle, The Queen’s Gambit, and 13 Reasons Why.

How do you like to spend your time away from acting?

My favourite thing to do besides acting is dance. I started ballet at the age of two at my aunt’s dance studio and today I take jazz, hip-hop, and musical theatre dance classes. I am part of a musical theatre dance group and love performing in shows throughout the year.

Do you have any upcoming projects that you can tell us about and what are you hoping 2023 brings for you?

The writer’s strike has essentially put everyone in the industry on hold, and without productions moving forward, things are on pause for me too at the moment. I have been focusing on school, my 8th grade graduation, our summer dance show, and summer vacation coming up while the strike is going on. I am hoping that the writers will reach an agreement with the studios that is fair for everyone, so that we can all get back to work doing what we love to do.

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