Last Monday, my family and I, had the pleasure to have been invited to watch an advanced screening of the upcoming Big Hero 6 movie. Both us and the kids, instantly fell in-love with Baymax and his Big Hero 6 friends. Although, today I will not be going to go into the details of the movie (stay tune for a movie review coming soon), I want to share with you my interview with Genesis Rodriquez AKA Honey Lemon. Last Wednesday, Disney and The Miami Children’s Museum hosted a group of local bloggers and our families to a special afternoon filled with fun for the kids, including a tour of the facility, “shopping” at their Publix store and “fishing”. And for us mom, the opportunity to interview the voice of Honey Lemon (see the image below). Before we go any further, I would love to thank Genesis Rodriquez for her time. Here we go…
Big Hero 6: Interview with Genesis Rodriquez aka Honey Lemon:
Question #1 Is Big Hero 6 oriented more towards boys?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: It’s not only for boys, there are 2 very strong female characters in this movie that are more fearless than the boys. A lot like in Frozen, in this move these girls don’t need saving. These girls are the first ones ready for action and ready to take on the world. I like that the one important quality that we are featuring their brilliance, their smart and their intelligence. I hope that girls in class, would start raising their hand in class & not be afraid because knowledge is power & strength.
Question #2: How did you feel about playing a girl in science?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: A lot of kids these days want to be famous. I would love them to add something to that sentence, like: “I want to be a famous scientist”, “I want to be a famous chemist”. I want them to have that hunger, that curiosity for technology & knowledge. I have always been a fan of the sciences. I am a star ways freak, I love everything scifi, I love everything technology and always have the latest app downloaded on my phone. I was in a all girls robotics team in high school. We used to build robots, I was the welder of the team and we had to figure out the pneumatics of the robots: punch, turn, spin, go fast and pick up something. My hope is to go to high schools and work with kids that are working to push technology further. I would love to live in a city like Fransokio.
Question #3: What do you think of BayMax?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: He’s so cute, he melts me! He is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Do you know what it would be if we had BayMaxes in out lives? Right now with all the health scares and whatnot, how wonderful would it be to have a robot could take care of you and treat you. It would be such a beautiful thing.
Question #4: If BayMax were to scan you, what do you think he would treat you for?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: My stress levels. Maybe he would be able to find other alternatives to treat my stress. Stress always induces something else, so definitively I would love a cure for stress.
Question #5: What part of yourself do you see in Honey Lemon?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: Everything, 100% see her in myself, the only difference between us is that she’s 2 octaves higher than me. She’s so happy, I never been that happy for such a long time. I just went into a room and acted like a silly person and then went out of the room and couldn’t believe that I was actually working because that was so much fun. It was a gift for me to be giving a Disney Character to generations. Disney has always been part of my life and has shaped my life. It teaches me what everything magical, innocent, hope and love. All these beautiful scenes were given to me as a child and to give that back it is beyond amazing.
Question #6: What part of Honey Lemon do you wish you had?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: The ability to run in heels.
Question #7: Do you think the world is ready for a Latina Superhero? What powers would she have?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: Honey Lemon is Latina and she happens to be a superhero and the world is ready for her. Honey Lemon was not written as a Latina character but I got to put a lot of my personality into the character. As you can see she pronounces “Hiro” with a Spanish accent. Like a term of endearment. I was allowed to put something of myself into Honey Lemon character which is the accent. Honey Lemon uses action words like Poto-Poto, Ayy, Waasss with a Spanish flair.
Question #8: Fransokio is kind of a hybrid city and I feel that Latinos live in hybrid states as well. How do you breach the 2 cultures?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: (She answers in Spanish) I am a bilingual and a bi-cultural girl. At home, my dad never spoke to me in English and I went to school in English. I was born dreaming of Hollywood and had novelas & Sabado Gigante, because of my grandmother. Latin is in me because of my family. I identify with 2 cultures perfectly, none more than the other one. In the movie, these groups of friends are together because of their love of science. The love of both cultures comes from your home, your traditions. Having both cultures give me an advantage, it’s what makes you. It’s an advantage to have both world, specially for kids. It’s a super power to have both cultures & languages!
Question #9: You’ve done Novelas, movies and animation. What do you prefer?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: I love what I do, I cannot change that for anything in the world. I love to be on film, even if it is animation. My mom always said that I was going to make it, she gave me the confidence. For me the biggest thing is to be on film, whether it is live action or animation, as long as I am on film.
Question #10: What was the hardest and the most fun scene to play on Big Hero 6?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: The most difficult was part of the actions scenes because you have to stay still and make it like you are falling off a building. My best part, but my favorite scene, was when the team is trying their gear with the Butler. My favorite scene for Honey Lemon is her introduction.
Question #11: What would have been your super power?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: If I would be have a super power it would be, to be able to communicate with anyone in the world. To have the ability to community with anyone and anything in any language.
Question #12: Where you able to introduce something or was everything scripted?
Genesis Rodriquez’s answer: I was able to added a few things to Honey Lemon, such as photo-photo. Honey Lemon is the heart of the team. I wasn’t able to improvised too much because Honey Lemon has a mission to complete, so I wasn’t able to add more comedy to her.
OFFICIAL BOILERPLATE:
From Walt Disney Animation Studios, the team behind “Frozen” and “Wreck-It Ralph,” comes “Big Hero 6,” an action-packed comedy-adventure about the special bond that develops between Baymax (voice of Scott Adsit), a plus-sized inflatable robot, and prodigy Hiro Hamada (voice of Ryan Potter). When a devastating event befalls the city of San Fransokyo and catapults Hiro into the midst of danger, he turns to Baymax and his close friends adrenaline junkie Go Go Tomago (voice of Jamie Chung), neatnik Wasabi (voice of Damon Wayans Jr.), chemistry whiz Honey Lemon (voice of Genesis Rodriguez) and fanboy Fred (voice of T.J. Miller). Determined to uncover the mystery, Hiro transforms his friends into a band of high-tech heroes called “Big Hero 6.” Inspired by the Marvel comics of the same name, and featuring breathtaking action with all the heart and humor audiences expect from Walt Disney Animation Studios, “Big Hero 6” is directed by Don Hall (“Winnie the Pooh”) and Chris Williams (“Bolt”), and produced by Roy Conli (“Tangled”). The film hits theaters in 3D on Nov. 7, 2014.
For more information, check out Disney.com/BigHero6, or on Facebook.com/DisneyBigHero6, and on Twitter.com/DisneyAnimation.
Disclosure: My family and I were invited to a pre-screening of Big Hero 6 & The Children’s Museum in Miami by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. The expressed opinions above are my own and not influenced by anything or anyone. No compensation was received.