Born in Alicante (Spain), Fernando Corral is one of the hottest Spanish actors right now. Ever since he found his passion for the performing arts, Fernando has starred in many theatrical plays, web series, documentaries, short and feature movies and also in the well-known German TV movie Ein Sommer in Salamanca (A Summer in Salamanca). I had the pleasure to interview Fernando this month and I was very surprised to know about his life and all the funny moments he shared with me. Are you curious about it? Keep reading!
Punk Globe: You worked as a police officer in the past. It's incredible that you decided to leave your job and take acting lessons instead! Tell us about it.
FERNANDO: Hehe… no, I really didn't quit the job. It was the other way round! I had an accident while I was working. I broke my knee in a fire at a rabbit farm! I went through three surgeries and they didn't work. I can't run properly, so I had to stop working as a police officer, but hey, I can more or less lead a normal life. I took up acting lessons many years before working as a police officer. I was 20 years old, but obviously I didn't earn a penny, so at one point I decided to go for the local police exams so I could apply for a full-time job, and I got it, but my greatest dream was to be an actor. While I was a police officer, I also had the chance to work on several film projects.
Punk Globe: You're currently living in Ireland. Do you think there are more opportunities for Spanish actors in other countries?
FERNANDO: No, I don’t think so. Acting opportunities are usually for natives, but the truth is, when Irish producers are looking for a foreigner, in my case a Latin or Mediterranean guy, the number of people who apply is much lower than in Spain, so your chance of success increases. For this reason, I decided to work abroad despite not being bilingual.
Punk Globe: If you could choose to work with an actor or actress, who would that be?
FERNANDO: Wow… What an easy question! Haha! If you ask me about a Spanish actor I’d like to work with, the right guy is Iván Gisbert, my bro in the show business. Iván is a fantastic actor and we are very good friends. I would be very excited to work with him on any project. If the question is about a well-known actor in Spain, I really like Tristán Ulloa. There’s so much truth in all his work and he is someone I’d really love to work with one day. Roberto Álamo is also an amazing actor. I can tell you that Playcine
(https://www.instagram.com/asociacionplaycine)
also arranged a couple of workshops with Roberto via Zoom, so I had the pleasure to get to know him. It’d be a great honour for me to learn much more from Roberto. A Spanish actress I adore is Anna Castillo. I’d give her ten out of ten! She’s workaholic. As for international actors, I’d say that Ben Mendelsohn is an awesome actor. I met him on the Bloodline series and I was impressed. I’m also crazy about Scarlett Johansson. I really admire every single movie she’s starred in.
Punk Globe: In your opinion, what's the best project you've starred in so far?
FERNANDO: All the projects I’ve worked on so far have pleased me one way or the other. From the first web series that I ever shot, to the movies that I have worked on. If you ask me to choose one professional project regardless of whether it is good or bad, or whether it has been more or less successful, I should mention "A Summer in Salamanca". It was the first movie in which I had a co-starring role and I was so excited. Not only because it is a German project and I had to learn my lines in that language, but it also helped me a lot to learn about the industry. It was a roller-coaster of feelings. It was a great experience for me.
Punk Globe: You've been training as an actor for many years. What's your biggest dream?
FERNANDO: My biggest dream is to say that I can earn my living by being an actor and that I’m enjoying myself every day, which is the most beautiful thing in the world. To hear people say that they have been touched by one of my movies, or with any project I have worked on. This is my dream right now.
Punk Globe: What's the funniest moment you remember on set? And your worst experience?
FERNANDO: One of the funniest days that I remember on set was while making the movie "The Glorious Seven" with my colleagues Joan Ruiz and Carlos Santos. We were shooting a scene without sound in which we were supposed to be in Nicaragua (it was filmed in the Pyrenees). I was a slave and I was tied with a chain around my foot and they came to rescue me with a 4x4 vehicle where they carried a cutting machine for the chain that was activated by a lever. Everything was going well until they started to adjust the lever and when they were ready to lower it to cut the chain… the lever broke! Both actors stood there not knowing what to do and Joan said in a funny Mexican accent: “AGARRA LA PALA!” (Grab the shovel!) Hahahaha! I don't know if it was because of my mate’s accent, our friendship or because the director cut the scene… But we laughed out loud for about 10 minutes and there was no way to stop!
Every time I remember all this, I still laugh so much! And the worst experience I ever had was while shooting the German film "A Summer in Salamanca." As I have said before, starring in this movie gave me the chance to improve my skills. My character was a language teacher with whom one of the two protagonists fell in love. Yet, working with this girl was extremely bad from the very first take. It had never happened to me before, but it was a nightmare. Probably it was because I didn’t like the way she was, I don't know, and I've never figured it out, but she behaved in a very rude and unpleasant way, which is why we stopped having a personal relationship, but of course, we had to pretend that we were in love with each other on set, which made things so complicated. Three weeks later, our relationship was impossible. I had a meeting with the director and he told me something I will never forget and thanks to those words I understood what being an actor is about. The director went: “Welcome to the show business! We’re not paying you to make friends, we’re paying you to be an actor!” As soon as I listened to such words, I committed myself to acting and started taking advantage of all the good things I was learning. If you ever watch this movie, please tell me if you really believe in that love affair. Yeah, it looks so nice on the big screen. Luckily and to this day no one has ever told me otherwise!
Punk Globe: What are your hobbies? Do you practise any sport?
FERNANDO: I don’t practise any sport because of my knee problem, but I try to stay fit at home as much as I can. As a hobby, I really like video editing although I don't know as much about it as I would like to. Of course, I love cinema and I watch movies as much as I can. I play chess a lot and cooking is also one of my favourite hobbies, I am an amateur chef, although I have to say that I kind of cheat since I am a huge fan of my Thermomix cooking machine because it solves many of the problems that I have to face in the kitchen! Hehe!
Punk Globe: Have you ever considered modelling?
FERNANDO: Modelling? No, I am not a model. There are very good models in this country so they don’t need me at all! I have worked on a few commercials, but fashion… No, it is not my cup of tea! Hehe!
Punk Globe: What are your next projects?
FERNANDO: Well, that is a difficult question for me to answer right now because I am currently auditioning for several projects and I have not yet had an answer from any of them. Yet, I hope to get a call soon and hopefully a positive one! Hehe! As I usually say, I am a "professional auditionist” and sometimes I work as an actor" Haha! Castings are not easy because producers are very demanding and you have to work hard. Either you’re lucky enough to work on several projects, or you can home with your hands in your pockets, so you have to keep trying and wait for the big deal! Let's see if you bring me luck for the next casting with this interview!
Punk Globe: Please, tell our readers how they can contact you for professional purposes.
FERNANDO: Sure! Well, you can contact me on my Instagram profile: https://www.instagram.com/fernando_corral_official or if you want further information, just take a look at my website: https://www.fernandocorral.es You’ll find anything there about me, my British, Spanish and German agents’ contact details and all my social networks. Thank you very much for the interview. It has been a pleasure! (Special thanks to Borja López, Nora Cordova and Victor Chito for the photos).
