How to Succeed in the Movie Industry as a Minority Like Salma Hayek

Some people assume that success came easily for the beautiful and talented Salma Hayek. However, when Salma Hayek first arrived in Hollywood, she found roles for minority women often relegated to negative stereotypes such as maids or prostitutes, even for a well-respected actress such as herself. Today, Salma Hayek is a successful actress, director and producer who has overcome barriers that many minority women face in the industry.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

1. Get educated on international affairs. Salma studied international relations at Mexico City's Universidad Iberoamericana and lived in Louisiana, Texas and Mexico City as a child and teen. This type of international education, both academic and geographic, gave Salma an awareness of the dynamics between minority and majority cultures.

2. Work from the inside out. Salma's first film role came in 1989, when she found herself cast in the title role of a Mexican telenovela. This breakthrough made her a star in her native country of Mexico. Other roles followed soon after, which increased Salma's star profile in Mexican cinema and subsequently paved the way to her first Hollywood role in the 1995 film, "Desperado."

3. Represent your culture through your work. Salma owns a Latin film production company and is a co-producer of "Ugly Betty," which was adapted from the Colombian telenovela, "Yo soy Betty, la fea." Salma chooses projects that are close to her heart and her culture, and that passion in turn fuels the success of her projects.

4. Adopt a unified spirit with other minorities. When Penelope Cruz hit the scene in Hollywood, many people speculated that Salma would feel threatened by Penelope due to competition for elusive Latina film roles. Instead, Salma took Penelope under her wing, and the two have remained close personally and professionally.

5. Increase awareness about causes important to your culture. Salma supports shelters and organizations for victims of domestic violence in Mexico. She is also vocal about the lack of opportunities for minorities in Hollywood--particularly for Latin-Americans who make up the country's largest minority group.

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