Alba Cabrera Bancells @alba.cabrera.bancells She is an actress who embodies the constant search. Her career crosses physical and scenic boundaries: from Girona to Poland, from the physical theater al author cinema, Since the dance al viola study. He has starred in films , the The stuck donut y Remain in light, sharing the stage with figures such as Mercè Sampietro y Marianne Denicourt, and has worked with companies such as La Fura dels Baus y Maravilla Theater.
His training with references such as Grzegorz Bral, Montxo Armendáriz y Albert Vidal has shaped a way of interpreting that is as corporeal as it is poetic. In this interview, Alba She talks to us about her creative processes, her references, her relationship with music and the projects that keep her moving.
How did you discover your calling for acting? Your training has been very diverse and transnational. I began my artistic training when I was little, studying musical language and saxophone. In my teens, as is common, I decided to quit and switch to dance. So I started dancing. classical, contemporary, salsa and hip hop. Knowing that my future was not to be a dancer, when I started university (teaching), I decided to try acting by signing up for the Arts cycle Scenic in El Galliner (Gerona) and I discovered that what I experienced there was more interesting than anything else that surrounded me then. Each work or job allowed me to go deeper into various topics. Also, I considered myself to be quite mental, discovering how emotions They take over the most significant moments of our lives. It seems to me one of the most stimulating mysteries possible. The transnational thing came by chance. I took a course with Ditte Berkeley and Matej Matejka that fascinated me and I decided to go to Poland to learn more about that physical work that was not mime and was not dance, but that allowed for exploring a more
overall character.
What lessons have had the greatest impact on you at each stage? You've worked with figures like Grzegorz Bral and Albert Vidal. What did they bring to you as an artist? In Girona it was the openness, the self-confidence, the emotion from the genuine, the discovery of the classics and tragic characters. In Poland, with Grzergorz, he was the voice and movement of individual and group energy in the stage. Also one of the most important things: how to manage envy. With Albert Vidal, it was focus, sense of humor, and mystery.
What attracted you to the project La dona tancada and what was the filming process like? “La dona tancada” is my first feature film and, at the same time, the first time I acted as a protagonist. So I learned a lot of things. I can't reveal much about the project because hasn't seen the light of day yet, but I can say that it was a very intense process. My character goes through very delicate situations and I remember that, at one point in the process, I even had insecurities that belonged more to the character than to myself. It was a beautiful project that I was lucky enough to live with a fantastic team.
In Remain in Light you share the cast with figures such as Mercè Sampietro. How did you experience that? experience? Although it is obvious, I found it wonderful to work with people with a track record like Mercè Sampietro. There was more than one in this film: Núria Prims, Marianne Denicourt, Ann-Sofie Kylin… and they all turned out to be very close. I can only say that I want to be Like them. They give off that aura of a well-understood "diva" that fascinates me. They have that authority special that you understand in a moment that it's not about being a star or any nonsense these, but rather a spectacular internal authority. Of mastery over what they do. Of carrying on their whole life doing it. I want to be like that.
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What inspires you when choosing a character or project? I'm not at the point yet where I can turn down many projects. For an actress Unknown as I am, this is a luxury that, for now, I only allow myself when they don't pay. It sounds obvious, but we do so much for free in this business! This is something I've learned forbidden. And yet, sometimes I break the deal or have serious doubts. You face the lack of
opportunities, the desire to work, the enthusiasm and excitement of a team… Difficult. But there we are.
You've worked in theater, film, and television. How does your approach change depending on the medium? Well, they are completely different languages. In all of them you find yourself in the situation of combining the technique with naturalness. In the theater, bigger; in the cinema, almost only with thought. Even
I still have a lot to discover. I've done almost nothing on television, but in film and in the theater, it has always been the case that I truly enjoy it when I feel that the technique is there and I I can focus on the moment.
What role does music and dance play in your work as an actress? I think any other discipline helps in the work as an actress. Dance helps you in the presence, in freedom and in the control of movement. At this point I have to name Sylvia Edo. For “Remain in Light,” I had to learn classical dance choreography before filming. And everything I've achieved I owe to her. She's a fantastic teacher. Music helps you with words, pauses, understanding the rhythm of scenes, etc. But what really important thing that music gives me appears in the wait between one project and another. It allows me to immerse myself in it and avoid frustrations, rushes and all these things that we are blamed for in these moments.
How do you see the current situation for young actresses in Spain? It's horrible. They don't do it if they can. If you don't have contacts, you have very little protection. Discontinuous jobs, commonly poorly paid (if you do not enter directly into a series or big movie). Getting a representative is a nightmare because it costs a lot if you haven't done nothing before and to do something you have to have a/an. And even when you do something, No one guarantees that luck will be constant. But if you can't, don't do it... it's the best job. in the world. However, there should be more public companies, more open castings and better working conditions, especially during the gap periods between projects.
What projects do you have in the works or would you like to explore next? Right now I'm waiting for "La dona tancada", "Remain in light" and a short film to come out. that I just finished called “The Weed” so that more opportunities appear. Meanwhile, I just joined a Tango orchestra as a violist, haha, I'm at Tibidabo Playing the role of the Exorcist's daughter, and with a few fiction projects in the works. Here we go.
In Alba Cabrera, actress, musician, and restless creator intertwine. Her journey isn't a straight line, but rather a constellation of experiences that illuminate each other: physical theater, which taught her to inhabit the body; cinema, which allowed her to explore intimacy; music, which sharpens her listening; and dance, which reminds her that all movement is emotion.
From Barcelona, Alba continues to build a career that eschews labels and embraces risk. Her perspective is that of someone who isn't content to simply represent, but rather seeks to transform. And in that gesture, she also invites us to look differently: more openly, more sensitively, more alive.
For her, art isn't just a craft. It's a way of being in the world.
