This episode’s guest is actor, writer, voiceover artist, and unapologetic improv nerd, Roxana Ortega.
Roxana is one of those rare artists whose vulnerability, honesty, and humor hit you all at once – and leave a lasting impression. If her voice sounds familiar, it might be because she’s voiced everything from the passionate Frida Casagrande on The Casagrandes to characters in Call of Duty, Final Fantasy, and Monsters at Work. She’s narrated Pulitzer Prize-winning novels, voiced countless animated characters, and is a master of voice matching (yes, she’s dubbed for Penelope Cruz and Salma Hayek).
In our conversation, Roxana takes us through the unexpected path that led her to acting – from growing up in an academic household where creativity wasn’t considered a “real” career, to having a life-changing epiphany while teaching English in Spain. We talk about the internal battle between playing it safe and going after what you truly want—and what it really means to decide to be an artist.
We go deep into the power of improv as both a performance tool and a life philosophy, how failure can be a gift, and why community-building and representation matter now more than ever. Roxana shares how she uses her voice – literally and figuratively – to make space for underrepresented stories, and how she’s continued to evolve as a writer, performer, and director.
Whether you’re someone who thrives on stage or someone working up the courage to take the leap, Roxana’s journey will remind you that embracing risk, staying curious, and being fiercely yourself is always worth it.
Episode Chapters
00:00 – Welcome + Introduction
02:00 – Names, Language, and Laughter
04:00 – Academic Roots & Artistic Restlessness
07:55 – The Epiphany in Spain
13:49 – “I Decided to Be an Actor”
16:00 – Improv, Joy, and Redefining Failure
21:45 – Performing, Directing, and Creating Her Own Work
32:00 – Representation, Identity, and Making Space
40:00 – The Tapestry of Humanity
49:30 – Amazing Race Nerd Out
50:50 – Blissful Spinster & Making Art on Your Own Terms
54:35 – Final Words of Wisdom
55:14 – What’s Next for Roxana
58:00 – Wrap-Up & Thank You
Roxana’s Bio:
Roxana Ortega is an American actor, writer, and voiceover artist who is known for voicing the ever-emotional Frida Casagrande on Nickelodeon’s Emmy award-winning and Imagen award-winning cartoon The Casagrandes, a spinoff of the acclaimed series The Loud House.
On-camera, she recently starred opposite Danny Trejo, Reno Wilson, and a cast of legends including Garrett Morris, Barry Bostwick, and James Hong in the Universal feature Grand-Daddy Day Care. Other film credits include The Flight Before Christmas opposite Mayim Bialik, Miss Congeniality 2 opposite Sandra Bullock, and Larry Crowne opposite Tom Hanks. Her TV guest-star credits include New Girl, Shonda Rhimes’ For The People, The League, Rules of Engagement, NCIS, and the Peabody award-winning satire American Vandal.
Behind the mic, she has voiced countless characters in TV, films, trailers, commercials, and some of the biggest video game franchises around, including Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, Final Fantasy, Halo, and Ghost Recon: Wildlands. A two-time AudioFile Earphones Award winner, she has narrated the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel A Visit from the Goon Squad, the National Book Award finalist Sabrina & Corina, and the New York Times’s non-fiction best seller Random Family to name just a few. In addition, her mimicking skills have led her to voice-match the likes of Penelope Cruz, Salma Hayek, and Jennifer Tilly.
Born in Los Angeles and raised in Fullerton, CA, Roxana is of mixed Peruvian and Mexican descent. She graduated from U.C. Berkeley Phi Beta Kappa with a degree in Interdisciplinary Studies, then spent a year teaching English in Madrid, Spain. It was there, while she was elaborately acting out English vocabulary to her students, that she realized she wanted to pursue a career in acting. She returned to the Bay Area and immersed herself in theatre and improvisation, then made her way to Los Angeles where she continued her improv and acting training and began writing and performing sketch comedy.
Roxana is an alumna of the CBS Diversity Sketch Comedy Showcase, Upright Citizen’s Brigade, and the Groundlings Sunday Company. She has written and produced her own shorts and performed storytelling all over Los Angeles, including at The Moth GrandSLAM.
She is also the creator and co-host of the live storytelling show Minority Retorts, which spotlights stories from the under-represented, and The Risking Space, a podcast about art and risk.
Connect with Roxana on: Instagram
Learn more about Latina’s Act Up on: Instagram
Check out The Groundlings on: Instagram
