'I am living my dream right now': Actress inspiring other immigrants to follow their dreams
A former Fort McMurray resident is showing off her skills on the small and big screen alongside celebrities like Jason Momoa.
Humberly González has acted in commercials, films, TV shows and done voice work and motion capture for video games. Recently she appeared in the Netflix show Slumberland as Graciela.
"Every new project, I am like, 'this is surreal, I can't believe I am here,'" said González.
"I am living my dream right now. I am doing exactly what I hoped for. I never thought it could become real and then it did."
González was born in Venezuela, a "lively and very performance-forward" country. Due to the political turmoil in Venezuela, her family left and moved to Aruba before eventually settling in Fort McMurray.
"I had never seen snow or felt cold weather in my life," said González. "I was trying to imagine what it would be like and I was like, 'is it like living in a fridge?' Like, what does snow feel like? Is it like a snow cone?"
Moving to Canada was a shock, but it also provided opportunities.
"I got into drama right away, I always loved performing and I used to do little theatre shows and things like that and Westwood had such a great arts community," she said.
"I remember booking like my first lead in a musical in high school, which was Urinetown, and I remember that moment on stage, I just felt connected to myself."
The passion for the arts was something that didn't go unnoticed by her drama teacher.
"I could see this immense desire to be an actor and she was still absorbing English and so forth and she was just a quick study," said Terri Mort.
González attended college in Fort McMurray and originally thought of acting as just a hobby, not a career path.
"Being the daughter of immigrants, especially with everything my dad had to sacrifice to bring us here, I always felt like I had to do something 'real and significant' to make him proud, but… honestly, it was my parents who supported my arts in the first place," González said.
Eventually, she went to school for theatre and film, moved to Toronto, got an agent and has appeared on all the major Canadian networks.
"I would never have thought I'd be here now working with Netflix, working with Sony Pictures, working with these incredible and huge production companies you can only dream about," she said.
González hopes her story will inspire other immigrants and show them that dreams can come true.
"If I can do it, then anyone else can," she added. "If you have a dream, what is literally the worst thing that could happen? You get told 'no,' or maybe you try again or go a different way, but there was just no way that I wasn't going to try."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Spectacular aurora light show to be seen across Canada Friday night
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
McGill University seeks emergency injunction to dismantle pro-Palestinian encampment
McGill University has filed a request for an injunction to have the pro-Palestinian encampment removed from its campus.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
U.S. says Israel's use of U.S. arms likely violated international law, but evidence is incomplete
The Biden administration said Friday that Israel's use of U.S.-provided weapons in Gaza likely violated international humanitarian law but wartime conditions prevented U.S. officials from determining that for certain in specific airstrikes.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
'We have laws': Premier Smith says police action justified in Calgary
The actions, including the decision to use non-lethal force, to disperse pro-Palestinian protesters from the University of Calgary campus were justified, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said Friday.
Barron Trump declines to serve as an RNC delegate
Former U.S. President Donald Trump's youngest son, Barron Trump, has declined to serve as a delegate at this summer’s Republican National Convention, according to a senior Trump campaign adviser and a statement from Melania Trump's office.