The Impresario
Early Activism
Moctesuma Esparza became an activist at age 20, when he helped organize the 1968 Chicano student walk-outs to protest discrimination in the East Los Angeles public schools. Along with 13 others, he was indicted on conspiracy charges. Had he not been acquitted, he could have been sentenced to 45 years to life.
Esparza credits his work in the civil rights movement with having laid the ground for his success. He might be right, considering that he won his first Emmy for his grad school thesis, the documentary Cinco Vidas. The skills I learned as an organizer motivating folks, being persuasive, making a case, and having the patience and perseverance to set long term goals and achieve them have all served me in my career, he says.
But given the absence of a strong Latino presence in the American film industry, how did this ex-student radical conquer Hollywood?
Success Lessons
The secret, he says, is listening. The ability to hear what others are saying not just their words, but the intent behind those words, is a learned skill. Its a discipline, Esparza says.
Want to cultivate allies, enlist supporters, persuade investors? Find what you have in common and speak to those interests. When I talk to people, I try to put myself in their shoes. And I make sure to communicate with them in such a way that they in turn can hear my intent. Language creates reality.
And before undertaking a project, Esparza works on clarifying his own motivation. Ultimately, he concludes, an entrepreneur has to be of service. If your prime motivation is to be profitable, then the likelihood is that youll fail.
Its advice worth heeding, since despite losing the odd quarter million or two along the way, Moctesuma Esparza has had far more triumphs than failures.
Incidentally, he puts great store by the power of silence. In his rare free moments he likes to chill out in an isolation tank. Because for all the stress he lays on listening to others, Mocstesuma Esparza knows the importance of listening to the voice within.
