There are now 900+ HD screen captures added to our photo gallery of America Ferrera as “Gloria” in Barbie.

NOTE: screencaps contain spoilers from the film!

Click on the preview links below to see all the images added to America Ferrera Source!

America Ferrera was never a Barbie girl. Born to Honduran parents in LA, the actor wasn’t interested in the blue-eyed, blonde-haired doll. “I didn’t play with Barbies for a number of reasons,” she says. “We couldn’t afford them. And they just didn’t resonate with me. I didn’t see myself reflected in that world in a way that captured my imagination.”

It seems curious, then, that the actor, who is known as a champion of inclusivity, takes top billing alongside Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling in the Barbie film, one of the most-hyped releases in cinematic history. But, as she explains, “What’s exciting about being a part of this movie about such an influential icon in our culture is getting to expand and shift the narrative to include more of us, so young girls and boys can see themselves in something so dominant.”

Ferrera’s character Gloria, a Mattel employee who is ‘low on the totem pole’, is central to the action: a woman whose imagination, fears and aspirations drive the story. The film itself is an existential jamboree, in which ‘stereotypical Barbie’, played by Robbie (who conceived the project), leaves the utopia of Barbie Land on a quest to discover why she has developed ‘thoughts of death’ and cellulite. The two characters meet in the real world, and an irreverent and comedic odyssey ensues.

A large part of the appeal for Ferrera was that the film was written by Greta Gerwig and her partner Noah Baumbach, and directed by Gerwig. “They didn’t ignore what was problematic about Barbie, or the multitude of perspectives that people have,” says Ferrera. “I read the script and I was laughing on page one, then I was crying, and then I was laughing and crying. By the time I was done, I was deeply shocked at how invested I felt.” She acknowledges the divisive nature of the brand, as, she says, does the film. Gloria’s daughter Sasha (played by Ariana Greenblatt) represents the haters—she goes as far as calling Barbie a ‘fascist’ and accuses her of ‘setting feminism back 50 years’. “There have been times when Barbie has been revolutionary, and then moments when she has been so behind the times,” Ferrera says. She points out that there was no kitchen in the Barbie Dreamhouse, thus freeing the doll from domesticity. “But we also look back and see the exclusion of so many of us—how long it took for her to have a Black friend, and then she had another ethnically ambiguous sort of brown friend. There were very inelegant times of change and growth.”

What fascinates Ferrera is what Barbie says about society. The opening of the film presents Barbie Land as an idealised world, but one that allows no room for womanhood in all its messiness and complications. The adventure that follows is an exploration of that tension. “A lot of people have very strong feelings about Barbie, as if she is something apart from us,” says Ferrera. “But people gave Barbie meaning. It’s only natural that our feelings towards her shift as we shift, as we change, and culture changes.”

Ferrera herself has been integral to bringing about such shifts in our culture. Her first major roles were in Real Women Have Curves and Ugly Betty, both of which hit the mainstream and helped bring a much-needed visibility to Latin Americans while challenging the conventions of female storytelling in Hollywood. In 2007, she was named among Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world. The following year, she committed to public political engagement—first campaigning for Hillary Clinton’s Democratic nomination, then teaming up with powerhouses including Eva Longoria to co-found Poderistas, an organisation that began as a digital-lifestyle platform to encourage voting within the Latina community. One of the driving forces of Time’s Up, Ferrera was also the opening speaker at the Women’s March in Washington after the inauguration of Donald Trump as President in 2017; she went on to set up the not-for-profit initiative Harness in response to the election, as a way of amplifying marginalised voices.

So, when Gloria vents her frustration about the female condition in a powerful mid-film monologue, it feels like the bursting of a dam. “It’s so hard to be a woman!” she exclaims. “We’re always doing it wrong.” There are echoes of Laura Dern’s tirade on the image of the ‘perfect mother’ in Baumbach’s Marriage Story, a performance that garnered the actress an Oscar. “Greta called me and said: “I wrote an aria for Gloria!” When I first read it, it just hit me as truth,” Ferrera says. “That constant balancing act of expectations and contradicting roles that we try to play at all times. And it’s bubbling up in culture everywhere—this speaking out on the impossibility of the assignment of being a modern-day woman.”

For Ferrera, the opportunity to be the turning point in a dominant narrative was a dream. “It was almost too easy to connect to for me; that truth about womanhood, to deliver something so well-written and resonant. As an actor, it was a gift.”

Source: Harper’s Bazaar India

Blackbaud (NASDAQ: BLKB), the leading provider of software for powering social impact, today announced that America Ferrera will join the mainstage for a keynote conversation at bbcon 2023, Blackbaud’s annual tech conference. bbcon will be back live this year, October 22-24 in Denver, Colorado.

“We’re thrilled to be hosting bbcon in person for the first time in three years, and for our customers to have the chance to hear from America Ferrera, live on the mainstage,” said Catherine LaCour, chief marketing officer, Blackbaud. “America’s impressive career as an actress and producer has been amplified by her important work advocating for social justice and equality. We know her insights will inspire our audience as they spend three days focused on fueling their own social impact.”

From her standout turn in this summer’s “Barbie” movie, back to her breakthrough role in “Ugly Betty,” Ferrera’s voice resonates. She has been recognized with a Screen Actors Guild Award®, an Emmy® and a Golden Globe®, and has a strong track record of using her platform to stand up to pressing issues in society. Through her work with her foundation, HARNESS, and nonprofit, Poderistas, which she co-founded alongside nine other activists and leaders, Ferrera has worked to address inequality and inspire action.

bbcon 2023 will welcome thousands of Blackbaud users and those interested in learning more about how to use Blackbaud’s software to fuel their social impact. The agenda offers three days of unmatched networking, the latest in innovation and industry trends, and inspiring keynotes. Attendees will have the opportunity to grow their skills, make connections across Blackbaud’s customer community, and hear from Blackbaud leaders on what’s ahead in innovation and AI. The conference will offer over 150 breakout sessions as well as preconference workshops for product training and for developers of all levels.

In addition to Ferrera, Chaunté Lowe, U.S. Olympian, author and survivor, will also be joining the mainstage to share her insights on perseverance and balance.

Get more information about bbcon 2023 and register here.

UPDATED Sept. 5th: The digital release date for the film has been pushed back by one week. The movie will now be available starting on Tuesday, September 12th!

Great news! Barbie will be available for digital streaming (aka VOD) starting on Tuesday, September 5th!

Source: Collider

There are now 3,700+ HD screen captures added to our photo gallery of America Ferrera from various press junket interviews held during the worldwide Barbie promotional tour. I will be adding more screencaps from these press interviews soon – stay tuned!

Note: these interviews were conducted before the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Click on the preview links below to see all the images added to America Ferrera Source!

America Ferrera participated in the joint SAG-AFTRA/WGA strike in New York City on July 19th. There are now 60+ HQ/MQ photos added to our photo gallery of America Ferrera from the picket line.

The webmiss of America Ferrera Source stands in solidarity with the union members of SAG-AFTRA during the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Click on the preview links below to see all the images added to America Ferrera Source!

There are now 600+ HQ/MQ photos added to our photo gallery of America Ferrera from the premiere and events for Barbie in Los Angeles and London. These were the last promotional events held for the film before the start of the SAG-AFTRA strike.

Click on the preview links below to see all the images added to America Ferrera Source!