Millions expected to see Carlos Alfredo Jr.
Vacaville actor in ' Selena: The Series'
There was no red carpet, no star- studded, glitzy opening. And the only bright lights were from the kitchen.
Exactly how Carlos Alfredo Jr. wanted it.
The 32- year- old actor celebrated the unveiling of the eagerly- waited Netflix production, “Selena: The Series” last Friday night right where he wanted to: With his family at home in Vacaville.
“I haven’t seen my family in seven months,” Alfredo said. “And they’re the reason I was able to do what did.”
Though humbly acknowledging “it’s not a big role, I am a series regular. I consider my character comic relief,” Alfredo said his hard work paid off.
However, he warned, don’t expect the actor- musician-artist until the fourth episode.
“My mom said, ‘ Let’s watch it from episode four,’” Alfredo said. “I do love the way I’m introduced.”
It’s been a year since the Will C. Wood High School graduate combined his acting and musical talents in snagging the role of Joe Ojeda, the keyboardist in Selena’s band, “Selena y Los Dinos.”
With his mom from Jalisco — Tacos Jalisco is the family restaurant — “I was excited to be around my people” with both seasons of “Selena: The Series” filmed in Mexico, said Alfredo.
“So much incredible Latin talent behind and in front of the camera,” Alfredo said, laughing that “they had given me this haircut I hadn’t had since I was in kindergarten.”
Alfredo is a trained guitarist, so he took piano lessons for four months “before I set foot on the set. I wanted to give as much authenticity as possible. I had to do my homework.”
Raised with two sisters and around the family restaurant’s jukebox, Alfredo was well aware of Selena’s impact, even if he was 7 when the 23- year- old Selena Quintanilla was shot and killed March 31, 1995.
“Selena had always been part of my musical growth,” Alfredo said. “Fast forward and here I am in on this incredible set in Mexico for ‘ Selena: The Series.’ It’s the perfect fairy tale.”
Perfect until the pandemic put the world on hold.
“We had shot all the way up to March and then COVID hit,” said Alfredo.
Filming was shelved until August, with season two completed last month.
When filming returned, “everything was so strict,” recalled Alfredo, relegated to spending most of the time off the set at his assigned condo for four months.
“We were getting COVID tests every other day,” he said. “All these strict protocols.”
Alfredo said 10 people in the crew — nobody from the main cast — contracted the virus.
“They would have to close the set a few days,” Alfredo said.
It was December, 2018, when Alfredo learned about the “Selena” project. He was already anchored in Los Angeles three years and the clock was ticking — at least when it came to his parents’ financial support.
“I had just graduated from animation school with a degree under my belt. That’s why got into acting into first place. I decided to move to Los Angeles without my parents’ blessing,” Alfredo said. “My mom said, ‘ By the time you’re 30, if this isn’t working out, we can’t help you any more.”
Yes, said Alfredo, “seeing all my friends from high school getting married, buying cars, buying houses, having kids … people were telling me to come home. I would play on the streets for money, living that Bohemian lifestyle. I was happy.”
The path would soon change.
Having been “a huge Selena fan,” Alfredo practically drooled at the chance to be in what Netflix expects to be the most- viewed series in its history.
“I begged my manager to get me in the room ( for an audition) at any cost,” Alfredo said. “I became so desperate, I sent a message to one of the casting directors of a video of me performing Selena songs on guitar.”
Alfredo learned the lines “forward and backward. I was super- prepared. I went in, did my thing, and felt ecstatic. I left the place floating.”
Still, a month goes by. Nothing.
“I’m wondering if someone else got the part or they’re still casting,” Alfredo said. Meanwhile, his sister’s December, 2019 wedding grew closer. And he was supposed to play.
With a guitar decorated with photos of his sister and pending brother- in- law, Alfredo makes the drive from L. A. to Vacaville.
It’s rehearsal dinner week. His manager called. They want another look at Alfredo. He hops in the truck and returns to L. A.
The producers wanted to hear him for 30 seconds. Instead, he does a 15- minute Carlos Santana medley. Back in his his truck and off to Vacaville for the wedding.
A week goes by. Maybe two. He’s called back again. Then another month goes by.
“I’m thinking I didn’t get it,” Alfredo said. “At least I did my best.”
It was back washing dishes at a Japanese restaurant.
“During my break I notice I have 25 missed calls from my manager,” Alfredo said. “I’m thinking this is really good news or this is bad news. The first thing she says is, ‘ Hey Joe, how’s it going.’”
“Joe” as in Selena’s keyboardist, Joe Ojeda. Alfredo got the job.
“I knew I had the role and my life would completely change. It was an incredible moment,” Alfredo said. “Dreams do come true.”
As Alfredo gains more national — and with “Selena,” it’s definitely international — exposure, he’ll hit more auditions. Meantime, he’s hoping to record an album.
“I want to take my music to the world. I think it’s possible now with the success of ‘ Selena,’” Alfredo said.
Music was his first love, having picked up a guitar at 10.
“My mom forced me to play at church and I hated it,” Alfredo said. “But in high school, I discovered heavy metal. I was short and scrawny and had acne and with heavy metal I felt like I was part of a community.”
Alfredo gradually matured into learning “all kinds of Latin music,” but while his dreams were to be a professional musician, his parents weren’t as thrilled.
“They said, ‘ That’s not a career. You have to go to college’ so I decided to be an animator,” Alfredo said.
What college didn’t teach him was the art of being the subject of media interviews. Alfredo handled 15 recently in one day in promoting “Selena.”
“I’ve learned that I hate talking,” he said. “I’ve always been shy; a reserved kid growing up. I always hid behind an instrument.”
Alfredo ponders a childhood at Fairmont Elementary, Vaca Pena Middle School and Wood High.
“I come back every six months and once in a while I’ll run into someone from high school. It’s weird. It seems like a lifetime ago,” Alfredo said.
“It’s funny. My favorite meal all- time is rice with two over- easy eggs. I can eat it for breakfast, dinner, any time. She always has it for me.”
If someone else cooks it? “I can tell, no doubt,” Alfredo said.