Growing A Truly Unforgettable Personal Brand With Dani Fernandez

How can you write your own brand story?

Dani Fernandez is a very outspoken figure on the internet and in entertainment and has blazed her own path to writing and acting in the often-crowded entertainment ecosystem. Fernandez is an LA-based writer and actress. She wrote in the best-selling book The Good Immigrant USA and has hosted for E! News, The CW and Disney and can be seen in animated form, playing herself, in Disney’s Ralph Breaks the Internet as well as SYFY’s “The Great Debate.” She is currently writing on a Netflix drama and has written on the upcoming HBO Max show "The Girls on the Bus,” “MORE” and sold a comedy pilot about her life in the mental healthcare system “1% Happy” to HBO Max. She hosted the first annual Critics Choice Super Awards on the CW and is currently writing a Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy love story for DC Comics.

Goldie Chan: What has your career path been?

Dani Fernandez: It’s honestly been all over the place. I was bullied heavily growing up so I didn’t think someone like me could ever be on television. I didn’t know this was an option. I used to write super angsty poems when I was younger and always wanted to be a writer but I took a lot of other jobs instead: working at a call center, being a nanny, working in catering, working at fitness clubs. I didn’t get into the broadcast journalism program I applied for at The University of Texas so I decided to make money in fitness instead and graduated with a Kinesiology degree from there. I worked in Cardiac Rehab before ever pursing entertainment. But I was very unhappy. It just wasn’t for me. And I took a leap and moved to Los Angeles to pursue TV writing and comedy. I got my first job working the door at the Ice House Comedy Club. I found the listing on Craigslist and drove to Pasadena to hand-deliver my resume because I wanted it that badly. Just to be around other comedy people. They told me 200+ people applied. Out here, everyone wants to be involved in entertainment any way they can. I actually gave them a top ten list of reasons they should hire me. And they did.

Chan: What has been your favorite project that you’ve worked on?

Fernandez: Getting to play myself in Ralph Breaks the Internet was a whirlwind. I remember I got a call from my agent at the time and he said “I think Disney wants you to host something for them.” At this point I had developed a bit of a following and hosted shows, panels, and red carpet events for multiple places so I didn’t think too much of it. But they wanted me to play myself, as a host. They were going to animate me into the movie.

They used a lot of real life people from the internet and got our mannerisms and look down perfectly. That year I got to host their New York Comic Con panel for a thousand people. It was a blast. I did such a great job that Disney kept using me to host and moderate for other events. I got to watch them score the music for the film as well. I remember the premiere night, Disney sent me a car to pick me up, and there was a fan section right when you pulled up to the premiere. I told them I wanted to skip it. Because I wasn’t as famous as Sarah Silverman or John C. Reilly. I had some fans but I wasn’t super well known. Surely no one would really know who I was. So I am sneaking around the fan section to get in and I hear all these people shout “Dani! Dani! Don’t forget about us Dani!” I was so overwhelmed by so many fans that there is video of me grinning ear to ear, completely on cloud nine, signing autographs. I was so caught off guard I forgot how to sign my name! It was one of the best nights of my life.

Chan: What is an inspiring story that has resonated with you?

Fernandez: Issa Rae’s story will always inspire me. She really changed the game for so many of us. When you are coming up, and trying to break in, most studios and networks will try to replace you with a bigger name. They tried to do that to her. She said no. I have said no. So many places are unwilling to take a chance on new talent. And honestly, a lot of us aren’t new.

We have been grinding and perfecting our craft for years. We just aren’t famous yet. But most places are rushing to be second. They want to be the second person to take a chance on you. They want someone else to take a chance on you first and then once you are a big deal, they will say they were always a fan. They always knew you would make it. I have not gotten to have my big breakthrough moment yet where I get to show the world my full range. I am adamant that one day, I will be that bigger name. And when I am, I will continue to look out for new talent. Period. I do not think I could have sold my show about my life, starring myself, if it weren’t for her. Even though that project is not going through. I got super close. And I continue to push on. I have to.

Chan: How would you describe your personal brand?

Fernandez: What you see is what you get. I think of myself as real, authentic, kind, silly, sexy, and messy. Growing up my family had a lot of secrets. I hate secrets, they are too exhausting to hold on to. I talk about mental health a lot and the work I have had to do in order to be positive, and have hope. The resiliency it takes to survive out here. It’s been the work of a lifetime.

Hope is a skill and it’s the hardest thing I have ever done in my life. I also am super fiery. When I’m passionate about something, mainly issues in our community, I can definitely have a fiery demeanor and have dealt with massive fall out for speaking up. Especially during Me Too. Or talking about racism in Hollywood. I notice certain showrunners or directors unfollow me. But not speaking up is not an option for me. But I am also a person. I have bad days. Sometimes I can be messy. And I definitely love being sexy. It’s taking me years and years of therapy to heal the horrible things said about my body. Which people still say online but I ignore now. I realized at some point I’m not getting any younger and I started to post amazing photoshoots of myself and my sexuality. That is freeing to me. I hope I inspire people to be free and love themselves. Even if it takes constant practice and work.

Chan: What are you currently working on?

Fernandez: I am currently writing a Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy story for DC Comics for their Pride issue. I am so honored to get to write these two queer icons. They are by far, some of my absolute favorite characters in comics. I have been going to Comic Con since I was a child. I have been in this community my entire life. And now I get to create for a living. My little self would be in awe.

Chan: What is a dream project you’d love to work on or a collaborator that you’d love to partner with?

Fernandez: My dream project would be to act in something that shows my full range as an actress. A lot of what I have done so far is small roles in comedy. But I have so much heart and vulnerability. I think anyone who has overcome the sheer amount of trauma I have, probably does. But I have worked on my craft for years and years and have not gotten an opportunity to show it yet. Everyone jokes that it takes ten years to be an overnight success. I am definitely ready for my time. And I hope when people see me on their screens they feel radiant and seen. You know those actors who, when they are on your screen they just make you feel good? That’s what I want to be.

Chan: What do you think about mental health in the context of the parasocial relationships that you can develop as a public figure?

Fernandez: I don’t care how long you have been following someone, you truly do not know their life, what they may be going through, or the trauma they have survived. Despite me repeatedly, and very publicly and openly, talking about surviving my suicide attempts, people see me on the red carpet and think I have it easy. That it must be so nice! Her life is so easy. I didn’t start up here. I started from rock bottom. Healing myself will take a lifetime. Red carpets can’t undo severe trauma. They just can’t.

Chan: What do you do to uplift others in your community?

Fernandez: I love being a mentor. I am currently the mentor of some young women that I met through the Latina WGA group. I love that I have reached a level where I can help others break in. That I have enough knowledge to pass on to others. I also try to volunteer and donate as often as possible because I know what it feels like to feel that you need a miracle. I remember being so broke, I call it scarily broke, where you can’t even feed yourself or afford the medicine you need. I had to do a medical fundraiser years ago to even pay for myself. And I just needed a miracle out here. I needed someone to believe in me. Other people were my miracle. And now that I am more successful and established, I love being a miracle for others.

Chan: Any last branding or career advice for this year?

Fernandez: This sounds cliché but I truly think one of the best ways to succeed is to be so authentically yourself. No one else has your exact story. How can you put that into your work? And for the love of god be kind and look out for each other. My friends and I were poor in the trenches together for years. But every year we rose and rose. We recommended each other for jobs, we filmed things together. You don’t need to be friends with huge directors at the top. That’s just not realistic to me. You and your friends can eventually get to the top if you look out for each other. There is strength in numbers.