Where We Land

Carlos Meléndez is a writer/director of film and television specializing in the horror, thriller and fantasy genres ( learn about his projects here ). Born in Mexico City, Carlos sneakily made his way to Film School in LA at 18. But after finishing his studies he didn’t feel quite prepared to take on Hollywood just yet. After twenty years of painstaking work and success in Mexico, Carlos returned...

In this episode we talk about making friends in a new country. Specifically, making immigrant friends when you yourself have also immigrated abroad. We discuss how it’s easy to relate to someone who, like you, isn’t from here. We also talk about the additional ease of making friends with someone who moved here from the same country you did, and the difficulties of connecting with fellow immigrants...

Miguel Angel Hito works in marketing at Google, but when he was 26 Miguel had yet to fulfill his dream of going to college. Born in Peru, his first experience abroad was right out of high school living in Japan. After four languages, countless jobs and a move to Miami, Miguel finally made it to community college. There was still a way to go for him to feel ‘caught up’ to his peers, but he was on h...

The Summer I Turned Pretty quickly became Luciana’s favorite show, so we had to find a way to talk about it on the pod. We explore the ups and downs of Belly’s experience living abroad in Paris, and the multicultural moments depicted in the show. And of course, we dive into what we loved so much about the show. WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to share your immigration stories or have a question?...

Zosia Garcia is a movie and TV producer based in LA. Originally from Puebla, Mexico, Zosia left her home town right out of college to pursue an acting career in LA. She quickly pivoted to producing and has been climbing the industry ladder ever since. Zosia shares her ambitions of winning an Oscar, what it’s like to constantly travel for work, and what producers actually do in Hollywood.  We also...

If you’ve ever spent time abroad, you might have noticed people eat different foods, have meals at times you’re not used to, or have a different idea of what constitutes an every-day meal. We’ve definitely noticed differences with how Peruvians and Americans each relate to food and we share them on this episode.  We also get into the culture clash of purses you can’t fully close, and Luciana’s cur...

Lina Salazar is based in D.C. and works in food security, a career she found her way into after working towards recovery from an eating disorder. Food, it seems, has been central to Lina’s life since she was a teenager (when her disordered eating started), eventually contributing to her wanting to leave her hometown of Bogota, Colombia in her twenties. From there, Lina’s life abroad began, but the...

If you were born outside the US like us, you’ve probably loved an artist that was huge in your region but completely unknown in other parts of the world. Or maybe there are certain US artists you’ve loved while living here and when you traveled abroad, discovered nobody knew them. So, why are some singers global sensations while others can’t seem to ‘cross over’? We talk all about this and share o...

Miguel Sagaz is an actor, host, journalist and client partner in the entertainment industry. Based in LA but originally from Mexico City, Miguel moved to the US to try to make it in Hollywood. When his first attempt didn't work, he moved back to Mexico, gained more experience, and tried again. This time, he found the success he was looking for.  WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to share your immi...

The movie Sinners (2025) is layered with metaphors and symbolism that you can apply to a lot of different real world issues: racism, cultural appropriation, freedom, identity, systemic oppression, art vs commerce, etc. In this episode we bring our immigrant and multicultural lens to this film. WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to share your immigration stories or have a question? We'd love to hear...

Johanna Arenaza is a psychologist based in Washington D.C. Born in Bilbao, Spain, Johanna left her home country at 18 to study at the prestigious School of American Ballet in New York City without knowing much, if any, English. In a few years Johanna went from a full-time ballerina who didn’t speak English, to a psychology student who would go on to get a PhD. WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to...

If you’re a single, childfree woman visiting your conservative hometown, there are certain questions you tend to get asked: Why are you still single? Don’t you want to get married? How are you going to have kids? In this episode we dive into those awkward moments and how we navigate them.  We also talk about the culture clash of restaurant reservations and Luciana’s birthday celebrations! WATCH on...

Mariana V í lchez is an actress from Peru who spent 12 years living in Los Angeles and working in Hollywood before she had to move back to Peru when her talent visa didn’t get renewed. Mariana shares how the lessons in resilience and adaptability that she learned working as an actress eventually prepared her for the unexpected life changing event of having to move ‘back home’ to a place that hadn’...

As two people that have moved around quite a bit, it’s safe to say we’ve felt homesick more than once. So on today’s episode we share our experiences with homesickness and the coping mechanisms we’ve used. We also try –unsuccessfully– to figure out what the deal is with Christmas cards in the U.S. (what do they mean?? We still don’t know!) And one of us makes a strong case for why we should all be...

Andrea Moncada is a political analyst based in Oxford . She was born in Peru , but by 7 had already lived in three different countries. Andrea says she knew even as a child that her life would take place abroad . Now in her 30’s and expecting her first child , she feels very strongly about passing down her Peruvian heritage. In our conversation she details how her time in the U.S. as a young girl...

This week we talk about how immigrating often means starting your career all over again or at least having to endure a setback (unless you happened to immigrate for a promotion, of course). Navigating the practical and emotional aspects of what you hope is a short term risk for a long term reward is challenging. We share our experiences and the conversations we’ve had with countless friends who ha...

Fareeha Khan is a comedian and artist born in Pakistan who moved to the U.S. as a child. We spoke with Fareeha about the ‘family lore’ immigrant kids cobble together to fill in the blanks in their lives, not remembering stressful parts of your childhood, and mustering the courage to become an artist. We also talked about harsh immigrant parents and being a comedian. Fareeha is based in Brooklyn an...

In this episode we talk about the concept of ‘home’ and how it can take new shapes over time. Can you have more than one home at a time? Is home necessarily a place? We also share the different things that have represented ‘home’ for us over our lives (and multiple moves).  Additionally, we talk about the culture shock of U.S. credit scores and A/C, as well as our current faves: Alex Cooper on Arm...

Alex Liu, also known as the rapper LEX the Lexicon Artist grew up in Taiwan, but moved to the U.S. for college and has been here ever since. We spoke with Alex about how their multi-cultural background makes its way into their music, trying to please your parents vs living life on your own terms, and how acting helped them pursue their childhood dream of becoming a rapper. Alex's new album Toxpsyc...

In this episode we talk about the daunting task of raising multicultural children, how hard it feels to try to keep your cultural background alive for your kids when you’re living in a different country, and how much to push them towards it (or not). We also share our own experiences being raised as multicultural kids ourselves.  Additionally, we talk about the culture shock of school uniforms and...

Noemí Enchautegui de Jesús is a Senior Professorial Lecturer in the Department of Psychology at American University in Washington DC. She has a PhD in Community Psychology from NYU, and she’s developed and taught a course on the Psychology of Immigration. Though she was born in New York, Noemi was raised in Puerto Rico.  We spoke with Noemi about the difficult situations unaccompanied migrant chil...

In this episode we discuss the movie Past Lives (2023) and break down all the immigrant aspects of the film, as well as share how we related to its representation of the immigrant experience. We also talk about the two love stories portrayed in the movie that highlight the question: what if? WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to share your immigration stories or have a question? We'd love to hear f...

Gilbert Lawand is a stand up comedian and comedy producer from Atlanta, Georgia. Gilbert was born in Iraq and grew up in the American South, which he says gave him plenty of material for his career as a comic. We spoke with Gilbert about what it was like going to a YMCA that was still segregated, what prompted his pivot from accounting to comedy, plus, a wild encounter he had with the KKK when he...

In this episode we discuss being bilingual: how it used to be viewed as something that could set kids back, why it’s viewed more positively now, and our own personal experiences with speaking two languages. We also talk about the Disney+ hit Andor, going to the theater, smoothies and voltage converters. WATCH on YouTube! REACH OUT: Want to share your immigration stories or have a question? We'd lo...

In this special episode we’re bringing you our conversation with Shawna Wells. She’s the host of the podcast Legacy, Lyrics, and Life, and she is also the founder of Seven Gen Legacy, where she coaches leaders on how to align their work with their personal goals. She helps people navigate their legacy by understanding the lessons and gifts passed down through generations, and identifying the gifts...