I immediately know Selena Depaz is not a name dropper. She’s unbelievably upbeat and outgoing, but I know that underneath her floral exterior lies a rolodex of famous people she has met. It all begins humbly with a kid who had a knack for storytelling. “I would tell my parents stories for, like, five hours on end,” She tells me with a laugh. Then a few years later, she was chosen for head anchor of her school’s ten minute daily news show. “After that, I was like ‘Ok, I love every aspect of this.’” And now, fast forward to today, where her stories are no longer bound to an elementary audience and her reach extends far past her parents. Thanks to the organization Texas Student TV, Selena Depaz has had the chance to meet and interview various celebrities on the red carpets in Austin. “As I grew older, I really grew intrigued by people’s stories,” and those people now go by the names of Rose Burn, Robert Duval, Nick Kroll and Keanu Reeves. Up until this point, Selena has been shy of naming any names, but for this, I had to ask for clarification.
“Keanu Reeves?!”
She smiles, “He was such an actor, you know? I was like ‘I’m glad you’re acting because I can’t imagine you doing anything else”
I smile, partly because she is so right, Keanu Reeves is such an actor, but also because I can’t imagine her doing anything else besides broadcast journalism. She’s personable and has an enthusiastic energy that most interviewers have to force.
“It’s a lot of running around with a tripod,” she tells me as she remembers her time at South by SouthWest, completely unfazed when telling me she got very little sleep throughout the week. “But it is such an adrenaline rush.”
It was obvious during the time that we talked that Selena uses her unique position and considerable resume to defend the primary goal of journalism; to provide others with different perspectives. She likes to interview the film directors rather than the actors because, at it’s core, the film is “the director’s baby.” She tells me that she has seen celebrities be more nervous about an interview than she is, and she can provide humble insights on the faults of her industry.
“I know this is, like, on every People magazine issue, but celebrities really are just people…
So I wonder, how would I feel if my entire life story was on display for the world to see?”
She has just applied to be a part of the media team at the Make A Wish foundation, where she hopes to accomplish what she said was her biggest goal in life. “I just want to spread joy and make a difference,” she says with a disclaimer that it sounds “so cheesy,” but I think it’s fitting. Along with journalism and reporting and talking to celebrities, she’s a natural at joy. You can just tell.