A funny opportunity

In “Chasing Papi,” Fox 2000 Pictures’ screwball comedy aimed at the ever-widening mainstream Latin audience, Sofia Vergara plays the un-benign and undiplomatic Cici, a Miami waitress besotted with Tomas Fuentes, a.k.a. Papi Chulo (Eduardo Verastegui).

Already a huge star in the Latin market, Vergara -- who moved from her native Colombia to Miami at 22 --has made her career as a TV host, a role she now performs on an ad hoc basis for Univision. She has graced more than 100 international magazine covers, is seen in over 80 countries and hopes to make a similar splash in Hollywood.

Your comic timing is striking. Have you studied comedy?

No, this is my first attempt. I did one movie before, “Big Trouble,” with Tim Allen and Rene Russo, but it was a small part. I did the casting [call] for “Chasing Papi” and surprised myself and got it. In the beginning I’d think, “Oh, no what am I going to do?” And I discovered if I stand up like this, if I chew like this, if I move my head like this, it makes it funny. No preparation. I’ve never taken an acting class in my life. Basically, I’m just going by ear and feeling my way.

Your character, Cici, is a woman quite over the top. Is she at all like you?

I can look in the mirror, sometimes, and see her, but she’s 10,000 times bigger. I’m crazy, but I’m not that crazy! You have to look like a caricature in this sort of film, so there’s the big hair and makeup. And I have a thick accent, but I made it even worse in the movie. It sounds so much more funny if I say it really bad. But then, she’s also a sexy Latin woman who has no fear -- she’s proud of what she is.

You were a presenter at the 1999 American Comedy Awards on the Fox network. That short spot was a good career move, wasn’t it?

That was my first American TV appearance, and you might think these things can’t make any difference because you’re on the air like for 20 seconds. But for me it was great. Barry Sonnenfeld [producer-director of “Big Trouble”] saw me and thought I’d be perfect for the role of Nina. I was found and asked if I wanted to do the part. I said, “How much do I have to pay you? Are you kidding me?” I had really only been on Hispanic television and never dreamed of acting.

So acting wasn’t part of the career plan?

No, no, no. This is a whole new door and a whole new thing for me. I’m a TV host, not an actress. I’m learning and I’m enjoying it, and I’m having fun. I know I can’t do a “Schindler’s List” -- and of course I don’t dream about such a thing. But I can keep working and making comedies until I grow myself. I think God sends you the opportunities to try, and you have to take advantage of it. And if it doesn’t happen for me, it’s OK. I know I still have my Latin gig.

What do you tell people about your homeland?

I swear it’s one of the most beautiful countries in the world. Because you have everything. You don’t have seasons, but all year round you have mountains with snow, you have beaches with sun. Whatever you want, you can find it in Colombia. But we have so many poor people because we haven’t been able to explore the tourist side, like Mexico, because of the violence.

My older brother was assassinated six years ago, so I had to bring my [immediate] family to Miami. But the rest of my family lives there, and the funny thing is that people live normal lives too. They drive their kids to school, they work. It’s not all bad. It’s like everything. Si, it’s truly a tragedy and such a shame. It’s a gorgeous country.

-- Janet Kinosian