Interview with Carlos Martínez

Mission-Net: During the first evening celebration of Mission-Net, Carlos Martinez performed “The Creation”. We sat down with Carlos after his performance to hear more about his life as a professional pantomime artist and his identity as a Christian.

How did you get into the business of mime?

Carlos Martínez: I studied to be an actor with a spoken message. I realised then that when I speak, I am limited to one, two or even three languages, but no more. And my goal was always to go to all nations. But how could I go to all nations with only one or two languages? So when I discovered the power of pantomime, I realised that I can be an actor who speaks all the languages of the world.

Mission-Net: On the first evening of Mission-Net, you performed “The Creation”. Can you share a bit about how you came up with the idea of “The Creation”.

Carlos Martínez: To perform a biblical story is nothing new. Even the old mimes put biblical stories on stage, but I was always fascinated about the Bible, especially the creation. It is the beginning of the beginning. I was in a church working with children and I asked the children to tell me one character from the Bible and I would do it in mime. One boy said, “Can you play God?” And my first reaction was: I cannot play God. But then I thought, yes, with the creation I can do it. Even before the creation is God. I have to show the creation in order to show the character of God.

Mission-Net: Can you share one story of someone’s life that has been touched by what you do?

Carlos Martínez: I remember a girl that came to one of my performances with her boyfriend, who was not a Christian. After I performed “The Creation”, her boyfriend said to her, “I want to know that God.” Now he is a Christian, they’re married and they have kids. She has told me many times that the beginning of everything for their family, for his faith, was that piece.

Mission-Net: How does your faith play a part in what you perform?

Carlos Martínez: One thing for me is my job, and another is my faith. Faith has to do with identity and mime has to do with my job. I can be Spanish, and Spanish is my identity, but my Spanish identity doesn’t change my job. My faith doesn’t change my job. I’m a mime actor. I can always put a little bit of my identity into my job, and as a Christian, I can put a little bit of my identity as a Christian into my job, but I like to separate both things.

Mission-Net: What would you tell people who might be interested in using their artistic skills in missions?

Carlos Martínez:For me it’s important to make a decision in life: What do I want to be? Do I want to be a missionary who is using arts to preach, or do I want to be an actor who is a Christian? I made the decision that I wanted to be a professional actor. I play in theatres and go to normal places to perform, but I am a Christian.

If somebody wants to preach, to be a missionary using mime, the goal is to be a good missionary, not to be the best mime artist in the world. Young people come to me and say, “My pastor said I should use art for preaching.” I say, “Well, tell the pastor you should go to a Bible school.” Or, “The pastor told me I should do more art.” So, go to theatre or art school. A pastor would not allow someone to preach if he’s not going to Bible school. Why would we allow someone to mime if he didn’t go to theatre school?

My job here is to try to give a perspective and enlarge this vision and help young people to study they’re career, their profession, their visions and then see which way they can bless the church with this. I can go to places a pastor cannot go. I can go to theatres where a pastor will not go.      
 

Watch a video with Carlos Martínez on youtube!!