“My big break was becoming the spokesperson for Texas Instruments. Casting directors really started giving me a chance to read for projects.”

My dad would call me his Cuban princess because I had really dark olive skin because I was always in the sun; but I don’t really go in the sun anymore, so that is why I am so white.

To me, being Latin is about more than your looks – it’s how you’re brought up.

I like clean-cut, very proper, very elegant looks.

My family was absolutely supportive. I did have a fear of cold reads because of my dyslexia, but my family’s support and reading classes really helped me overcome my fear!

I don’t think people realize how much work it takes to make an album.

I always finish off my look with a spritz of Vera Wang Pink Princess.

I like “As Long As You Love Me” and “Boyfriend” by Justin Bieber. It gets you moving – you just can’t help it! And “Teach Me How to Dougie” gets Zendaya and I every time.

Partying at a club is very different than when I’m throwing a party at my house. My party’s a rage. People rage when they come to my house.

Start going to bed earlier! It is a tough adjustment when you have had a summer of staying up late and waking up late.

Music is a big part of my life. I listen to different genres, and I choose the music that will inspire the next part of my story.

I’m always on Instagram! I’m like an Instagram stalker.

My makeup artist, Tonya Brewer, taught me the importance of moisturizing daily. Hydration is a must if you want pretty, dewy skin – which I love.

I’m a relationship girl, I like relationships, so I just miss being in one and chilling. And not dating.

Maria Canals-Barrera is Cuban and from Miami and I’m part Cuban and from Miami, so needless to say she became a quick friend.

I personally don’t think you can love two things like dancing and singing the same exact amount. There is always one that you like more, and that is most likely the one that you’re better at, because you try harder in it.

I love Michael Kors! I also love Miu Miu shoes – they’re fabulous, I have so many pairs.

There are so many elements that make a good film. You need a great director who’s driving it.

What’s interesting, is that I’ve found that the more accomplished a director is, the more secure they are in giving direction that sounds incredibly unsophisticated.

Obviously there was Keith Haring and Robert Mapplethorpe, but Howard was on the brink of becoming a famous director – it didn’t happen because he died.

I would love to get great performances from actors as a director, because that’s what I’m always looking for, a director that’s going to help me go places I’ve never been before.

Directors, producers can make you look good or make you look bad.

My father was a film-maker. He always said he wanted to go like Humphrey Jennings, the legendary director who stepped backwards over a cliff while framing a better shot.

You realize as a director that when you are cutting a film, you want to have alternatives. You need color and choices. You don’t want four takes that are identical.

In the normal life of an actor or director, running around, there’s not much time to go to church. But there’s other ways to be spiritual, too.