San Antonio native Paulina Reyes grew up watching *Hannah Montana* and *High School Musical* on repeat, dreaming of one day performing in a movie musical. Years later, that childhood dream became a reality when she was cast as Sofia in *Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical*.
The actress, singer, and dancer recently returned to San Antonio with the film as part of the Love Your Neighbor Tour. Sharing the project with family, friends, mentors, and the community that supported her from the beginning made the homecoming especially meaningful.
“San Antonio is where all of this started,” Reyes said. “Getting to come home with a movie I’m so proud of feels very full-circle.”
Reyes was born and raised in San Antonio in a close Mexican-American family. Her mother is from Monterrey, her father grew up in Matamoros, and all of her grandparents are from Mexico.
She grew up speaking English and Spanish while listening to norteñas, cumbias, and Spanish pop. Music filled family parties, car rides, and evenings spent with relatives. Her grandfather played guitar, her uncle performed songs, and nearly every family celebration included dancing late into the night.
Those experiences helped shape Reyes as both a person and a performer. She began training and performing in San Antonio, gaining experience in theatre, film, and commercials. At 18, she left home for New York City to pursue a BFA in Musical Theatre at Marymount Manhattan College.
The move was exciting, but it was also one of the most difficult transitions of her life.
“I’m incredibly family-oriented,” she said. “I wish I could go back and tell freshman-year Paulina that she’s going to be okay, she’s going to find her people and everything is going to work itself out.”
Image by Michael Hull
New York gave Reyes room to continue developing as an actress while learning to create and produce her own work. Still, she credits San Antonio with giving her the first opportunities that helped launch her career.
“No matter where my career takes me, I think I’ll always carry that with me,” she said.
In *Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical*, Reyes plays Sofia, a 17-year-old who is the only U.S. citizen in her immediate family. Sofia’s parents immigrated to the United States while her mother was pregnant with her, leaving the teenager to navigate life between her family’s Mexican culture and the American world around her.
Reyes understood many of those feelings firsthand.
“I grew up in San Antonio in a Mexican household, but I was born and raised in the U.S.,” she said. “I understand that feeling of moving between two cultures.”
Although she connected with Sofia, Reyes did not want to assume their experiences were identical. While preparing for the role, she spoke with her mother, aunt, and other relatives about coming to the United States at different ages and times.
Those conversations helped her understand Sofia and her family more deeply.
“More than anything, I wanted to make her feel like a real 17-year-old girl and portray her and her family as authentically as I could,” Reyes said.
Playing Sofia also reinforced the importance of creating more opportunities for Latinas with different appearances, backgrounds, and experiences. Growing up, Reyes often saw a limited image of what a Latina was expected to look like on screen.
“There isn’t one way to look Latina,” she said. “We all look different, and we come from different backgrounds.”
She hopes to see more Latinas cast as romantic leads, the girl next door, and characters whose stories are not centered entirely on their ethnicity.
“She can be anything,” Reyes said. “I want to tell stories that are honest and make people feel something while also showing how different all of our experiences can be.”
Reyes hopes young Latinas watching *Brotherhood* recognize themselves in the film and feel encouraged to pursue their own dreams.
“I would have loved to see a Latina princess or a Latina leading a movie musical who looked like me,” she said. “I hope there’s another little Latina girl who watches *Brotherhood*, sees herself somewhere in it and thinks, ‘Maybe I can do this too.’”
Her celebration of Latino culture also extends to *Canciones del Corazón*, a cabaret series she created and produced in New York City. Inspired by the Latin pop and traditional music that filled her childhood, the series allows Reyes to bring part of her family and San Antonio upbringing to a New York stage.
“I get to take music that reminds me of my parents, my grandparents, family parties, car rides, and growing up in San Antonio and put it on a New York stage,” she said.
One of the series’ biggest milestones was its first sold-out performance at 54 Below. Reyes remembers learning that the room was so full there was barely space for the performers to stand in their usual waiting area. Hearing the audience sing along made the experience even more special.
“I created this idea because I loved this music so much, and suddenly there was an entire room of people there experiencing it with us,” she said.
In addition to performing, Reyes coaches children, teens, and adults through Nova Arts Acting Studio in San Antonio. She helps actors prepare for auditions and self-tapes while encouraging them to recognize what makes them unique.
“I love getting to work with other actors and help them find their confidence, make choices, and see what makes them special,” she said.
Reyes understands how much it can mean when someone believes in a young performer. She credits *Brotherhood* director Ross Boothe with trusting her to bring Sofia to life and giving her an opportunity she had dreamed about since childhood. As her career continues, she hopes to create similar opportunities for others through her performances, original projects, and coaching.
Brotherhood: A Cinematic Musical Image by Craftsman Films
At 21, Reyes is still discovering what the next chapter of her career will look like. Her journey has included unexpected opportunities, rejection, and moments when her path looked different from what she originally planned.
She did not attend the high school or college she once considered her “dream” schools. While those disappointments felt significant at the time, she now believes they helped guide her toward where she was meant to be.
“A ‘no’ doesn’t necessarily mean something went wrong,” she said. “Sometimes your path just looks different from the one you originally imagined.”
Her experience filming *Brotherhood* strengthened that belief. At the beginning of the year, she had no idea she would temporarily leave school to work on a movie. Within months, she was stepping into a trailer, going through hair and makeup, and living a dream she had carried since she was four years old.
The accomplishment holds even greater meaning because Reyes’ mother once dreamed of performing but never had the chance to pursue it.
“I’m incredibly proud that I get to do this not only for myself, but for my family too,” Reyes said.
Through her performances, creative projects, and support of other actors, Reyes is building a legacy that reflects her family, culture, and San Antonio beginnings. As she continues moving forward, she remains grateful to the community that believed in her before the larger opportunities arrived.
“This really is for them too,” she said.
Follow Paulina Reyes on Instagram or visit paulinareyesofficial.com to learn more about her work and upcoming projects.
