Hallmark actor Zak Santiago (“Signed, Sealed, Delivered”) sat down and chatted with this journalist in West Palm Beach, Florida, during RomaDrama Live! 2022.
“It feels amazing to be here,” Santiago said. “It feels incredible, it feels like I am finally alive.”
He plays Ramon Rodriguez in the “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” series on the Hallmark Channel. “What I like most about Ramon is that he is quixotic, he is an enigma, and he changes a little bit from episode to episode and you never know what to expect from him. Ramon is unpredictable,” he said.
The fans of that show are affectionately called the POstables.
Each day, he is motivated simply by his “faith.” “As an actor, everything else comes out of that,” he said. “Primarily, I think I am an artist first so I don’t do art because I want to make money, I do art because I have to and somebody is going to come out of it. I just want to tell stories, learn, provoke, and express. I learn about myself and the world through my creations.”
The digital age
On being an artist in the digital age, he said, “I’ve seen a change. It is so different how people consume their content these days. In a lot of ways, it’s great because so many more people have a voice these days, and more people are able to tell their stories. You can make a whole movie with your phone now. The digital age gives a platform to everybody so it’s like a democracy.”
“On the flip side of that, there is too much content out there, and you have to filter down to find the good stuff,” he added.
Regarding the title of the current chapter of his life, he responded, “Tired.”
Santiago listed Daniel Day-Lewis as his dream acting partner in the entertainment business.
For young and aspiring actors, he said, “Act because you have to, not because you want to be famous and make money. Act because there is something in you and always have a way to feed yourself and look after your family. Don’t think anyone is going to come for you, there is nobody coming to rescue you or save you. Act because there is something that you need to say. You are trying to touch people.”
If he were to have any superpower, he revealed that it would be “to heal people.”
He defined the word success as “peace of mind.”
For his dedicated fans (the POstables), he concluded, “I love you all and I miss you already.”
To learn more about Zak Santiago, check out his IMDb page and follow him on Instagram.