Gal on the Prowl - the one with Lex Luthor’s Favorite Henchwoman

hungrycatmedia
Sep 26
3 min read

Let’s rewind a couple weeks. I was at Podcast Movement, soaking up all the industry insights, networking like crazy, and feeling like I was finally piecing things together. But plot twist: I came home more confused than ever about where podcasting is headed. (Maybe confusion is just part of the creative process?) I mean, niche down, go broad, add more cat stuff, add less cat stuff...bonus, I discovered Patreon which could be a cool way to have a more of a community vibe and one on one time with extra special behind-the-scenes content. Not sure yet. Waiting to make it live.

DO let me know if you enjoy the podcast episodes and newsletter. Hit reply and say you LOVE it or it's Meh...I can take it because I send this out and it's crickets, which is fine, but I'm like 8 episodes in, I need to know what you think!

Ok, enough vulnerability, let's meet our special guest. This month's FURRocious feline is next-level fabulous. You are going to LOVE her panache and all the things! Giovannie Cruz has one of those stories that makes you sit up straighter and think, “Yes, this is why we love the movies.” Born in Germany to Puerto Rican parents, raised in Texas, and trained in opera at UNT (Go Mean Green! Cah-kah - a fellow alumni), Giovannie has built a career that spans opera stages, anime voice booths, blockbuster sets, and indie films alike.

You’ve seen her in The Suicide Squad (James Gunn), Reminiscence (with Hugh Jackman), and the Marvel universe with Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 and the Holiday Special. She’s also brought her talent to TV hits like Queen of the South and NCIS: New Orleans. You can see her in Superman 2025, and she's just getting started. She's joined forces with other feline filmmakers and successfully crowdfunded a feature film that's in pre-production, Lady Kings!

What makes Gio truly CLAWsome is that she’s as passionate about mentoring actors in Texas as she is about starring on the big screen.

I'm so excited to share this episode as we talk about her journey, why Texas can and should be a creative hub, and how she keeps grounded while living such a multi-faceted career.

Watch the Podcast

You can also learn more about Gio in the 'D Magazine' that just dropped about this FURRocious feline making waves and shaking things up in the film industry.

To recap this last month I would be remiss not to mention that, the very next day after the conference, exhaustion hit me like a cat nap gone sideways. I thought, “Makes sense, I’ve been running hard.” But by the following day...BAM! Cold, flu, bronchitis, laryngitis? Seriously, you can look at my search history and see the progression over the following days. Totally confused, I thought, the only time I've ever felt this badly was, shit, is Covid even still a thing? Yup, I got the upgraded 2025 version of Covid, razorblade throat and all.

But there's a twist, either a symptom or I magically simultaneously got Laryngitis. For the first time ever, I completely lost my voice. Of course, my brain jumped into full-on drama mode: What if I never speak again? Do I feed all my old podcasts into AI and let a robot version of myself narrate my texts? Creepy, genius, and possibly identity theft-y if this got into the wrong hands, so I passed on that idea and was silent. Which if you know me, you would have had to see it to believe it! LOL.

Thankfully, I recovered (slowly and with lots of sleep and a special diet, y'all, I was voiceless for 14 days!). Let’s just say Amazon Prime and my cozy little apartment were the true MVPs of my quarantine. And of course my cat Bungie.

Gal on the Prowl