Maria Camila Giraldo on working with Al Pacino in ‘The Ritual’ and their paranormal experiences on set: ‘Everyone could feel something’

It was really hard. I’m very spiritual and very sensitive energetically, and preparing for this required a lot of openness — because you have to be open for emotions and everything that happens. But it also required a lot of spiritual preparation. I remember being very grounded in my meditations and praying and protection because there was definitely something going on around. We were saying the actual prayers of the exorcisms. So yeah, I felt like there was something in the air.

I think that was the trickiest part because everything was so real. Even though it’s a story that’s far from my reality, and it’s based in the 1920s, it felt real. We were filming on this convent… it just felt very palpable. 

And for a lot of us, things were translating outside of the set. Natchez, Mississippi, where we filmed, is one of the most haunted towns in America. I remember one of the first days of rehearsal, Ashley [Greene] — one of my scene partners — asked me, ‘Are you feeling anything?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, I am.’ Everyone could feel something.

Patricia Heaton, one of the actresses, her sister is a nun. She created these protection medals for exorcisms and gave them to all of us. I believe in that a lot, so I carried it with me all the time.

Then when I’d come home, I would just ground myself in meditation and ask for protection and groundedness. Just to stay connected to something that was very important to me.

Realizing I was acting with Al Pacino. That was surreal. We were doing the table read, and he was doing his lines, and the next line was mine — but I just sat there, staring at him. I got lost in thought. I was like, ‘Oh wait, where were we?’

And spooky… so many things. Things were falling, things were disappearing. I came back to my house and the water kept turning on. I was closing it really strongly, and it kept opening. Just little things.

Very [surprised]. Sometimes I can say the names of big American stars and my parents won’t really know them. But Al Pacino? My dad loved ‘The Godfather.’ He was obsessed with that movie. So when I told him, he was like, ‘Really?!’ I think it was shocking for my family. They were happy but like, ‘Whoa — are you serious?’ I was like, ‘Yeah guys, I’ve been doing this a long time.’”

It’s two different universes. The preparation for ‘At the Sea’ felt more grounded, just connecting to the moment and to the humanness of it.

Whereas with ‘The Ritual,’ I had to learn what it was like in the 1920s, what it meant to be a nun, what it’s like to go through an exorcism. It required more research. With ‘At the Sea,’ it’s a reflection of a modern woman going through something really hard and not knowing what to do with it. I loved that.

The director and writers wanted to show the Latino side of the story. In the 1920s, there were a lot of immigrants coming from Mexico, and that was the backstory for Sister Camila. 

It gave me the background to understand that Sister Camila is escaping a terrible reality and hoping for peace, and then an exorcism comes. Her new hope becomes her worst nightmare.

That’s the magic of it, right? When an actor stands out, it’s because they bring part of their story into the character. Being Latina, and being an immigrant, really helped me ground Sister Camila. I think that’s what helped me connect with her.

It feels crazy. I grew up doing telenovelas on Caracol, RCN, and later Telemundo. Before moving to the States, I remember praying for a script that would challenge me. Now I look back and I’m like, ‘Wow, I used to pray for this.’

My fiancé told me, ‘You’ve been praying for this moment.’ And I was like, ‘I have.’ Sometimes we work so hard we forget how far we’ve come. I feel very grateful.

It’s intuition. If I feel I have something to say with a story, if it’ll make people feel something or shift their perspective, that’s what draws me in.

One of the things I loved about The Ritual was the dichotomy between mental health and spirituality. Emma, the possessed girl, is misunderstood, and I went through something similar after a concussion. No one understood what I was going through. That point of view in the script really connected with me.

Yes. Every movie or show is like a different kind of food or a different melody. Sometimes I’m in the mood for R&B, sometimes salsa, sometimes house music. Movies are like that too. They give me what I’m craving. If I need to laugh or reflect on relationships, I go to different stories depending on what I need emotionally.

Just keep going. Just know that it’s all unfolding. I still have moments where I think, ‘This is so hard,’ but then I look back and realize, ‘It’s actually happening.’ So just keep going.

I’m very interested in exploring complex female psychology. Growing up and acting in Latin America, I often played characters that helped tell a man’s story. Now I want to share the perspective of that other character — the woman who’s always been there but hasn’t had a voice.

After the concussion, I was going through crazy symptoms. I didn’t want to go the medication route. My mom is a holistic Ayurvedic doctor, so I’ve always leaned toward natural medicine. 

I found these mushrooms and adaptogens through a doctor. I felt relief for the first time in six months. That was the start. And when someone leaves a voicemail saying how much Fungiments helped them, that motivates me. We really can impact lives.

I want a TV show. Hopefully, you’ll see me soon on screens. I’d love to be in an HBO or Apple TV show. That’s where I’m aiming.