Editor’s note: Senior Paola Andino is an actress who stars on Nickelodeon and is looking to further her career in the acting field after high school. She was recently nominated for the J-14 Magazine’s Teen Icon 2015 Award for TV actress. The winner will be announced in the January issue of J-14.

Q: Were you excited when you found out you were being nominated for the J-14 Magazine 2015 Teen Icon award?

A: “Yes! I was really excited to find out that I was nominated for the J-14 Teen Icon Award. I’d never been nominated before, and I didn’t even know about it. I saw that my fans were tweeting about it and I was like ‘What is this?’ So I checked it out and I saw; it was so cool!”

Q: How has your life changed since you started acting on ‘Every Witch Way?’

A: “Thankfully nothing has been like too drastic. I feel like acting is such a normal part of my life. It’s my job and something that I really love doing. I guess I would say that I’m more under the public eye, so I’m definitely a bit more aware of that. I try to use my stance, in a way, to be able to spread positive messages.”

Q: What was the first thing that made you know you really liked acting and wanted to pursue it?

A: “I think once I started taking my acting classes I was like ‘I really love this and it’s what I want to do out of all the interests that I have.’ When I was in fifth grade I did a lot of stuff like dancing and choir. When I got into sixth grade, I kinda narrowed everything down and decided what I really wanted to do.”

Q: Who would you consider your biggest inspiration while growing up?

A: “When I was little I watched all of the Disney and Nickelodeon shows. So it’s really cool that I was able to be a part of Nickelodeon. I wouldn’t say it was one specific person that inspired me; I would say the fact that all the people on those children series were so fun. Everything that they were doing was something that I admired and I wanted to be able to do someday. I guess it was just my love for performing, and that really got everything going.”

Q: What day to day things have changed since you traveled to the different locations to film?

A: “We film in Miami which is super cool because most shows do film in LA. We have the advantage of being able to shoot in exteriors and it looks really amazing on TV. You get out of the usual routine of being on a set, so it’s just different.”

Q: What’s different between the acting Paola and the back home/school Paola?

A: “My schedule because when I’m in school it’s just 8:15 to 3:30. When I was on set, the days were 10 hour days and I would work Monday through Saturdays, so six days a week. So my Sundays were pretty tiring. Those were my rest days so I would just sleep all day. It’s kinda the work load, but I still get stressed sometimes just because being senior year there’s lots of talks of college and we all know how that feels. It’s a lot. The pros outweigh the cons for the busy schedules. I enjoy doing what I love, which is acting.”

Q: Who’s the most famous person you’ve met?

A: “That’s a hard question because doing this I’ve met a lot of incredible people. Something that was personally really exciting for me was interacting on Twitter with Gina Rodriguez who’s on The CW’s ‘Jane the Virgin.’ I haven’t met her personally yet, but she’s replied to me and everything. We’ve kinda talked a little bit through social media, which was really awesome. I look up to her so much, and her show’s amazing!”

Q: Are you looking for any other acting jobs?

A: “Well, our series finale was July 31. I’m done with the show. It was really bittersweet, but now I’m back to auditioning. So ever since it ended and I was done filming in late June, I’ve been auditioning again. I do those local one’s here, and then we send them out. So fingers crossed so we can see what will be the next thing. Hopefully it comes sooner and it’s meant to be. I’m excited. I’m going out for TV shows and movies. I’m trying to do a little bit of everything.”

Q: What kind of steps did you take to get you where you are? Did you go to acting schools?

A: “I’ve taken acting classes since I was 10, and I’ve done various workshops so just anything to really keep learning and improving since there’s always room for improvement. I would just say the main thing would be tons of commitment; it’s taken a lot of that to get to where I am today and I’ve made some sacrifices, but it’s all been worth it.”

Q: What’s one of your favorite things about your hometown Lewisville?

A: “I lived in Lewisville almost my whole life, so I really love how familiar everything feels. This is home and I feel really at home here, and I definitely love the Farmer pride. I know that sounds kinda cheesy. I went to all of the football games my sophomore year. I went to as many as I could this year. I was creating those memories with people that I’ve grown up with, whether we’re close or not. I know that I’m gonna be really emotional at graduation.”

Q: Do you have any plans after you graduate?

A: “Definitely still pursue acting. I want to do something with acting, I’m just not sure what yet. I’m not sure exactly where, but I’ll be applying to several different schools and then I’ll see what happens. Maybe do something minor with writing because I really do enjoy writing as well. So I might want to do a little something with that once I’m established as an actress. That’s talking way down the line, but definitely still acting.”