Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
Have you ever experienced a divine power? No.
Can you give me an example? Because you asked very casually, like, have you ever had like a cherry Coke?
I'm Rachel Martin, and this is Wild Cards, the show where cards control the conversation. Each week, my guest answers questions about their life, questions pulled from a deck of cards. They're allowed to skip one question and to flip one back on me. My guest this week is Julio Torres.
I'd be terrible in, like, trying to work up a corporation or something. It's like, why do you want to move up to this position?
Chapter 2: What themes does Julio Torres explore in his HBO special Color Theories?
Well, I don't necessarily. The joy I'm seeking is not a limited resource.
Until I encountered the work of Julio Torres, I had never imagined the interior life of a Ferrero Rocher chocolate or how navy blue captures the feeling of having to create an account. But now that Julio has asked me to imagine these things, I cannot stop seeing them. His art defies definition.
Whether in movies like Problemista or TV shows like Fantasmas, Julio Torres invites his audiences into a world of his own making. And it is an absurd and beautiful place to be. His new HBO stand-up special is called Color Theories. And I am so very happy to welcome Julio Torres to Wildcard. Hi. Hi. I'm so happy to meet you.
Thank you for having me.
First round is memories. These are the first cards, Julio. You pick one, two, or three.
I will pick one.
What? Okay, what was a moment when you felt proud of yourself as a kid?
I designed a dress.
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Chapter 3: How does Julio Torres describe his childhood experiences with fashion design?
Okay, so context, context. My mother was a fashion designer. And she... It was a lot of, like... chic little power suits, a lot of mini skirts, a very like geometric. It was the 80s. It was, we're coming out of the 80s, early 90s, very like early 90s city lady.
Yes.
Clothes.
Okay. I can see it.
And I was like, I'm going to design a dress for you to sell. And I was so proud of myself. I was so, so proud of myself. It looked like an absolutely heinous, green, like princess dress. Like a huge, huge princess dress.
Just big skirt. Small, tight bodice?
Tight bodice, of course.
So tight.
Giant skirt.
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Chapter 4: What insights does Julio share about his existential dread?
giant ruffles up on ruffles up on ruffles of green. Different shades of green.
Oh, I love it.
And I kept following up on when production would begin. Yes. When these were going to drop. Yes. And it never came.
It didn't.
Yeah.
But did she... Did she welcome the suggestion? Was she also proud of you?
I think it was... My mother is very... She's very encouraging, but she's also very honest. So she was like... So what was the feedback? She was like, hmm. Like, hmm, and a nod.
But I love it because I am imbuing into that hmm that she was like, Too many ruffles. Like maybe it was plausible. Like in the hmm could be some kind of plausibility.
I think maybe a microsecond of it like tried to find a solution and then it was just like no. It's just like no.
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Chapter 5: How does Julio Torres perceive the interior lives of colors?
What's an ordinary place that feels extraordinary to you because of what happened there?
Oh, that's a beautiful question. Oh, thanks. It's an ordinary place. It feels extraordinary to me. What if I set, like, the Berlin Wall?
Okay.
No, I mean... If you were there! Yeah. For some reason, this place feels important to me. I can just feel... I don't know what happened.
There's an energy.
There's just an energy about it. Um... The Sphinx. The Great Wall of China.
I can also pick a different one from that round. Do you want me to do that?
Yeah, and you know what's going to happen? I bet that's going to stir an answer for the first one.
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Chapter 6: What does Julio reveal about his creative process and inspirations?
Yeah.
Were you obsessed with a particular cosmic question as a kid?
Haunted by the infinity of space. Okay. Certainly haunted. It would keep me up at night. Really? Oh, yeah. I was an insomniac as a kid. And that was one of the ones that was absolutely haunting to me. Like, how can something not end? The infinite nature of the universe.
Yes.
Oh, I still get shivers.
Really?
You know what I'm realizing? It definitely... I do have... experts have said that I do have OCD. And I think that this is definitely that. Like, latching onto a thought. Latching onto, like, and not being able to let go of it.
Yeah.
But the existential questions that haunt me the most are the ones that feel just within reach. Like, now I'm no longer haunted by... The universe being infinite. I accept it. Yeah. Reluctantly, begrudgingly. Now it's sort of like these bigger problems that I'm like, oh, if we put our heads together, we can solve this.
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Chapter 7: How does Julio Torres view competition in the creative industry?
Like you're living this amazing, beautiful, big, creative life. And I hear you saying it's not enough that you actually want to make different kind of change or a different kind of impact in the world. Am I interpreting that right?
Well, yeah. I mean, I, you know, it's like, oh, I get to make, I'm so privileged that I get to make movies and one movie so far, but hopefully more. And just get to perform and get to release a special and whatever. But then I look at the road that brought me here. And I ask myself, in the year 2026, would someone in my position be able to take that road? That was already pretty difficult.
And the answer is, I'm not sure. And that's devastating.
Can you say more about what that means?
Well, that means specifically coming here as a student with a student visa.
From El Salvador.
From El Salvador, yes. And, you know, it's almost like the first enemy on the list is... with this new administration, students, international students specifically. International students that were decided to have less agency and the freedom of speech being more limited if you're an international student. And also just regulating how many people get to come here as international students.
From which countries do they get to come here as international students? Yeah. But those already like narrow corridors feel like they're getting narrower and narrower and narrower.
The barriers for entry are just higher and higher.
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Chapter 8: What personal beliefs has Julio Torres chosen to let go of?
This is the last one in this round. One, two, or three?
Two. No, one.
Ooh, interesting. One. When's a time you realized you were on the right path?
I think when I started doing comedy open mics and people actually laughed. Yeah. When people were laughing at things that I also thought were funny. I think that's when I... I felt like, oh, okay, I don't know where this path will lead, but I will keep going. It feels like I'm walking in the dark, but the terrain feels comfortable enough.
Clearly someone or enough people laughed that you were like, I will now proceed to the next open mic.
Yeah, yeah. And by enough people, I mean like the five people in the audience. The five other comedians waiting for their turn to go up.
From WQXR and Carnegie Hall comes Classical Music Happy Hour, a new podcast hosted by me, Pianist Maniacs. Each episode, we'll speak with a special guest, listen to musical gems, play music-inspired games, and answer questions from our listeners. The first episode drops March 4th. Listen on the NPR app. Let's talk about your new special on HBO, Color Theories. I love this, Julio.
I mean, I'll tell you why for a few different reasons, but let's set the scene of what this is. You imagine the lives of colors, the interior lives, how they interact with each other. what their motivations are, and how you experience them. And this is something that you do not just with colors, but it's popped up in other things you've done.
You think about the backstories of letters and numbers, and it is fantastic. I loved it so much.
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