Find Out the Passion That Spurred Eva Longoria to Direct

I am a big fan of documentaries, especially ESPN's 30 for 30 series. So when they asked me if I wanted to produce 10 episodes in the series, I immediately jumped at the chance. My first thought was that we would focus on philanthropy. I just love helping people. I suggested we create something centered around when athletes are bumped against something greater than the sport, something greater off of the field, like sexism, racism, discrimination—something other than a disability. What if the disability was a moral obstacle?

They loved the idea and I also suggested Sebastien de la Cruz. Then, I directed Go, Sebastien, Go! about his story. [Ed. note: In 2013, de la Cruz, a then-11-year-old Mexican-American singer, received racist tweets after singing the National Anthem in a mariachi outfit before an NBA Finals game in San Antonio.] Since then, I've adopted little Sebastien into my life. He's going to be on Hot and Bothered, my new show, as well. He's going to play one of Diana's children. I met him and I immediately thought that he's going to be a star and I'm his godmother! I met him when [the negative comments] happened. I remember meeting him and thinking he was special. And his family is amazing. So, I knew that [about him] before I was doing the ESPN thing.

It was perfect, and [the family] called me after and were so thankful and said they couldn't have captured the story better. I said thank you and explained how I have a passion for directing. I really, really love getting the project together from beginning to end. I really like having control of the entire concept, like I do in Hot and Bothered. From picking the writer to the set designers to casting to marketing to promos to scripts—all of it is just so enjoyable to me and it's the part of my brain that I just love using. I'm just really happy to have the ability to use the ESPN platform to show bigger lessons than winning.

Watch the full episode of Go, Sebastien, Go! here: