Joshua Elizondo
| Joshua Elizondo | |
|---|---|
| File:Emmys red carpet 1.jpgemmys red carpet 1.jpg Elizondo on the red carpet at the 71st Primetime Emmys (2019) | |
| Born | March 5, 1996 Royal Oak, Michigan, U.S. |
| Other names | Josh Elizondo/"Eli" |
| 🏫 Education | Royal Oak High School Pepperdine University |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| 📆 Years active | 2014–present |
Joshua Elizondo (born March 5, 1996) is an American actor and political figure. He is known for his work in Fear the Walking Dead and other commercial projects for major music artists, companies, and networks. His film roles include a short film, produced in partnership with KOCE-TV (PBS SoCal), Hereafter Yesterlyfe (2020)..[1]. Elizondo is also a member of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences and founder of the entertainment organization, The Foster Bunch[2].
Politically, Elizondo is a member of the California Community College Board of Governors (2021–2023) [3], appointed by Governor of California, Gavin Newsom, and is a commissioner for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, Youth Commission (2021–2022)[4]
Early years
Elizondo was born in Royal Oak, Michigan, the son of Cynthia Elizondo (Koshorek) and Ricardo Elizondo. He is a grandchild of notable Major League Baseball Player, Clem Koshorek and has three brothers. As a first-generation American, Elizondo is multi-ethnic (Swedish, Polish, Mexican, Greek and Basques) and grew up in the greater Metro Detroit area. In 2011, Elizondo was removed from his parent's care and placed into the Michigan foster care system as a ward of the court until emancipation[5]
Since a young age, Elizondo has demonstrated a talent for the arts and leadership. He sang for church choirs and for an audition-only group, The Royal Oak Childrens Choir for 4 years from 2005–2009. While in foster care, Elizondo bounced between high school institutions with his main alma matter being Royal Oak High School, where Elizondo was the President for the local chapter of Business Professionals of America as well as the President for the Oakland County, Michigan Youth Opportunities Initiative [6], for youth in foster care to develop independent living skills. Elizondo graduated from ROHS in June 2014 and moved to Los Angeles later that same year.
Career
Entertainment
Prior to moving to Los Angeles in 2014, Elizondo was recruited by the Midwest branch of Barbizon Modeling and Acting School during his senior year of high school to compete with their team for the International Modeling and Talent Association competitions held in LA. During the competition, Elizondo placed in several categories and signed with a manager, beginning his journey into the entertainment industry.
At the age of 18, Elizondo moved across country by himself to pursue his acting career [7]. Since moving to the city, he has starred in various music videos for high profile artists through London Alley Entertainment and has starred in productions with several notable companies such as BuzzFeed, AwesomenessTV (TV series), Tyler Perry Studios, AOL and more. He has shot commercials for Viacom [8], as well as a The Walt Disney Company and Tastemade partnership featuring Disneyland and their 2019 Halloween treats [9] and more. Additionally, he has filmed several notable productions including Fear the Walking Dead.
In June 2019, Elizondo was selected to participate in the annual cohort of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation selective internship as 1 of 50 participants from across the country [10]. The Summer Internship Program places college students in companies such as NBC, HBO, Sony and Warner Bros for an 8-week paid internship period. During his time with the TV Academy Foundation, he was placed with Anchor Entertainment as an unscripted series development intern [11]. He later that year went on to be a trophy presenter for the 71st Primetime Emmys [12] where due to his exposure, he became SAG-eligible.
In early 2020, Elizondo released an autobiographical short film in partnership with KOCE-TV (PBS SoCal) called, Hereafter Yesterlyfe (2020)[13] which showcases his journey to Los Angeles from foster care, while highlighting his hopes for the future. During the production process, Elizondo was coached through mentors under the To Foster Change initiative to write, direct, film, and edit the final product to its completion. Elizondo says, "Overall, I think the process of the video diary program helped me further acknowledge that my experiences growing up in foster care are not only a valuable story to tell, but also an asset" [14]. The film debuted on February 1st, 2021.
Elizondo is currently in production of debut singles with producer Josh Stevens under the stage name "Eli", stemming from the first three letters of his last name. He has performed several of these pieces over the last few years for different charity events.
Philanthropy & Politics
Before moving to Los Angeles, Elizondo began to get involved with advocacy efforts regarding several different issues including teen drug usage, sexual assault, foster care and more. After moving to Los Angeles, he focused on efforts in the realm of foster care and became involved with the organization, California Youth Connection (CYC), that develops young people ages 14-25 through legislative, policy practice change. Since becoming involved, Elizondo has held many different positions in the organization until presently where he sits on the Board of Directors [15]. Beyond his work with CYC, he has also participated in several other organizations such as Spirit Awakening, Better Youth, and more. In late 2018, Elizondo began developing an idea to merge his entertainment background with his philanthropy and created "The Foster Bunch", a group of professional entertainers all with lived experience in the child welfare system coming together to change the narrative of foster care by using the entertainment platform for social change. Since beginning the endeavor, the organization has partnered with movie studios such as Paramount Pictures with Instant Family and Warner Bros. with Shazam! (film) to screen films for foster youth over the holiday season. These screenings were in conjunction with toy drives that later supplied local LA group home children with items for the holidays.
In September 2021, Elizondo was nominated and appointed to the Youth Commission under the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors where he serves as the liaison to the County Departments of Beach & Harbors, FilmLA, Grand Park and the Los Angeles County Office of Education. The role of youth commissioner is to take stock of child welfare policies and practices in the different departments while making policy recommendations to the Board of Supervisors on how to better the state of child welfare in the county. Elizondo's term is from 2021–2022.
Outside of foster care, Elizondo has begun diversifying his political portfolio into other fields, mainly in Education. First joining transformational institutional work such as Guided Pathways[16] and AB705 [17]. In 2019, Elizondo was featured in an episode of the California Community Colleges (CCC) Chancellor's Office Podcast with Chancelor Eloy Ortiz Oakley where he shares his journey in the CCC [18]. During the 2020–2021 academic year, Elizondo became the Student Trustee for Santa Monica College as well as the Student Member of the California Community College Trustees Board [19] under the Community College League of California appointed by the fellow student trustees across the state where he advocated for systemwide changes during his term [20]. During the 2021–2022 academic year, Elizondo became the Associated Students (government), President and concurrently was appointed to the California Community College, Board of Governors by Governor Gavin Newsom for a term served 2021–2023. Elizondo's approach to educational reform emphasizes centering equity work for the most vulnerable students [21] while ensuring there are sufficient support structures for student retention based on his own educational experience [22]. He is quoted “It’s easy to get students to go to college, the whole world is telling them they need an education. But if they don’t know why they’re there — if they don’t have a purpose, a tangible goal — they’ll get lost.” [23]
Elizondo is also passionate about issues surrounding climate change, homelessness, animal rights, LGTBQIA+, veteran, and anything pertaining to making a difference for the community at large.
Personal life
Education
After graduating high school, Elizondo attended Los Angeles City College (LACC) studying Business Management and Marine Biology (2014–2015) until he dropped out to pursue a career in entertainment full-time. During his time away from education, he continued to develop himself thorough personal development courses offered by Landmark Worldwide while concurrently working on his career. Ultimately, Elizondo decided to return to school in 2017 where he first enrolled at Santa Monica College (SMC). Since re-enrolling in college at SMC, he has earned 9 Associate Degrees of Arts, 1 Associate of Science and several certifications from the institution. In the Fall of 2021, Elizondo transferred to Pepperdine University [24] where he currently studies International Relations: Global Politics with a minor in Social Work while continuing to further his general education at his alma mater SMC. He is expected to graduate from Pepperdine in the Spring of 2024.
Health
Since being a young child, Elizondo has suffered from recurring infections with no diagnosis through young adulthood. However, in 2021, Elizondo was diagnosed with the primary immunodeficiency, Specific Antibody Deficiency (SAD), in particular, Hypogammaglobulinemia.
Filmography
Film
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Teachers | High School Student | Short |
| 2016 | Sleight | ||
| Severus Snape and the Marauders | Hogwarts Student | Short | |
| The Good Neighbor | Partygoer | ||
| Icebox | Boy in Holding | Short | |
| The Reckoning | Kyle | Short | |
| Pet Rituals | Concertgoer | Short | |
| Unremarkable | Curious Onlooker | Short | |
| Dirty Spaghetti | Partygoer | Short | |
| The Origin of Silent Letters | Letter N | Short | |
| 2017 | Flower | Bowling Employee | |
| Inner Warrior | Self | Documentary Short | |
| 2018 | Golden Boy | Drunk Kid | |
| Cazadora | Selfie | Short | |
| Status Update | Student | ||
| 2019 | That Angry Bitch | Keith | Short |
| 2020 | Hereafter Yesterlyfe | Self | Documentary Short |
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Fear the Walking Dead | Kissing Couple | 1 episode |
| Mann and Wife | Jonathan | 1 episode | |
| 2016 | The Cheerleader Murders (Lifetime) | Teen in Car Crash | (TV Movie) |
| 2019 | 71st Primetime Emmy Awards | Self |
Commercial
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Coca Cola, The Letter | Teenage Son | |
| Latin American Music Awards of 2015 | Promo | ||
| 2016 | ClearWay Minnesota | Teen Smoker | PSA |
| 2017 | Viacom, For All Fankind | Self | |
| Metro by T-Mobile | Basketball Student | ||
| 2018 | Santa Monica College, Meta-majors | Student | PSA |
| Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company | Student Driver | ||
| BlackRock (Financial) | Shop Patron | ||
| 2019 | Coca Cola x Six Flags Magic Mountain | Parkgoer | Print & Advertisement |
| The Walt Disney Company x Tastemade, Halloween Treats | Parkgoer | ||
| 2020 | T-Mobile | Town Person |
Internet
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Buzzfeed, Is He on a Date? | Restaurant Patron | |
| Erins Law | Self | PSA | |
| Mary J. Blige, Doubt | Concertgoer | ||
| Alyson Stoner, Pretty Girls | Dancer | ||
| Stereolizza, Cool Cat | Elizondo's cat "Zoe" starred | ||
| Jade, True to Yourself | Best Friend | ||
| Britney Spears ft. Iggy Azalea, Pretty Girls (Britney Spears and Iggy Azalea song) | Clubgoer | ||
| Bea Miller, Fire n' Gold | Dancer | ||
| ChasingLA, Street Talk: Game of Thrones | Self | ||
| Demi Lovato, Cool for the Summer | Dancer | ||
| G.E.M., New Heartbeat | High School Student | ||
| Buzzfeed, School Hacks | Student | ||
| AwesomenessTV (TV series), Hitting On | Self | ||
| Justin Bieber, What Do You Mean? | Dancer | ||
| David Guetta, Bang My Head | Dancer | ||
| Transviolet, New Bohemia | Featured Friend | ||
| SoulPancake, 0-100 (Season 1) | Self – Featured | ||
| 2016 | Lana Del Ray, Young and in Love | Churchgoer | |
| SoulPancake, 0-100 (Season 2) | Self – Featured | ||
| Weathers (band), Happy Pills | Featured Friend | ||
| AOL, Candid Conversations | Self | ||
| 2017 | Skip Marley, Lions | Warehouse Party Person | |
| YouTube Premium, Good Game (Season 1) | Gaming Team Captain | 2 episodes | |
| SoulPancake, 0-100 (Season 3) | Self – Featured | ||
| SoulPancake, 0-100 (Season 4) | Self – Featured | ||
| Mackenzie Sol, Laugh | Self – Featured | ||
| 2018 | AwesomenessTV (TV series), Halloween Special | Halloween Party Rocker | Snapchat |
| Aminé (rapper), Black Jack | Highschool Student | ||
| Twenty One Pilots, My Blood | Halloween Partygoer | ||
| SoulPancake, 0-100 (Season 5) | Self – Featured | ||
| 2019 | AwesomenessTV (TV series), Malibu Surf (Season 3) | Self | 4 episodes |
| 2020 | In the Heights, Promo Material | Stand-in | |
| 2022 | Untitled (Major Brand) Marketing | Self |
Discography
Original Singles
| Year | Title | Notes | Writer(s) | Producer(s) | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| TBA | People Like You | Joshua Elizondo | Josh Stevens | — | |
| Silences | Joshua Elizondo, Josh Stevens | Josh Stevens | — | ||
| I Always | Joshua Elizondo, Josh Stevens | Josh Stevens | — |
References
- ↑ "Hereafter Yesterlyfe". 2022-02-01.
- ↑ "Royal Oak native tries to transform foster care through entertainment". 2018-09-24.
- ↑ "Governor Newsom Announces Higher Education Appointments". 2021-08-20.
- ↑ "LA County Youth Commission".
- ↑ "Finding Resilience in Broken Promises, The Chronicle of Social Change". 2017-04-10.
- ↑ "Michigan Youth Opportunities Innitiative".
- ↑ "Filmmakers of the Future: Foster Youth Grow Storytelling Abilities at Media Training". 2019-10-09.
- ↑ "For All Fankind". 2017.
- ↑ "Disneyland's newest Halloween treats are so good, it's almost scary! Will you dare to try them all?". 2019-10-07.
- ↑ "Intern Class of 2019". 2019-06-04.
- ↑ "Reality TV internship is a fantasy job for former homeless student". 2019-07-09.
- ↑ "Former Intern and Trophy Presenter Joshua Elizondo on the 2019 Primetime Emmys Red Carpet". 2019-10-03.
- ↑ "Hereafter Yesterlyfe". 2022-02-01.
- ↑ "A Valuable Story to Tell: Joshua Elizondo Shares his Video Diary Process". 2020-01-14.
- ↑ "Board Member Joshua Elizondo".
- ↑ "Making Sure Students are Heard".
- ↑ "Early Results of AB 705 Implementation Showing Success and Garnering Attention".
- ↑ "California Community Colleges Podcast". 2020-01-27.
- ↑ "Meet the 2020–21 Student Trustee Member of the CCCT Board: Joshua Elizondo".
- ↑ "Two California Propositions Will Advance Community Colleges".
- ↑ "Opinion: Expanding college access in California means prioritizing its most vulnerable students". 2021-06-25.
- ↑ "SMC student and former foster youth working to fix the community college system". 2021-09-06.
- ↑ "'If Students Don't Have A Purpose, They'll Get Lost': How Colleges Are Winning Back Students Who Left". 2022-01-27.
- ↑ "Public service loan forgiveness: What's changing?". 2022-01-27.
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