Their first day on set, the cast and crew of Peacock's new comedy Killing It didn't quite know how to behave with Stephanie Nogueras, the deaf actress playing Craig Robinson's ex-wife, Camille.
"People would look at the interpreter when they talked, and I'd say, 'Look at me,'" Nogueras recalls. "But when I started acting, they were blown away that I knew what I was doing. They were surprised I really was easy to work with."
"People would look at the interpreter when they talked, and I'd say, 'Look at me,'" Nogueras recalls. "But when I started acting, they were blown away that I knew what I was doing. They were surprised I really was easy to work with."
Communicating, she says, just required using a phone to text, or simple hand gestures.
Nogueras, among the first to represent Latino deaf people onscreen, grew up deaf in a hearing Puerto Rican family in New Jersey. She studied psychology, intending to become a counselor and treat drug addiction in the deaf community, then headed to Los Angeles after graduation.
But in 2011, she was dating an actor whose manager said Freeform was looking for a deaf Latina actress. On a lark, she auditioned and got the part, a recurring role on Switched at Birth. After five seasons on the series, Nogueras went on to guest-star on shows including The Magicians, Criminal Minds and The Good Fight before landing Killing It.
She has built bridges with coworkers in a unique way. Within the deaf community, it's considered a special gift to give a sign name to someone, based on their personality and appearance.
"The first sign name I gave was to Craig," she says. "He loves music so much, so I made his name the signs for C and music. When I showed it to him, in front of everyone, he got very emotional. I was so relieved that he loved it."
After that, everyone on set wanted a sign name. They'll enjoy them for a while; Peacock has renewed Killing It for a second season.
An advocate for the BIPOC deaf community, Nogueras founded Pepita Productions to mentor others on how to get into the industry, especially deaf Latino youth.
"Pepita means a pumpkin seed, which is small and strong," Nogueras says. "Our deaf community numbers are small, but we're mighty. We're missing out on opportunities because Hollywood isn't ready for us. But we're ready for Hollywood, and we deserve to be seen."
This article originally appeared in emmy magazine issue #12, 2022, under the title, "Hollywood Signs."
