Meet the talent executive casting a new future for her community
How Berenice Molina Valle broke the cycle of street life and is helping others step into a new role
A jail sentence wasn’t enough to change Berenice Molina Valle. Neither was having to give up her son to be raised by her mother. It wasn’t until her mom was given two weeks to live that Berenice decided to turn her life around.
She’d grown up in the shadow of Los Angeles gang culture, watching her father and brothers cycle through addiction, violence, retaliation, and prison. Rebellious after her parents’ divorce and wanting to be where the guys were, Berenice followed in their footsteps.
“I was the only sister of 10 brothers, and joined a rival neighborhood to prove to my brothers I could do what they do.”
At 15, she had her first child. Her mother – a hardworking housekeeper who shunned the street life – raised her son while Berenice remained committed her lifestyle.
Her mom had long served as the steady hand of the family, quietly raising grandchildren while her own children moved in and out of prison. Years of caretaking took their toll. After she was diagnosed with kidney failure and placed on dialysis, doctors gave her just weeks to live.
“When I saw her on her deathbed, I realized: my backbone isn’t going to be there anymore,” Berenice said.
That was when everything shifted.
Channeling pain into purpose
Berenice enrolled in school to become a substance abuse counselor. “At first, I thought I could fix my family,” she said. “But I ended up learning more about myself.”
Through her coursework at Los Angeles City College, she was introduced to Homeboy Industries, the world’s largest gang intervention and re-entry organization. Soon, she was doing outreach, helping the youth community navigate the system she’d once been part of.
She completed her studies and launched into service: working with recovery homes, with the Sherriff’s department, and with GRYD, the LA Mayor’s office program for Gang Reduction & Youth Development.
One of her biggest assets? Credibility. She knew every neighborhood and could connect where others couldn’t.
One day, a client passed along a tip: a woman was looking for real people to play background characters on TV. Did Berenice know anyone?
Berenice gave it straight: “I do, but they’ve never acted, never worked a legit job. This is something you’d have to take a chance in.” And they did.
The show cast her connections and brought her in as a consultant. One day on set turned into a week. One show became two. Word started getting around, including at Berenice’s day job. There weren’t enough hours to work in TV and manage her caseloads, so she quit.
She saw a bigger opportunity to help her community.
From the streets to the set
Berenice established URA Entertainment, standing for Under Represented Artists and reflecting the non-traditional communities she aimed to help. It became better known as “From the Streets to the Set”.
At first, her work was focused on background casting. But Berenice had a bigger vision: speaking roles. Speaking roles paid more and would help move talent beyond the margins of Hollywood productions. They could also lead to inclusion in the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) – most new actors’ holy grail.
The challenge: no one had any formal training.
Berenice and her talent came up with an idea: why not host a fundraiser that could get them to acting school? They approached actors they’d worked with to do a community meet and greet and raised enough money to send 14 people to Anthony Gelardi Acting Studio.
That brought a new (but welcome) challenge: actors started getting callbacks and had to quickly figure out contracts. They didn’t have agents or managers, and didn’t trust anyone on the outside. So, Berenice learned those aspects of the business, alongside her talent.
“I kind of do it all now.”
A pivotal partnership
For years, Berenice built a foundation with smaller projects like music videos or single TV episodes. Then came Die Like a Man.
Writer and director Eric Nazarian approached her with a film script. It was not a surface-level “hood” movie; it sensitively explored the complexities of masculinity, brotherhood, and conflicting loyalties among gang life in West LA.
Berenice thought, “Have you been stalking me? This is my life!”
She cast dozens of her actors and worked closely on the production, including acting in a key role.
Reviews agreed: the film avoided common stereotypes and humanized the characters. Which was Berenice’s intention from the start.
“My goal has always been for people to see past the background check, past the tattoos, and recognize the human spirit underneath.”
From ember to impact
Since its launch in 2017, URA/From the Streets to the Set has cast hundreds of formerly incarcerated or gang-involved individuals in over 50 film, TV, and theater projects.
Not all of the actors go in seeking rehabilitation, but it’s a common outcome.
“When they start rehearsals and having to commit to something other than the block, it wakes them up. They see, oh, more is possible.”
Some are building solid entertainment careers. Actor Alex Gibson (Die Like a Man’s Boom Boom) started working with URA fresh off an 11-year prison sentence. Today, he works regularly across stage, screen, and television.
And then there’s Berenice’s son. Initially, he followed in her footsteps, cycling through the same street life patterns she’d left behind. But when he saw Die Like a Man filming in his mother’s literal backyard, he had his own “a-ha” moment of wanting to change.
He appeared in a pivotal scene in the movie and got hungry for more. Today, he’s a SAG actor and motivational speaker, filming and presenting to audiences across the world.
Life, reignited
When Berenice first went back to school, her brothers advised: “If you really want to make a change, make it with the youth.” They’d seen how hardened people became through the streets and incarceration, and suggested reform needed to start early.
That’s true in many cases. But Berenice’s example – and that of her son, and the other URA actors - demonstrates that with purpose and dedication, reinvention can happen at any age.
Follow URA Entertainment / From the Streets to the Set on Instagram.
Stream Die Like a Man on AppleTV+ and Amazon.
Wow! Just wow! Berenice, a Phoenix.
Another inspiring story! Keep it up and congratulations...