Selene Luna On The Mask Put Upon Little People And The Power That Comes From Taking It Off
Always Looking Up
11/11/25
•72m
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In this week’s episode I sat down with Selene Luna. Selene is an actress and producer hailed by The New York Times as “a polished spitfire.” A magnetic live performer, she’s toured extensively alongside Margaret Cho and Dita Von Teese. We discuss the mask people with dwarfism are often forced to wear, the moment in her career where she was able to take the mask off, creating a character such as Soledad on Mayans M.C. and much, much more.
All proceeds from purchasing this episode on my Patreon will be split between City Harvest and Food Bank For NYC.
Join The Patreon: HERE
Follow Selene: Instagram: @selene_luna Website: https://seleneluna.com
Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: alwayslookingup227@gmail.com
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Support Those Impacted By The Cutting Of SNAP Benefits:
Feeding America: https://www.feedingamerica.org
World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org
No Kid Hungry: https://www.nokidhungry.org
List Of NYC Food Pantries: https://www.nyc.gov/site/dycd/services/food_pantries.page
Support Immigrant Communities (all links came from @chnge):
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (@chirla_org): https://www.chirla.org/donatenow/
Immigrant Defenders Law Center (@immdef_lawcenter): https://www.immdef.org
Inland Coalition 4 Imm Justice (@ic4ij): https://secure.actblue.com/donate/jornaleros
Relief For Disabled People Impacted By The Los Angeles Fires:
Richard Devylder Disaster Relief Fund:
Previous Episode
Caity On Creating Art And Fashion For Everyone And Every Body
November 4, 2025
•63m
In this week’s episode I sat down with Caity. Caity is the founder of her own fashion brand where she repurposes thrifted garments and enhances them with her signature free-motion embroidery. Her work is best described as wearable art, incorporating appliqué and embroidery featuring nature-inspired and character-driven motifs. We discuss her being a designer with dwarfism in the fashion industry and how she is making space for her, what the industry is missing when it comes to designing for little people's bodies, creating without perceived limits and much, much more.
All proceeds from purchasing this episode will be split between City Harvest and Food Bank For NYC.
Join The Patreon: HERE
Follow Caity: Instagram: @ca8ty TikTok: @ca8ty Website: https://www.ca8tydesigns.com
Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: alwayslookingup227@gmail.com
Read With Me:
Support Those Impacted By The Cutting Of SNAP Benefits:
Feeding America: https://www.feedingamerica.org
World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org
No Kid Hungry: https://www.nokidhungry.org
List Of NYC Food Pantries: https://www.nyc.gov/site/dycd/services/food_pantries.page
Support Immigrant Communities (all links came from @chnge):
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (@chirla_org): https://www.chirla.org/donatenow/
Immigrant Defenders Law Center (@immdef_lawcenter): https://www.immdef.org
Inland Coalition 4 Imm Justice (@ic4ij): https://secure.actblue.com/donate/jornaleros
Relief For Disabled People Impacted By The Los Angeles Fires:
Richard Devylder Disaster Relief Fund:
Next Episode
In this week’s episode of Always Looking Up I sat down with Lindi Marcusen. Lindi is a Paralympic sprinter and long jumper whose journey began after surviving a catastrophic accident in 2017 that resulted in the loss of her right leg and a traumatic brain injury. A former high-level gymnast, Lindi turned to adaptive sports during her recovery, finding purpose and power through competition. Now a 5x national champion and 100 meter American record holder, she represented the USA in the 2024 Paris Paralympics, proving that resilience and determination can redefine what’s possible. We discuss her Paralympic journey that started with learning to walk again, traveling while disabled, the structural and societal barriers that are put in place, and how she is working to dismantle them and much, much more.
All proceeds from purchasing this episode on my Patreon will be split between City Harvest and Food Bank For NYC.
Join The Patreon: HERE
Follow Lindi: Instagram: @lindi.marcusen TikTok: @lindimarcusen
Learn More About Ottobock and The "Invisible Class" Campaign
Follow Me: Instagram: @jill_ilana , @alwayslookingup.podcast TikTok: @jillian_ilana Website: https://www.jillianilana.com Email: alwayslookingup227@gmail.com
Read With Me:
The StoryGraph
All episodes are edited and produced by Ben Curwin.
Support Those Impacted By The Cutting Of SNAP Benefits:
Feeding America: https://www.feedingamerica.org
World Central Kitchen: https://wck.org
No Kid Hungry: https://www.nokidhungry.org
List Of NYC Food Pantries: https://www.nyc.gov/site/dycd/services/food_pantries.page
Support Immigrant Communities (all links came from @chnge):
The Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (@chirla_org): https://www.chirla.org/donatenow/
Immigrant Defenders Law Center (@immdef_lawcenter): https://www.immdef.org
Inland Coalition 4 Imm Justice (@ic4ij):
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