All of my heroes are dying. I heard the sad news yesterday that Lina had passed away on February 15th, 2012 due to cancer. My prayers go out to Jess Franco who surely must feel lost now without her.
I had the pleasure to work with them both 10 years ago for 1 month. I can tell you that when Lina was away from the acting lights she was very warm and intelligent with a smart sense of humor. It was nice to learn how down-to-Earth she was and that she did not take all of the movie madness too seriously. Having said that, I've never seen anyone so professional. When I first met her in 1996 she seemed to know very little English (and my Spanish was non-existant). By the time I worked with her in 2000 she was acting entirely in English. Not only did she have all of her lines memorized in English, but she seemed to know everyone else's as well! Lina was also an excellent camera person and editor and not too many people are aware of these facts. If you've ever seen the "Killer Barbies" promotional music video that she cobbled together using clips from the movie you can tell that she knew what she was doing. And when I went back over the raw footage that was shot for the "Antena Criminal" documentary I had forgotten just how much of it was shot by her because her photography blended so smoothly.
I never expected her to go this soon. Lina was always sweet, always professional and a pure joy to be around. And, of course, I don't have to tell you how beautiful she was. Rest in peace Lina.
Introducing The Ubangis at Zombiefest's Halloween Ball, 2007