I’m excited to celebrate the festival’s continued success at tonight’s Opening Night Fiesta at the lovely Los Angeles Theater inaugurating the fifth edition of the Hola Mexico Film Festival which will run from the 15-22.  As proof of its growing stability, it’s awesome to see that it has a new venue.  Many of the films will screen at the state of the art projection houses of the Regal Live Downtown Theater.  Last year’s Montalban theater venue, while meaningful in name and spirit, left a lot to be desired with the picture and sound.

Go: Mandoki is a damn fine filmmaker in his element here

photo by Jose Luis Castillo

The festivities will commence by bestowing a Career Achievement Award to the prolific actor, Joaquin Cosio, whose wickedly empathetic portrayal in Luis Estrada’s El Infierno has endeared us to calling him by his wild, everyman narco role, El Cochiloco.  Along with Damian Alcazar (who will also be present!) these two are Mexico’s most esteemed and exceptional actors who have embodied an impressive number of indelible character and leading roles throughout the course of their careers. Nominated for the Ariel Award (Mexico’s Oscar) three times, Cosio’s talent will be seen in the upcoming, A Night in Old Mexico with Robert Duvall, Disney’s The Lone Ranger and can be seen in the festival’s selections, The Brief and Precocious Life of Sabina Rivas by Luis Mandoki as well as tonight’s Opening Night film, Ciudadano Buelna.   Directed by established director, Felipe Vazals whose first feature screened at the 1968 Cannes Film Festival and who in recent years has filmed a series of films about the Mexican Revolution, Ciudadano Buelna is a handsome period piece about an idealist revolutionary whose closely held integrity clashes when caught in the quagmire of the nascent political factions of the Mexican Revolution era.  A somewhat prescient and relevant theme mirroring the crossfire in which today’s political activist youth find themselves.  After the screening, la fiesta will get underway with the groovy sounds of Chicano Batman and of course cerveza and mezcal will be had (Obvio).

For you foodies out there, as part of the food festival, five renowned chefs will be sharing their gastronomical delights at the Viva Mezcal event in which expert mescaleros will be unveiling the art of the Mezcal (I’ll let the experts educate us on its distinct distillation compared to Tequila but basically it’s a smoother and smokier spirit derived from an Agave plant called Maguey) at LA’s Oaxacan cuisine landmark, La Guelaguetza on May 16, and La Gran Parillada at La Plaza de Culturas y Artes complete with a wine tasting will take place May 19. The music showcase will feature artists like the prodigal sons of the venerable Los Tigres del Norte, Raul y Mexia, La Misa Negra, an electro cumbia band and the Closing Night film, a documentary about Celso Pina will be followed by a performance by the extraordinary and ‘rebel’ accordionist.

Among the Festival’s 13 narrative and 6 documentary features there is a diverse range of seminal moments in Mexico’s history record, personal stories grappling and reacting to the various facets of the social ills affecting Mexico (kidnapping, immigration), narratives reflecting the amalgamated identity in crisis of a country reacting.   There is also ‘lighter’ fare with dark twists;  The black comedy  Fecha de Caducidad, Mexican revolutionary satire La Cebra.  Easily the two most celebrated films this year, heralded for their masterful aesthetics at last year’s Cannes, Carlos Reygadas lyrical puzzle Post Tenebras Lux, and Despues Lucia the staggeringly heartbreaking adolescent bullying film by Michel Franco will also be screening.  Other picks I recommend; the cool, existential zombie film, Halley by Sebastian Hoffman, a personal favorite from Sundance which has captivated audiences worldwide at numerous international film festivals since its world premiere in Morelia last fall.  There is La Demora by Rodrigo Pla, a subtle yet powerful film about a moment of doubt in a woman’s life concerning her aging father (See my interview with the filmmaker here).  There is the startling Errol Morris like documentary, El Alcalde, about an effusive and dangerously candid mayor in the richest and safest municipal in Monterrey, which is subversively brilliant in unleashing the outlaw mayor who credits himself with reigning control over the narco threat, ultimately a revealing psyche portrait.  For you punk rock en Espanol fans, Molotov music doc, Gimme the Power gives us background to the formation and suppressed climate and era in which they came up, along with some behind the scenes inspiration of certain classic songs like Frijolero.  But if you only get one film to get your Mexican rocks off, you must see the documentary Hecho en Mexico produced by the renowned film music supervisor Lynn Fainchtein (currently working on Diego Luna’s Chavez biopic).  More than a ‘what its like to be Mexican’ audiovisual soundtrack, it is an infectious, hyper-energetic cinematic cultural musical in which artists evoke and connect with the indigenous history of the country and what that identity means today and in the future. Fierce musical talents like Amandititita, Carla Morrison, original rebels Café Tacuba, la loca de Gloria Trevi, and many many more rap, sing in folk, hip hop, regional, corridos and a fusion of rock all completely original as part of this grossly enriching example of the modern Mexican identity and sacred mestizo spirit. Here’s the trailer:

Tickets are a cool $10 per screening. It’s not to late to come on down tonight for the Opening Night Fiesta, or make plans now for next week’s Closing Awards – either night is just $30 for screening and after party. Tickets here.

Not bad for movie, mezcal, music and a chance to shake hands and hips with some sexy brown people.  Nos vemos alli!

Continuing my Friday short film series on underrepresented American bi-cultural walks of life, I’m so happy to share this documentary short film, Mexican Fried Chicken by Ivete Lucas and Otis Ike.  It’s a glimpse into the laborious life and overloaded pressures of Moises, a 14 year old teenager who in between his job at Popeyes, working at his father’s shop, and as the oldest having to babysit his siblings and other endless house chores, struggles to find time to enjoy being a teen in the United States. Like Moises, genuine and transparent, the film captures what is culturally specific of the sacrifices and work ethic of first generation Mexican Americans.  The unquestioned acceptance that we have to work harder and longer hours than anyone else in order to carve out a spot for our families. In just 13 minutes we get a real sense of Moises and his disarming good-nature, ambition and his radically unique hybrid brand of  American culture is charming. Overhearing the family’s shouting and playing throughout the house sliding back and forth from English to Spanish, all of this makes me cringe with empathy and I get a pang of childhood nostalgia even.  I never see this experience reflected save for in my own memories.  Back in Chicago, when my dad got the pink slip from Boeing after 15 years of work, my parents decided to open up a restaurant with the savings.  Naturally it was a family affair and so I had no choice in the matter but to help. I vividly remember a creeping resentment and alienation knowing that my friends were hanging at the mall, carefree while I had to work right after school, and on weekends full 12 hour days.  Yet I wouldn’t exchange that experience for the world.  Making the homemade salsas and preparing the chile rellenos as the Nortena music blasted on the radio, we cultivated a loyal clientele with an appetite and appreciation for our authentic food, which in turn gave me a special feeling and bi-cultural pride.

I reached out to filmmaker Ivete Lucas who was born in Brazil, grew up in Monterrey, Mexico and moved to Austin to attend the University of Texas. She made this short as part of her MFA in Film studies. First watch the short and read on for a quickie Q&A I did with her over email.

How did you find and get to know and gain this family’s trust? 

My producer, and now husband, Otis Ike initially met the Macedos through his aunt in Austin, TX. They live next to her and partied every weekend, blasting Mexican music. He made friends with the kids a few years before, and introduced me to them in 2009. Since I am Mexican, I could speak with them in Spanish. And although the kids speak perfect English, their parents don’t, so I helped them communicate with the neighbors. Moises was 13 at the time and he was about to start High School. He is an intelligent young man and was accepted into a very good school. His mom explained to me that he got good grades while working two jobs. I was very impressed by Moises, so hard working at such a young age, and I was extremely sad when he told me that he didn’t know if he could go to college because he didn’t have the right papers. So I asked them if I could make a movie about them. From that day on, I spent many afternoons at their house with a camera in my hands. They eventually got used to the camera and my presence. They knew they could talk to me in English or Spanish, that they could ignore me or engage me if they wanted to. I did everything I could to make them feel comfortable. They allowed me to be part of their world, and Moises made me his confidant.

How much footage did you shoot and over how long a period of time?

It was about two months of hanging out with Moises’ family two or three times a week. It must have been about 30 hours of footage.

Was there anything that surprised you during the shoot of the film?  Some revelation or insight you had from meeting this family and bringing this story to light?

I edited this film in a way that allows audience to experience the same surprises I had. Latinos have this will of gold. Life can hit us hard, but we are tough and we usually make it through. Sometimes it really hurts, but we always find the way to laugh and enjoy what we have. I’ve seen a lot of films made about Latinos facing hardships and they are usually bleak or angry. As a Latina, I wanted to make a film that reflected how we really deal with pain. Yes, we cry and get angry, but then we invite our friends over for carne asada and we dance, knowing that we’ll have to put up a fight tomorrow.

Ivette says that Moises is currently exploring college and is interested in applying to Texas State. Best of luck to Moises, and thanks Ivete for the q&a.  Looking forward to seeing more of your work!  Ivete is currently finishing up a documentary about Vietnam war reenactors, and just completed a new short shot in Mexico and with the collaboration of the Huichol tribe.  It’s called Ex-Votos.  Check it out here: 

Amat Escalante is now three for three as he will be taking his third film, HELI to next week’s Cannes, but this is his first time in Official Competition.  The screenplay for Heli was developed at the Sundance Screenwriters lab 2010 where it won the NHK Filmmaker Award.  At that stage the logline was described: “In a small Mexican town, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared.”  Escalante is a Carlos Reygadas protege of sorts, he worked as Assistant Director on Battle of Heaven and they are boutique powerhouse collective through producer, Jaime Romandia’s Mantarraya Films.  A die hard, impactful formalistic filmmaker, the weight of his films comes from audaciously rigid framing, startling compositions, and magnetic usually non pro actor performances.

Darla is a 20something guitarist and songwriter who works at a local bookstore while trying to make moves to fulfill her rocker career aspirations.  Caught in a stagnant funk, as she starts getting melancholy, her wild child bestie, Elisa, who plays the keytar, storms back into town following a breakup of her band and boyfriend. Elisa’s effusive spirit is the yin to Darla’s cool chill vibe yang.  Both of them share the love of punk rock and in no time the two decide to form a band.  Once they audition a cute drummer friend, Dante, they start to jam and find their signature sound under their new name The Crumbles.  A couple successful gigs and the band is riding high on the recognition and excitement of being out there doing it.  But just as they start getting traction, Elisa’s unpredictability, a competing local band rising faster than them, and other life curveballs, stand in the way of The Crumbles ruling the world, unraveling the loosely held seams of their band’s future.

Skipping the condescension or pretension that’s been typically associated with the Echo Park/Silver Lake hipster scene of late, The Crumbles is instead a damned earnest and sympathetic portrayal of the unwavering creative impulse of the modern struggling artist phenomenon on the eclectic East Side of LA.  It’s also like a timeless love letter to the rebellious come hell or high water punk ‘tude and its devotees.  It reminds me of Alice Bag’s autobiography, Violence Girl, in which she nostalgically reminisces of the late 70s, when everyone started bands, regardless if they were good or not, and everybody played in each others groups, sometimes changing instruments, and always reveling in the scrappy gigs they could find and promoting them with radical fliers.  That spirit echoes through UCLA grad filmmaker Akira Boch’s first feature film.

What it lacks in budget, because indeed this is was a friend-favors-and everyone-pooling-resources production, the film makes up in natural, irresistible youthful charm.  The roles are all comfortably inhabited.  Katie Hipol who plays Darla is a core member of the famous Teatro Campesino in San Juan Bautista and Elisa is played by Theresa Michelle Lee is a Second City Improv alumnus.  The entire cast is a beautiful spectrum of multicultural shades of brown reflecting the diversity more accurately than most films seen in this type of genre. The filmmaker’s genuine grip on the scene is drawn from his real life experience of being in and around a bunch of garage bands.  He grew up listening to girl rockers so it was a natural fit to make his lead a female he says in the Directors Notes of the press kit. Add to it a score and soundtrack composed and performed by Grammy winning Quetzal Flores and the film is unbearably original.

The Crumbles evokes a youthful spirit, never-quit energy and casualness to both the dream and harsh realities one navigates day to day in a city like Los Angeles.   It’s inspiring and empathetic to the highs and lows of that struggle.  With many films romanticizing the struggle of say the folk 60s,70s scene in the hills of Laurel Canyon (usually anglo), this is similarly felt like a unique artistic movement, but a far richer, diverse and uniquely up to the times record.  The film reminds me why I love living here.  Most of us pursuing creative endeavors don’t do it for the money but for the love.  It’s always a challenge to make moves towards achieving the dream though when you got to keep a day job to make rent, like Elisa caving in and getting a minimum wage job (sell my self for $8 hour!, she cries) or Darla’s friends shooting a film at night time guerilla style on a rooftop. Plus if you are entrenched with your artist peers who you most likely tend to gravitate towards in the eclectic, sprawling city of LA, there is always a friend to go support and celebrate with a few beers for doing  their  film/theater/art performance or production.  That support network is vital and if you are lucky reciprocal.   The Crumbles offers a glimpse into this way of life and the tribulations that go with it without getting overly tragic.  Surviving and flowering at the same time, Akira makes the struggling musician and filmmaker noble and elicits respect.  In the film Darla writes a song titled, “I’m an Everyday Girl”.   I like to think this introduces a shift from artists who get to develop their voice because they are privileged individuals with the luxury of indulging in creative expression, to the blue collar working class heroine who literally labors for the opportunity to express and share their creativity and hence makes it more relatable and raw.

In true bold punk style, the filmmakers are releasing their film on their own literally taking it on tour across the states.  Coming next to San Francisco, Chicago and New York.  Check the website for future screenings.  Be sure to like the Face and follow on twitter so we can help push a VOD/online release soon.  Watch trailer below:

Iris Almaraz

Iris Almaraz is the writer/director of the delirious, incandescent and quirky film, Delusions of Grandeur, about a naive, grunge-y chicana, Lucy who moves out of her dad’s place in Oakland, and out of her medicated dazed and confused mess, to seize her independence across the bridge when she moves in with a hopeless romantic tranny named Ilusion in the tenderloin of San Francisco. Pining for a mother who ditched her as a kid, Lucy launches into the stratosphere of self-discovery in a search for any kind of true love.  The performances of the diverse cast are so well inhabited and played with relish, the SF 90′s vibe is perfectly nostalgic and channels the city’s storied free love and psychedelia.  In essence, the theme is of womanhood tackled in a uniquely expansive manner, as seen through such a kaleidoscopic lens touching on the lights of sexuality, motherhood, wifey, gender variant roles, Madonna, all in the centrifuge of romance. Terribly sweet without the sugary sap coating, the film premiered at last summer’s NY Latino International Film Festival and is charming the independent film festival circuit across the nation.  The film is next screening at Seattle True Independent Film Festival Thursday, May 9 at 8pm and will screen here in LA, Saturday, May 18 at 8pm at the Casa 010 in Boyle Heights as part of the Reel Rasquache Film Festival.  I was already smitten with the film but now that I’ve had a chance to talk with the filmmaker, I’m an even bigger fan and appreciator of her easy yet bold candor which is felt in her work.   Check the trailer then read on for the realz scoop

Familia and barrio experience totally shape who we become and how we relate our stories. Me, I was born in Chicago’s mexican barrio and then my parents ‘moved us on up’ so to speak, to the neat, white suburbs where I was suddenly the only brown girl and my life became a back and forth between embracing and resisting my ethnicity.  How did your own coming of age inform part of Delusions of Grandeur?  Also what’s your relationship/experience with San Francisco?  I love what a great sense of place the film has with its location as character.

Funny thing is that I had the hood to ‘burbs experience too, only mine was from stints in juvenile hall to Christian summer camp, so by the time I found myself in San Francisco I had a double dose of Catholic guilt and Protestant repression. But when I got to that city the dark cloud that surrounded me EXPLODED!!!  I was a 22 yr. old virgin with a job as a phone sex operator.   My imagination ran amuck and everyday was like a post adolescent children’s book of “Dick & Jane”.  Anyway, you can imagine me trying to explain my college S&M films to my parents – “So how do you know those girls Iris…?” – “oh just from around…”

Woody Allen’s “Manhattan” played a big influence on establishing a city as a character itself.  San Francisco has so much personality that has not been captured cinematically that it is a shame. I felt I owed SF a big Thank You.

I really appreciate the multi-perspectives in the film on the fluidity of what defines a woman.  Why and what other recurring themes/narratives do you find yourself consistently exploring and attracted to as a result of your background and experiences? 

I’m very fascinated with the traditionally Mexican “Virgin/Whore” dichotomy.   My own woman hood is in constant motion . Even now as a mother of two I find the realities of a monogamous relationship that now has “Dora the Explorer” as the sound track, to be humorous, adventurous and worth discussion. I think I may just be an emotional exhibitionist.   That’s usually too much for people to handle but for some reason when I put it on film it seems to resonate with people who are still stuck in a shell.  They find hope in knowing that they are not the only freaks out there.

How did you go about getting this from script to production?  Did you try to go the traditional route as the system would dictate?  Or did you always know it was going to be the hard DIY way?  What kind of support from orgs/friends/grants were you able to garner and recommend?

Intitially, I had a feature script that would have required a much larger budget.  There was interest in the script but not with me attached as the director.  I knew I couldn’t continue with creating dead end shorts and a feature was the only way this chubby chicana from the East Side was gonna get anyone to pay attention.    The first thing I did was sit down at the kitchen table with my dad and ask “Hey Dad you know that Quinceañera I never had, and the wedding I never asked for… well I need that money now.”  After that, other key members of the cast and crew pulled their family and friend resources together .  We also used online crowd funding to complete post-production .  Our saving grace, however, was having amazingly talented friends who committed their souls to the project.   As a young film maker you have to get used to asking for more even when you have been told “no” a million times before and make sure you keep good company.  People will rally behind you if you believe in you.

I see your work as totally distinct and a truly original American Latino walk of life.  For me it is so encouraging to see there is now more than ever, a steady incoming wave of amazing diverse storytelling from our multi-culti pockets.  Who are some emerging narrative Latino filmmakers/peers you are excited about, that we should all track?

The hopeless romantic, Illusion, played by the talented Salvador Benavides

This is such a tough question to answer for all the right reasons.  I am continuously blown away by all the diverse work right now.  It will be unjust for me to list of a few when I will inevitably  leave  out  so many.  That being said, there are two filmmakers whose work has moved and inspired me personally .  The first is Aurora Guerrero who has paved a path that young film makers can look to as a blue print for how to do it right.  Not only is she a talented unique voice but she also has an innate comprehension for how the business works. The second is Cristina Ibarra who is an amazing talent that is going to blow people away with her vision and well crafted stories.

I love how honest your film feels.  Did you ever feel pressure that you had to talk specifically to a Latino audience, or conversely  you ever felt like you had to cut something to avoid alienating any non-Latino audience in your film – if only to reach a ‘broader’ audience.

Absolutly not.  In general I feel like an outsider in most established social groups, so I try to remain true to what my instinct tells me to do.  My priority is and always will be to make films about people.  That’s hard enough to figure out besides trying to appease others always tangles me up in someone else’s web.

How has your experience been with the Latino Film Festivals you’ve been invited to with your film?  How do they rank and operated? What do you think they do best and what do you wish they did better?

We have been so blessed this year with the opportunity to meet the most amazing people at festivals.  New York Latino was the first Latino festival we played in and what can I say, there is nothing like New Yorkers. They can be gruff and thuggy on the outside yet sweet and intellectuals on the inside.  The festival takes great risk in programming and finding new talent.  Austin was incredible because the people  of Austin are so down to earth yet out there. It was a perfect match  for our film.  Chicago Latino was the unexpected surprise in the bunch.  Well organized, elegant and classy.  I have to admit I was initially intimidated by the other film makers from Latin America who were the cream of the crop.  But the audience reassured me that I was in the right place.   It seemed as if they had been waiting a long time for a film like ours to come along.The festivals were all amazing at welcoming out-of-towners, but if I were to throw a penny in a wishing well I guess I would say it would be nice if more marketers and distributors would attend the festivals so we could figure out how to get the product to the people.

Leana Chavez

Both!! I had to have been a little, or very,  delusional to think we could pull of this film with as little as we had.  And I can’t help but feel like life is a dreary place if you don’t have a little bit of magic to make you believe that anything is possible.

What are you working on next?

My next project is “La Puta”, (what-ya gonna do, right? ) The story is set in a mythical dessert border town that nobody can remember which side of the border it was on.  But they all remember “La Puta”, the town whore who lactates a healing nectar from her breast and heals a town desperately trying not to drown in the sea of sand that surrounds them.

~Love it!  Muchisimas gracias mujer!  All y’all Angelenos better come to see Delusions of Grandeur and meet Iris in person Saturday, May 18.  Buy tickets here. 

Like on Face, website

The program has a range of down and dirty sexy indie genre. For you grind house fans, there’s the badass Dutch film which previously screened at Austin’s Fantastic Fest, Blackout, a breakneck speed, black comedy Snatch-y crime thriller with an underbelly crime ensemble featuring a delightfully deplorable mob boss who is a ballet dancer and ever cordial switch turn menacing Russian.

Kaya Scodelario as Emanuel

There is the darling and dazzling EMANUEL AND THE TRUTH ABOUT FISHES, from this year’s Sundance US Dramatic Competition, written and directed by Francesca Gregorini (Tanner Hall). It’s a fantastically rendered tale about a raised-by- her-single-dad teen played enigmatically by Kaya Scodelario.  Our french new wave heroine with unbridled imagination, self-deprecating and biting wit, willfully carries the haunting burden of having killed her mom in childbirth, which opens the door to an unexpected journey of discovery when a new neighbor who looks like her dead mother embraces her.  Then, there is the world premiere of HAIRBRAINED which I have not seen but I’m looking forward to watch.  Written and directed by Billy Kent in collaboration with his Love Lane Pictures crew (The Oh in Ohio) it’s about Ivy League rejects who mobilize their underdog school Master Mind team to launch a championship coup against Harvard.  The young cast is led by newcomer Alex Wolff as Eli Pettifog, Brendan Fraser is Eli, his 41 year old roommate, and Eli’s mother is played by permanently throned Indie royalty, Parker Posey.  If documentaries are your jam, I recommend the affecting FUREVER by Amy Finkel which examines the irrevocable bond between a pet owner and their pet, and the absolutely staggering cinematic ETERNAL AMAZON.

Gina R as Alexis Fish, trying to get her groove back

The headline however, is that to my absolute delight, the American Latino film SLEEPING WITH THE FISHES, written and directed by Nicole Gomez Fisher will be having its world premiere at the Brooklyn Film Festival.  The comedy is the directorial debut of an emerging filmmaker, actor/writer Nicole Gomez Fisher and is produced by Courtney Andrialis.  With Gina Rodriguez’s starmeter rising on the heels of Filly Brown’s success, it should help veer the discovery of this charismatic indie gem.  It’s so awesome to see the rare female written and character driven comedy unapologetically rooted in variable measures of raw, fierce, sweet and vulnerable feminine nature, especially as seen from the under-represented multi-cultural perspective. Gina plays 30 something Puerto Rican/Jewish Alexis Fish as she undergoes a trying but necessary unhinging following a terrible life ordeal.  On a return visit to her old hood, she must bear the humiliation and misperception of her parents’ version of her reality while being constantly reminded of her unmet potential, before she can begin to freshly kickstart a new independent life focusing on herself this time around.  Gina is a versatile and exuberant actor and Gomez Fisher gives her a role with lots of legroom to show off her comedy chops.  You lucky New Yorkers have the chance to be the first to see this hilarious and heartwarming debut by a talented young female filmmaker.  Check out the film’s website, and like on Face to show the love and keep up with future screening announcements.

Also noteworthy in the program is a movie from Cuba.  GIRAFFES written and directed by Enrique (Kiki) Alvarez about two young lovers and squatters living invisibly in the middle of Habana’s hustle and bustle.  The film premiered earlier this year at Rotterdam yet I can’t find a single review of it (?)  I’m dying to watch it.  Looks like a daring commentary on Cuba as provocative as the sensual young bodies.  Miralo.

Lastly but never least, in shorts, I spy a short called OJALA by Ryan Velasquez about a young Guatemalan pregnant woman who recalls her mother’s journey from Guatemala to LA as she makes her way home, and two shorts from Mexico, CHAOS and THE PHANTOM PAIN.

So there’s your heads up East Coast.  Save the date (May 31-June 9) and head to our beloved B-Boy MCA’s hood to scope out these films.  Take advantage of the early bird reasonably priced $100 Festival Pass that gives you access to all films and parties.

Announcing a new weekly feature:  Every Friday I’ll upload an eye-opening short film capturing the modern and authentic bi-literate American experience made by a talented multi-cultural American Filmmaker to Know.

To inaugurate the series I’m pleased to post the short film Laredo, Texas by Topaz Adizes, which screened at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.  With such short sighted, stat-driven, divisive and one sided media-induced rhetoric swirling around immigration reform and undocumented labor presently, this film offers a compassionate, layered and intimate glimpse, humanizing the issue and demonstrating its psychological depth.  At just about 11 minutes, the story quickly simmers and cuts into the heart of the compelling conflict between two points of view, which we get to see play out in a way that feels credible, because the circumstances that have led these two completely seemingly different people in such close proximity is a common instance of how life revolves.  Substantial, economical and veracious, it’s hard to tell this is a ‘scripted narrative’ and not a straight up documentary – a unique quality Topaz crafts in his films which tend to delve into the interconnection of national and cultural identity and how it confronts perception and ideology, all within a framework of transnationalism and globalism. His work has screened at numerous international festivals, and his Americana Project, shot around the world explores what it means to be American and is available for educational purposes.  He is currently working on a couple new feature films.  I highly recommend you get to know his meaningful, sociological and humanistic docudrama storytelling.  Check out his work on his website.

The lineup consists of a handful of new American indies mixed in with many favorited international films from last year’s Toronto, Venice, London and Berlin film festivals, and seven Sundance films screening out of competition including Ryan Coogler’s Fruitvale Station, which won both the Audience and Jury Awards in Park City.  Starring Boricua Melonie Diaz as Oakland police murder victim Oscar Grant’s girlfriend, Fruitvale will be given the gala treatment (like last year’s Sundance awarded, Black film, Middle of Nowhere), alongside the direct-from-Cannes, Only God Forgives, the reteaming of director Nicolas Winding Refyn and GQ sensitive alpha hero Ryan Gosling (Drive).

But I’m not here to comb and recycle through the ‘high profile’ films that come armed with buzz. As always I’m spotlighting U.S. films in which the writer/director/cast are native born whose ethnic/cultural roots originates from the Caribbean Islands, Mexico, Central or South America.  In addition, films by filmmakers who may not be Latino, but whose narratives explore and relate to the relevant bi-cultural experience/subjects.  And finally I also like to mention the Latin films (international).

While I’m happy to acknowledge and give it up for LA, it’s still painful for this blogger/programmer to know there are so many more fresh American Latino films out there ready to be discovered.  Game-changing films offering such fresh and original perspectives, which have by and large been dismissed by most of the major US Film Festivals.  With the futures of the two highest profile Latino niche festivals in limbo, The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival and HBO’s NY International Latino Film Festival, it’s especially crushing to know that these films might also be robbed of their only community platform.  It’s cause for alarm and high time to address this void.  But wait, lets save that for another post. For now, lets get back to the Latino stories coming at you at this year’s LA Film Festival.   For official synopsis and pics check the Film Guide here.

NARRATIVE COMPETITION – Notably 9 of the 12 are US, hopefully giving the scrappy indies a better chance to compete and win the cash prize against the healthy subsidized production value of foreign movies.  Five are first features and only one female narrative director.

40 YEARS FROM YESTERDAY written and directed by Rodrigo Ojeda-Beck and Robert Machoian

This is the first feature from the writing/directing team who got a lot of attention with their 2010 short Charlie and The Rabbit.  Ojeda-Beck (whose parents are from Peru) and Machoian who is from the heavily Mexican populated King City, met at Cal State, Monterey Bay where they forged a tight artistic collaboration. Forty Years from Yesterday is described as Machoian’s imagination of how his mother’s death would unfold for his own family, capturing the loss his siblings would feel in losing a parent and his father’s pain in facing the death of his partner.

The duo have their way with documentary, fiction and experimental form, instilling an aura of temporality in an anchored realism.  This unique evocative alchemy is found in Machoian’s doc short, Movies Made from Home #16, a 4 minute existential moment which screened at Sundance this year. The cosmic life themes they tend to broach are treated in such a down to earth and sensitive way, which is further made relatable by the natural non-pro performances they employ.  Robert’s father, Bill Graham has starred in a few of his films and in Forty Years from Yesterday, both Robert’s parents and siblings play themselves. See this endearing behind the scenes clip of the making of the film:

THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT written by Joseph B. Vasquez and directed by Henry Barrial

Written by the late Joseph B. Vasquez (d 1995) whose 1991 movie, Hanging with the Homeboys, was a groundbreaking urban comedy when it came out, now very much a classic, albeit sadly forgotten gem.  The only one of Vasquez’s five movies that was distributed (by New Line), Hanging with the Homeboys was shot in the South Bronx where he was born and raised.  About four homeys, two Puerto Rican (one of them played by a baby-faced Johnny Leguizamo) and two Black, the movie, available on dvd from Amazon (or, I found it in 6 parts on Youtube) screened at the Sundance Film Festival at its indie darling peak. Its good-natured humor is derived from neighborhood beefs, trying to rap to ladies, and the racial tensions of the day delivered with unapologetic commentary.  A slice of barrio life, the film is clearly an early influence for the Ice Cube Friday series.

The House that Jack Built similarly has that raw and authentic Nuyorican energy but pushed into a rollercoaster of a dysfunctional family drama with warmth, affection and intensity.  The director, born from Cuban parents and raised in Washington Heights, Henry Barrial, is also an alumni of Sundance (Somebody 2001).  The film stars E.J. Bonilla as the hot-blooded self-imposed king of his family who buys an apartment building to keep his family close, only to start dictating everybody’s life since he’s letting them live rent free.   Bonilla is a fiercely charismatic up and coming actor who has been turning heads  in the indie world.  This is his third consecutive time at the festival (Four, Mamitas) and he was in Don’t Let Me Drown (Sundance 2009).  An uproarious and high-edged Harlem set chamber piece, the heavy conflict of gravity that besets Jack is from being pulled in opposite directions by his street values on one side and deeply rooted family values on the other.  See the trailer on their Kickstarter page.

MY SISTER’S QUINCEANERA written and directed by Aaron Douglas Johnston

This was reportedly one of the most talked about American films in the experimental leaning Rotterdam Film Festival this year.  The filmmaker who was born and raised in Iowa, Aaron Douglas Johnston, has an impressive academic pedigree having attended world prestigious universities, Oxford and Yale.  His first feature, the small town, gay life set, Bumblefuck, USA screened at Outfest 2011.  In My Sister’s Quinceanera, he uses the local Mexican-American Iowa residents as his non-pro actors with whom he collaborated with on the story.  It’s a gentle and earnest portrayal of a young man named Silas who is convinced he has to leave town to become independent and start his life but must first see his sister’s Quinceanera take place.

WORKERS written and directed by Jose Luis Valle  (Mexico/Germany)  - A quietly simmering artful drama about a retiring factory worker and housemaid in Tijuana circumstantially reunited and trying to compensate for their spent lives.  An accomplished and arresting feature debut, the film premiered at the Berlin Film Festival’s Panorama section and won Best Mexican Film at the Guadalajara film Festival.  A full investment into the contemplative tone and rhythm yields an appreciation for the film’s visceral and dry humor undertones.  Born in El Salvador, Jose Luis Valle previously made a documentary short called Milagro del Papa.

DOCUMENTARY COMPETITION:  7 out 10 are US, 4 first features, six female directors (incl. 2 co-directors)

TAPIA directed by Eddie Alcazar

The 5 time world boxing champion and emotionally damaged blue-eyed Chicano from the 505, Johnny Lee Tapia, survived a series of near deaths before his turbulent life ended at the young age of 45 last year. The sheer volume of tragedy and coping afflictions Johnny endured in his Vida Loca, as he openly shares in his autobiography, includes the scarring experience of seeing his mother’s kidnapping and violent murder at the tender age of eight.  Tapia funneled this heartbreaking formative incident and many other painfully grueling experiences to fuel a successful professional boxing career.  Tapia’s confrontation to such tumult is so impressive, it’s no wonder that former EA video game designer Eddie Alcazar decided to both dramatize and document his harrowing real life story.  Originally announced as a biopic, subsequently the documentary was born of it, in which Eddie captures final interviews and archival footage with the haunted boxer.   This is actually the first feature out of the gate for filmmaker Eddie Alcazar whose radical sci-fi film 0000 has been curiously tracked as in production for a couple years now and the ambitious looking trailer only piqued mad interest.  Watching the clip below of Johnny, there is remarkably and poignantly a slight zeal and spirit, however low key and worn, that emanates from the towering rumble of his battered lifetime – unquestionably his refusal to be knocked out.

PURGATORIO directed by Rodrigo Reyes (Mexico) - An elegiac and cinematically shot poem filled with emotional narration and iconography, this border film is told by way of a tapestry of stories that culminates into a strong cry for human compassion. Imagining the border as if purgatory, where migrants must suffer in order to get through to the other side, the dangerous plight in crossing the US/Mexico border is viewed outside political context but rather a metaphysical prism.  This is the fourth film from Reyes, a talented young documentarian from Mexico.

INTERNATIONAL SHOWCASE

EUROPA REPORT directed by Sebastian Cordero and written by Philip Gelatt - From award winning Ecuador born filmmaker Sebastian Cordero (Rabia, Cronicas, Pescador) Europa Report marks his first film in English. Somewhat shrouded in mystery, the story is written by Philip Gelatt, an adult comic book author, and is set aboard the first manned mission to Jupiter’s moon Europa. The genre bending sounding sci-fi thriller was recently picked up by Magnolia’s Magnet division and will go straight to VOD on June 27 after its LA Film Festival premiere. Cordero, who is a UCLA grad, has a well-controlled gritty realism to his aesthetic, which might inhabit and distinguish this deep space thriller among the genre’s canon.

CRYSTAL FAIRY written and directed by Sebastian Silva (Chile) - From the crafty young Chilean filmmaker whose first first film, The Maid put him on the international map, this is one of two films he screened at Sundance this year.  A road trip of self-discovery featuring the charming free spirited Gaby Hoffman pitted against a smarmy American tourist Michael Cera in the long and vast Chilean coast side, the film explores their unusual and fluid character dynamic and opposing auras.

THE WOMEN AND THE PASSENGER directed by Valentina Mac-Pherson, Patricia Correra (Chile) - A 45 minute version of this screened at the prestigious documentary film festival in Amsterdam IDFA.  An unobtrusive camera follows four maids as they clean the rooms of one of those clandestine by-the-hour motels.  Amid the moans behind doors and bed aftermaths of torrid love affairs, the women reveal their own perspectives about life, love and sex in some kind of visual love letter to the special place.   I don’t believe the title is translated to interpret its full meaning, its more like, “The Transients’ women”.

SHORTS

I WAS BORN IN MEXICO BUT…. written and directed by Corey OHama - 12min (US) - Per the IMDB description, “using found footage to tell the story of an undocumented young woman who grew up thinking she was American, only to find out as a teenager that she didn’t have papers because she was brought to the U.S. as a young child. “  Sounds like the thousands of Dreamers plights whose stories are being suppressed.

MISTERIO written and directed by Chema Garcia Ibarra (Spain) 12min - So even though this is from Spain (not the Americas),  I mention it if because I’m a huge fan of Chema’s shorts, Protoparticles  and The Attack of the Robots from Nebula-5.   I have no doubt this will share that similar strange, whimsical vibe.

 AL LADO DE NORMA written and directed by Camila Luna, Gabriela Maturana 14min (Chile) - 49 year-old Jorge is a silent, tired man, whose life seems to revolve around Norma, his elderly mother who has Alzheimer’s. But Antonio, who rents a small room in their home, will provide him with the chance to examine himself and question his monotonous life, which might just make for a radical change.

PAPEL PICADO – written and directed by Javier Barboza - From a 2007 Cal Arts Alumnus, and independent animation teacher and filmmaker, this looks wild!  Check out his vimeo works here.

SAINT JOHN, THE LONGEST NIGHT, written and directed by Claudia Huaiquimilla (Chile) 18 min - The filmmaker is of the indigenous Mapuche tribe of Southern Chile.  Set amid the happy Saints celebration of June 24, a young boy must wrestle with the reappearance of his violent father.

TOO MUCH WATER (DEMASIADA AGUA) written and directed by Nicolas Botana, Gonzalo Torrens (Uruguay)  14 min - A young woman fills her backyard pool every night and finds it empty in the morning. Strange neighbors and even stranger circumstances stir her paranoia.

Lastly, I have to mention dance beat rapper Kid Cudi’s feature film acting debut in GOODBYE WORLD directed by Denis Hennelly (Rock the Bells doc about Wu Tang Clan) and written by Sarah Adina Smith.   Essentially, the film is about a group of friends hanging out when some kind of apocalypse hits.  Hijinks ensue. (There’s a trend here after It’s A Disaster and the upcoming “look-we’re-so-cool-we-play-ourselves celeb cast partying of This is The End).  Although he’s one of seven players, including Adrian Grenier, Mark Webber and Gaby Hoffman, it is one a few films Kid Cudi is in that are coming through the pipeline.  Born Scott Ramon Seguro Mescudi in Cleveland Ohio, he is a beautiful brown mestizo blend of African American on his mother’s side and Native/Mexican mix on his father’s side.

The LA Film Festival kicks off with Pedro Almodovar’s, I’m So Excited on June 13 and runs until the 23.  Tickets and info here.

Amat Escalante – a young yet old soul maestro of impactful formalism

Amat Escalante is now three for three as he will be taking his third film, HELI to La Croisette, but this is his first time in Official Competition. Los Bastardos and Sangre screened in Un Certain Regard.  The screenplay for Heli was developed at the Sundance Screenwriters lab 2010 where it won the NHK Filmmaker Award.  At that stage the logline was described: “In a small Mexican town, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared.”  A die hard and impactful formalistic filmmaker, the weight of his films comes from framing, compositions and magnetic usually non pro actor performances.

Rodolfo Domínguez aboard “La Bestia” Foto Moysés Zúñiga Santiago

La Jaula de Oro (refers to a popular Los Tigres del Norte song about a family who crosses over to the states only to feel ‘trapped in the golden cage) directed by Spanish filmmaker Diego Quemada Diez is screening in Un Certain Regard.  Quemada Diez is an AFI grad who has worked as camera assistant/operator with Cannes alums Ken Loach, Oliver Stone, Isabel Coixet, Alejandro González Iñárritu, Spike Lee and Fernando Meirelles.  This first feature project was developed at Cannes incubators L’Atelier and Cinefondation residence.  Quemada Diez has spent ten years in Mexico and this story is described as a visceral migration story from Guatemala towards the United States.  That it is shot in Panoramic (2:40) format will no doubt heighten the cinematic odyssey.  Notably the filmmaker used over 600 real life undocumented immigrants to personify the story.  A Machete production (Leap Year, Cannes 2010).

And in the CineFondation section – a program created in 1998 to inspire and support the next generation of international filmmakers, the short film program will feature Alejandro Iglesias Mendizábal (Abracadabra) with the wicked Grimm Bros sounding title, Contrafabula de una Nina Disecada (Fable of a Blood-Drained girl).  A graduate of the CCC film school (think UCLA or NYU for film in Mexico City).  The short film screened at last fall’s Morelia Film Festival – furthering the Morelia – Cannes relationship. Check out the FILM trailer below.  And I take back my previous comment of the shut out of South America; this film school slate includes the short films, Asuncion by Camila Luna Toledo from Chile, and Mañana Todas Las Cosas by Sebastian Schjaer from Argentina.

A couple other interesting observations is that Valeria Golino, the sultry Italian Greek goddess of such classic films like Rain Main (and Hot Shots pt. Deux) is making her feature directorial debut with Miele (honey).  Sofia Coppola is also three for three with her Bev Hills cat burglar themed movie, The Bling Ring.

All in all I feel it’s the usual elitist exclusive Cannes society club with new films by regulars Takashi Miike, Johnnie To, Paolo Sorrentino, Hirokazu Kore-eda and the Coen brothers.  I can’t say the list on the whole excites me.  I have never had the opportunity to go to Cannes so by the time I see the films, the hype that accompanies their bow is all but gone.  However I am looking forward to seeing Nicolas Wending Refn’s latest, Only God Forgives.  I’ve loved him since the pugilistic criminally twisted Bronson where I first met and fell in love with the brawny but sensitive Tom Hardy (who played Bane in Dark Knight Rises)  I also enjoyed the oddly toned Drive with Ryan Gosling with whom he teams up with again here.  As if there was any doubt that Polanski is safely ensconced and a respected member of the international arthouse club, he has two films showing; Venus in Fur in Official Competition, and Weekend of A Champion, a documentary about Formula 1 race car driver icon Jackie Stewart which Brett Ratner has picked up for distribution.  It’s almost as if Ratner knew the aristocratic vintage Monte Carlo Grand Prix slice of history would tickle the french folks nostalgia they couldn’t help but to special screen it and give him a chance to rub on some high brow.

SNL has a five time member club.  Gimmie a hot sec to google which one of these folks on the list have been to Cannes the most…….update:  So far, The Coen brothers take the honors with their latest Inside Llewyn Davis marking their 8th appearance, and Johnnie To is close behind as his Blind Detective will mark his 6th time at Cannes.

Reblogged from Mi blog es tu blog:

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The folks over at Mattel are so smart, that not only they have come up with a Mexican Barbie, but they have given her all the possible tools to go around the U.S. the world undisturbed.

In addition to a "wonderfully bright pink dress with ribbon accents," Mexican Barbie comes fashionably ready for a fiesta with her Chihuahua friend (we all do.) But that is not all: According to Mattel, this beauty features accessories that "add play value," including a passport and sticker sheet.

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