By Rosy Cordero
EXCLUSIVE: The National Hispanic Media Coalition revealed its lineup for the upcoming 7th Annual Offical Latino Film and Arts Festival to be presented virtually from Nov. 26 to 28.
Titles include Welcome to Our World, directed by Alfredo Ramos, with performances by Danny Trejo, Emilio Rivera, and Valente Rodriguez. The feature tells the story of Freddie, a young and irresponsible supermarket box boy who is forced to rise to the occasion when his father (Trejo) has a work-related accident. Freddie must now assume the role of “the man of the house and keep the family from going homeless with hilarious results.
“The NHMC is proud to work with Official Latino and HBO to ensure that our stories are being told and that we are creating space for Latino artists to thrive,” said Brenda Castillo, President and CEO of the NHMC. “ The more we can uplift and promote Latinx talent in the entertainment industry, the more we’ll see ourselves represented and truly effect change in Hollywood and beyond.”
The full list of short films and features joining Welcome to the World can be found below.
Shorts Program 1: Native Tongues
Can’t Have It Both Ways by Morningstar Angeline, This Is the Way We Rise by Ciara Lacy, Painter of Dreams by Gabriel J. Medina and Marcus Cisneros, Totems by Justin Deegan, Douk by Michelle Hernandez, Chuj Boys of Summer by Max Walker-Silverman
Shorts Program 2: Alumni Spotlight
Ghazi Shabazz Omair: Comfortable by Enrique Lebron, He, The People by Brandon Hugo Arroyo, Disarm by Carlos Carrasco, Mi Amor by Yennifer Behrens, L.U.N.A. by Blake Vaz, Ink by Osvaldo Ozuna, Wound Riders by Angel Barroeta, Till Dawn by Juan Gil, Picking Daisies by Leonardo Santaiti
Shorts Program 3: In a Pandemic Era
Little Bean by Adrienne Lovette, Once by Jeff Torres, Inertia by David Har’el, Everything but Fear by Bryan TwZ Brousseau, Second Responders by Julissa Xena Delacruz, El Montaje (The Montage) by Ed Trucco, Amor en Cuarentena by Eugenia Renteria, Into the Aftermath by Vagabond
Shorts Program 4: Ties That Bind
Home Movies – The Murder by Lorena Russi, Serenity Prayer by Amanda Morell, Our Shag Pad by Aldo Pisano, Speeding Toward Red Lights by Jonathan Lee-Rey, Saving Salvador by Luisa Maria González, Connor by Hilary Bettis, María by Zoé Salicrup Junco, With His Eyes Closed by Jose Navas, Tejano Night by Alexander Rosales
Shorts Program 5: Youth, Truth, and Resilience
Circa by Sandra Portal-Andreu, Letter of Wreck by Gustavo Guardado, Jr., Death & Deathability (A Period Piece) by Maria Victoria Ponce, Remember When by Paola Ossa, Beat Lingo by Jose Navas, Team Meryland by Gabriel Gaurano
Shorts Program 6: Las Jefas
Lux Noctis by Damiana Acuña, Alma y Paz by Cris Gris, When You Clean a Stranger’s Home by Sharon Arteaga, My Life Stopped At 15 by Nicole Mejia, #Whitina by J.Sean Smith, Miss Panama by Lamar Bailey Karamañites, Pascale Boucicaut, and David Felix Sutcliffe
Shorts Program 7: Flickeo Streams
Nutcos by Gilberto Flories, Federal Approved Parent by Katrina Cebreiro, Friends in High Places by Christen Celaya, Spanky by Alex Martinez, Black & Brown Poet Series by Rafael Flores
Shorts Program 8: Puro Pride
Eres Perfecto by Él Avalon Sandoval Reilly, You Are Enough by Jacqueline Guillen, Valiente (Brave) by Miguel Melo, Pool Boy by Luke Willis, Defining Dodo by Lauren Harris, Novena by Fernando Lopez, I Just Wish You Told Me by Michelle C. Bonilla, Gold Star by Karla Legaspy
Shorts Program 9: NHMC Latinx Stream Showcase
Hermanas by Michael Martinez, Legends by Michael Martinez, Sorta Rican by Steph OH, The Swimmers by Michael Martinez, Welcome Back by Edwin Alexis Gómez, Werq It by Edwin Alexis Gómez, You’ll Be Happy Here by Brenda Castillo
Short Program 10: Raza Cosmica
Retain by Grace Goen, Time by Adam Gonzalez, RECuerdo by Alfonso M. Rodriguez, In Search of Aliens by Susan Aparicio, Luminous by Than Niles, Nuevo Rico by Kristian Mercado, La Luna y el Colibri (The Moon and the Hummingbird) by Luis Fernando Puente
Shorts Program 11: La Zona Oscura
Mad Machine by Sergio Guerra, Tinder Tango by Cecilia Robles, Worry Dolls by Marcella Ochoa, Dentro de Mi by Melanie D’Andrea, Mi Casa by Kristina Arjona, I’m A Vampire by Sofia Garza-Barba, Noche Del Infierno (Hell Night) by Andrew Reid, Crabs in a Barrel by Michael León
Shorts Program 12: Urban Encounters
Grandes Ligas by Edgar Nito, Never Too Late by Guillermo Alfonso, Rosie by Paula A. Cajiao, Burn, Baby, Burn by Janthony Roman, The Yellow Bicycle by Mickey Nedimovic, Warren? by Juan C. Linares, Shell-Shocked by Paula A. Cajiao, In Broad Daylight by Alex Ferrufino
Shorts Program 13: Excursions in Arte y Cultura
Los Búmerans – Extraña Suerte by Juanchi González, Elsewhere by Morris Callegari,
Poster Boy “Left On Read” A Tribute to Alanna Gabin by Enrique Lebron, Living Altars by Peggy Peralta, The Beginning is Near: The Art of Vincent Valdez by Ray Santisteban, My Mud, My Hillside by Julia Mendoza Friedman, Joy in Music by Mark Kohr, Messiah – The Resurrection by Andres Rivera, Superestar by Daniel Larios
Shorts Program 14: Fronteras In Focus
At the Wall by Sandra Varona, A Real Job by Nicole Romero, Sombras by Marc Sanchez, Águilas/Eagles by Kristy Guevara-Flanagan and Maite Zubiaurre, Disrupted Borders by Alejandra Aragon, No Soy Óscar by Jon Ayon, Dia de Las Carpas by João Dall’Stella
Superblocked
Directed by Romel Rodriguez
2021, USA, 94 min
A struggling Latino entrepreneur starts a professional cockblocking business in order to help his mom buy her dream house in Florida.
Fearless
Directed by Wojciech Lorenc
2021, USA, 89 min
An intimate portrait of a boxing gym in the small town of Conroe, Texas. The film is constructed as an allegory for the challenges faced by people of color and immigrants in the US.
Love and Baseball
Directed by Steve Acevedo
2020, USA, 87 min
Will and Michele meet and magically fall in love, but once life gets in the way, they must figure out if their love is real or not. Told through 3 meetings over a 4-year period, we see that love, like a baseball game, is a story, and every date and every pitch are lines of that story. But what happens between those lines is up for interpretation and chance.
Venus de Macho
Directed by Danny Hastings
2019, USA, 76 min
Venus de Macho is a spicy American Latinx gender role reversal comedy about men looking for love, respect, and support in a bizarre matriarchal world that very much reflects the patriarchy and machismo that has plagued our community.
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