Yesterday I attended the Boyle Heights Latina Independent Film Extravaganza and was really impressed with the short films, documentaries, and feature films that were being screened.
It was a reminder to me of just how much we Latina filmmakers have to say about our life experiences. I walked away both challenged and inspired to keep telling our stories.
What also touched me deeply was the passion in each filmmaker's voice during the Q&A and hearing their responses.
Indeed, some of the topics were heavy which made for great conversation with the filmmakers. I applauded them for the bravery and determination and asked if on any level they were worried they would take heat for making a short/movie about homosexuality, inter-ethnic relationships, infidelity, the whole identity issue on Spanish speaking Hispanics vs. those who cannot speak Spanish and does that make them less Hispanic, and AIDS in the Hispanic community.
I was thrilled to hear their answer, "This IS our life and WE all deal with these issues, not just Hispanics. These are universal issues and we need to stop sweeping them under the carpet and pretending that they don't exist!"
I could not agree more. So to ALL filmmakers out there - keep making your movies!
