The Films:
The Turkey (8 min)
A woman's emancipation from her ungrateful family
Directed by Anna Margarita Albelo
¿Existes? (13 min.)
Orgasm, onanism, existentialism and God as seen in a concurrent sexual pursuit
throughout various cities of the world
Directed by David Rodriguez Estrada
Toy Soldiers (14 min.)
A bullied schoolboy seeks refuge in his imagination.
Directed by Jose Yapur
Remember Me in Red (15 min.)
A group of transgender Latinas must find a way to honor how their deceased
friend wanted to be remembered
Directed by Hector Ceballos
The Rookie and the Runner (10 min.)
A jogger in the park gets more than he bargained for when he encounters
two handsome strangers
Directed by Augie Robles
Primera Comunión (14 min)
A young outsider confronts the harsh rituals of a cruel, if also Catholic village
Directed by Daniel Eduvijes Carrera
Pura Lengua (9 min)
A young Xicana searches for ways to heal maladies of the heart
Directed by Aurora Guerrero
The Perfect Ones (8 min.)
An amnesia stricken housewife wanders into a lesbian punk club and
discovers a new way of life
Directed by Nao Bustamante and Matt Johnstone
Total running time: 91 minutes
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About the program:
vicious(in)existence:
New Queer Latino Cinema
VICIOUS:
1) having the nature or quality of vice or immorality
2) defective, faulty; also: invalid
3) impure, noxious
4) dangerously aggressive, savage, marked by violence
This program of short films showcases the work of emerging directors who,
while challenging the boundaries of genre and style, shed a light on the complex
intersection of "Queer/Latino". Produced both locally and internationally, these
works are a testament to the diversity of our politics, yet common themes emerge.
From avenging housewives to romance gone rogue, socio-cultural injustice to
existential ruminations on identity or death, these films share the common
preoccupations of violence, revenge and a quest for redemption. In exploring the
deepest concerns from which we mine our inspiration, visions of dangerous
aggression emerge: "vicious" perhaps, but also determining our own salvation.
Questions of visibility and acceptance are at the heart of this redemptive
undertaking. So what to make of queer Latino films that, on the surface, are
neither queer nor Latino? Upon first inspection, a number of these works may seem
reticent to speak of identity, resigned to a "love that dare not speak its name",
suggesting the injustice of having to sublimate our voices. Truly "defective"
or "faulty" is a society where our sexual and cultural identities are suppressed.
In this way, vicious is our very in-existence.
But perhaps this is why we make films in the first place. By harnessing the power
of cinema, we cannot be rendered invisible. Beyond politics and narrative choices,
this collection of short films demonstrates skill and aesthetic sensibilities that are
a direct reflection of who we are as a unique community. At stake when considering
new queer Latino cinema is not simply what stories we choose to tell, but how we
approach storytelling to begin with-how our rich sexual and cultural complexity
informs a creativity that, in turn, contributes to the magnificent history of cinema
language and cinema activism. Gone are the days of propaganda. Whether through
painful explorations of a vicious world or our own vicious, punk rock punch in your
face, these films announce that we've arrived, not simply as an underrepresented
minority group, but as cinema artists.
-Daniel Eduvijes Carrera
'Out-and-Out'
current gallery exhibition