The Latin American Studies Film Series begins this Thursday and will feature a total of four Latin films screening on successive Thursdays. Each begins at 7 p.m. in the University Theater and has English subtitles for non-Spanish speakers.
“The entries are selected through attending film festivals, such as the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival,” said Jose Sanchez-H, organizer of the film series and professor in the film and electronic arts department, to the Cal State Long Beach Office of Public Affairs. “We also take into account recommendations from [film and electronic arts] students attending film festivals such as the Sundance Film Festival.”
Under this series’ theme this year of “Dreams and Realities,” the 2006 documentary “Cocalero,” directed by Alejandro Landes, will open the series Thursday. “Cocalero” was nominated for a Grand Jury Prize at the 2007 Sundance Film Festival, and is the story of a union organizer in Bolivia who rises to that country’s presidency.
On Sept. 20, the award-winning comedy by director Claudio Dabed, “Pretending,” will be the second film. “Pretending ” is about a Chilean woman who moves to a new town for a new start. There, she makes herself over as an unattractive woman “in an effort to be taken seriously,” according to the press release.
Masanabu Takayanagi, a CSULB alumnus who recently worked on the film “Babel,” acted as a cinematographer for the film.
The third film, “Little Giants,” will be shown on Sept. 27 and is directed by Oscar-nominee Hugo Butler. “Little Giants” tells the story of a Mexican Little League team’s rise to prominence in the United States.
The fourth and final film on Oct. 4, “A Ton of Luck,” directed by Rodrigo Triana, is based on true-life events and tells the story of battalion soldiers in Columbia finding a hidden cache worth $46 million.
