LALIFF 21st Edition: From Studio Films to Youth Cinema Projects

June 1 – 5, 2022 at the TCL Chinese Theater

Los Angeles, CA – Founder of the Latino Film Institute, Academy Award®-nominated actor Edward James Olmos recently announce the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) return for its 21st edition and with it the lineup of films and events that will take place June 1 – 5 at the iconic TCL Chinese Theater and TCL Chinese 6 in Hollywood, CA.

This year’s festival will open with the Disney Original Documentary Mija directed by Isabel Castro. The documentary follows Doris Muñoz, who began a career in music talent management and met Jacks Haupt, an auspicious young singer, both share the ever-present guilt of being the first American-born members of their undocumented families.

The closing night film will be Warner Bros. Pictures and HBO Max’s Father of the Bride directed by Gaz Alazraki with an ensemble cast led by Oscar nominee Andy Garcia alongside Gloria Estefan, Adria Arjona, Diego Boneta, Isabela Merced, and Chloe Fineman.

The full lineup includes feature films, short films, episodic, animation, master classes, and musical performances.

“LALIFF Is proud to present a diverse line-up of Latino storytellers,” said Edward James Olmos, co-founder of LALIFF. “The festival has seen tremendous growth, with support from both the film industry and our audience, allowing us to showcase and nurture important voices that the world needs to hear.”

The festival program comprises 17 feature films from the US, Latin America and Canada. Every film and episodic will have an in-person screening, and a selection will be available online, on-demand, from 12:00 AM to 11:59 PM on Sunday, June 5th.

Other noted films screening during the festival are A Place in the Field directed by Nicole Mejia (currently a fellow of the LALIFF Inclusion Fellowship), All Sorts directed by J. Rick Castañeda (who was part of LALIFF’s Official Selection in 2016 with Cement Suitcase), and Blood Red Ox directed by Rodrigo Bellot (his previous feature, Tu Me Manques, was Bolivia’s submission for the Goyas and the Academy Awards in 2019).

The documentary program includes My Two Voices directed by Lina Rodriguez (which premiered at this year’s Berlinale as part of the Forum section); Comala, directed by Gian Cassini (an official selection by the Toronto, Morelia and Guadalajara Film Festivals), Pepe Serna: Life is Art directed by Luis Reyes, about the groundbreaking Mexican-American character actor Pepe Serna and whose body of work proves the lasting power and importance of character actors; and What We Leave Behind directed by Iliana Sosa, that tells the story of her grandfather’s lifetime of bus rides across the border to visit his children in the U.S.

“You will find some of the boldest films, TV series and music, with 50% of the program directed by women,” said Diana Cadavid, LALIFF’s Festival Director. “We offer a platform for our artists to connect with a diverse and multicultural audience, as well as with important players in the industry,” said Diana Cadavid, LALIFF’s Festival Director.

The Latinx inclusion Fellowship Series, sponsored by Netflix, will include five Afro Latino and five Indigenous Latino filmmakers. All ten filmmakers will be premiering their short films at LALIFF 2022.

Celebration animation this year the festival includes the Latino Film Institute’s premiere of two animated series from Mexico and the Cafecito Talks, conversations that cover a broad spectrum of perspectives in the animation world, featuring industry leaders and diverse talent and artists.

The festival has three juried competitions in the Live Action Short, Animated Short and Short Episodic categories.

The LALIFF Music 5th edition will highlight exceptional and diverse Latino/a talent, music panels, networking lounges, and celebrate the art and sound.

LALIFF this year will collaborate with AltaMed Health Services to celebrate the work of Harry Gamboa Jr., Chicano artist (photographer, performance artist, director), author, educator, and currently the Director of the Photo/Media Program at the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). The festival will showcase a selection of his photography and video artwork, spanning over six decades.

LALIFF’s Industry Days includes one on one meetings and networking events, a series of panels of industry talks covering a wide variety of topics.

The two-day Legacy event, LALIFF’s student film festival, returns with over 100 films shot and produced by students of the Youth Cinema Project and will include student film premieres, panels, Q&As, special events and workshops, and screenings.

For more information and listing of sponsors for the festival For the LALIFF full programming slate, schedule and sponsor listing please visit www.laliff.org. Tickets are now available to purchase through the festival’s site here.

Read the full article here.