Although her tenure as director of IU Latino Studies began in January 2015, Sylvia Martinez said she began planning the film festival months prior to officially starting.
After more than a year and a half of planning, organizing and fundraising, Martinez and her staff are presenting “Intersectionality: IU Latina Film Festival and Conference” this weekend, April 7-9, at the IU Cinema.
The three-day film festival is back for the third time. It returns every other year due to how long it takes to plan, Martinez said.
“It was an ambitious program from the start,” she said. “It was a huge success, so we decided we should do this every other year.”
The festival started in 2012. At the time, IU Latino Studies director John Nieto-Phillips started the festival as a way to complement academics with cultural representations, Martinez said.
Each year, the film festival has a theme. As one of her first tasks as director, she wanted to focus on women, she said. As a result, the festival is host to 11 films and three panels, all related to or made by Latinas.
“We just want to give a more nuanced representation of Latinas,” she said. “I think we tend to hold very stereotypical notions of what Latinas are about. So we’re trying to present the whole spectrum here.”
The three panels throughout the weekend feature different topics, including “Shorts & Conversations with Directors,” “The Latina Experience in Hollywood” and “Victimization and Violence.”
The festival also welcomes seven Latina filmmakers and scholars to discuss their films and Latina representation in the media, Martinez said.
Andrea Meller, a Chilean-American filmmaker, will present her film “Now en Español” and doing a Q&A following the screening.
“Now en Español” tells the story of five Latina actresses who dub “Desperate Housewives” for Spanish-speaking audiences in the U.S.
The film is both a personal story of these actresses and a wider look at Latina representation in the media, Meller said.
“Even in the documentary world, we’re always telling the same stories,” Meller said. “They’re all totally important, but kind of negative portrayals. For me, focusing on actresses was a way to tell a different story that had a little more glamour and a little bit more fun and humor.”
Cristina Ibarra, a Chicana filmmaker, is also coming to Bloomington to present her film “Las Marthas.”
“Las Marthas” follows the annual debutante ball in Laredo, Texas, as two young Mexican-American girls go through the rite of passage filled with expensive dresses and a history of the Southwest.
“On the surface, it looks like this very unique Americanization ritual,” Ibarra said. “But if you really look at the celebration, it becomes apparent that it’s more about celebrating the roots of the town.”
While, working as a Latina in the industry, Ibarra said she has faced challenges proving herself as a filmmaker.
She said her race and gender have both created an added pressure to her career.
“I had to make a strong case for this film,” she said. “It’s not just a superficial film about dresses.”
Meller said she is happy this film festival is focusing on female directors.
However, she said it’s important to not just focus on female directors in the film industry.
“It’s not only about what we’re seeing on camera, but who’s telling these stories, who’s writing these stories, who’s producing these stories, who’s editing these stories, who’s shooting them,” she said.”
Even though the festival has just begun, Martinez said she and her team are already thinking about 2018’s festival.
With the films screening this weekend, she said she hopes to reach new audiences in Bloomington and teach them about Latina culture.
“I’m hoping we can sell the story that we need to look and produce more diverse representations of Latinas,” she said. “We don’t all look like Sofía Vergara. I hope to show that women can carry a film festival.”
Festival Schedule of Events
All events free but ticketed
Thursday
5 p.m. Keynote Lecture: Patricia Cardoso
6:30 p.m. “The Second Mother”
9:30 p.m. “Lake Los Angeles”
Friday
9 a.m. “Now en Español” and Q&A with Director Andrea Meller
1:00 p.m. “Las Marthas” and Q&A with Director Cristina Ibarra
2:00 p.m. Conference Panel 1: Shorts & Conversations with Directors
4:00 p.m. Conference Panel 2: The Latina Experience in Hollywood
6:30 p.m. Real Women Have Curves and Q&A with Director Patricia Cardoso
9:30 p.m. How the Garcia Girls Spent Their Summer
Saturday
9:00 a.m. Señorita Extraviada
10:30 a.m. Conference Panel 3: Victimization and Violence
1:30 p.m. “No Más Bebés” and Q&A with Director Renee Tajima-Peña
3:30 p.m. “Mala Mala”
6:30 p.m. “Girlfight”
9:30 p.m. “Filly Brown”
