DGA Lends Support to 
4th Annual LA Latino International Film Festival

By Jose Martinez
Photos by Robert Hale

The 4th Annual Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF) held July 21 - 30 in Hollywood, Calif., welcomed filmmakers from 13 different countries and screened nearly 50 feature films. For the second year in a row, the DGA's presence was noticeable as the Guild sponsored two events and served as an evening sponsor.

During a pre-LALIFF press conference, the festival's founder, actor /producer /director/ community activist Edward James Olmos, declared this year's festivities as a "momentous occasion," adding, "After three years you get your wings; after four years you're a complete entity."

LALIFF's mission, according to Olmos, is to "bring the best Latino films from all over the world to Los Angeles, the Mecca of films." Co-founder and Director of Programming Marlene Dermer added that the festival aims to "educate and plant a seed for the future."

The first DGA - sponsored event was a panel titled "Directors on Directing" moderated by Ricardo Méndez Matta, Co-chair of the Guild's Latino Committee. Panelists included directors Miguel Arteta (Star Maps, Chuck and Buck), Salvador Carrasco (The Other Conquest) and Randa Haines (Dance With Me, Wrestling Ernest Hemingway, Children of a Lesser God).

Having worked with a very impressive array of actors, including Robert Duvall, Richard Harris and William Hurt, Haines urged that "people who want to be directors and writers should take acting classes. The more understanding you can bring to this process the better."

Arteta, remembering the advice of his AFI teacher, actor/director and Guild member Norman Lloyd, said, "Your job as a director working with actors is to find a way to help your actor focus. The second thing is to preserve the actor's ego. Some actors you have to talk to a lot, and not just about their performance."

New Guild member Carrasco praised the art of filmmaking and the actors he worked with. "One of the defining things about film is that it is all about what happens in that rectangle and there can be terrific moments, performances, gestures, light and shade, but if it's not in that rectangle, it's missed. That's a very simple and basic thought, but it's so important to be aware of that all the time. I have the utmost respect and admiration for actors because they bare everything [in front of the camera]."

With only one feature film to his credit, Carrasco already has a firm grasp on the directing mindset. "The director's role is to have that vision in mind. You know that is the moment. As the director you're trying to get the best performance and it's not a democratic process. It is about control and precision."

Asked whether they felt an urgency to tell Latino stories or if they'd rather tell the best stories possible regardless of ethnicity, all three directors were in agreement.

"I definitely want to break away from the barrier of representation," Arteta answered. "I think that the best way to get Latino things out there is to have many different individual stories. I think it's a burden for an artist to represent his whole people. That's unfair. I think if somebody is compelled to do that; that's fine, it's very legitimate and very necessary."

"You do bring your own perceptions, sensitivities, background and culture inevitably because you are who you are," Carrasco added. "If I make a film about a classic American icon, it's still this particular Mexican director's vision of that. My upbringing and culture and my first 20 years in Mexico will inevitably play a role because that shaped the way I see things, and the way I respond to things. I don'tthink we should limit ourselves by any means."

DGA Assistant Executive Director Elizabeth Stanley, who also attended the panel, said, "In the face of increasing globalization of our business, unity among directors worldwide is crucial if we're going to be able to continue to protect their creative and economic rights. Festivals like this enable our members to meet their peers from around the world and not only share experiences about stories and the making of those stories, but also share experiences in terms of their lives as artists."

"I really feel that the Guild's involvement in things like this demonstrates that the Guild really is about the community of filmmakers around the world," said Haines. "It's not just about our membership. It's constantly trying to connect artistically with other people, because all our concerns are so similar. The more exchange we have with people around the world who do what we do, whether they're directors or work on the production side, the healthier all of us feel."

Panel moderator Matta noted, "Before LALIFF, there was no forum where a bunch of us could get together and talk. You go to Cannes or New York or Sundance and you meet one or two other Latinos. But to get so many people under one roof for one purpose has really been very productive."

The second Guild-sponsored event was a Directors Luncheon held in the DGA atrium. Getting the afternoon's festivities underway was DGA Associate National Executive Director Warren Adler, who praised Olmos and Dermer "for their unwavering dedication, which has resulted in the continuing success of this festival." He went on to say, "You looked out and saw a need to bring this festival to a city where both the history and a large part of the population have deep roots in the Latino heritage. Although statistics seem to indicate that this fact seems either lost or ignored by a lot of this industry, rest assured it is neither lost, nor will it be ignored by us here at the DGA."

"This is one of the most important, if not the most important organization for filmmakers," Olmos stated. "Directors have the vision; we're the storytellers. Most foreign-based directors would love to be part of this. I think it's basic to what we're trying to do. Although I'm looking forward to the day where the seal reads Directors Guild of the Americas."

Also present at the luncheon was director Gregory Nava (Selena, Mi Familia) who was proud to point out the rich history of Latin cinema. "I don't think the caliber of films has necessarily been improving, I think its always been wonderful. And before the festival started it was wonderful. There have always been great films made in Latin America. One of the great oversights to me is the lack of knowledge of the great Golden Age of Mexican cinema. In the '40s and '50s there were tremendously wonderful films made by excellent directors like Emilio Fernandez with great stars like Maria Felix, Pedro Armendariz and Dolores del Rio. These are some of the finest films ever made in the history of cinema, and yet so many Americans, even film buffs, don'tknow anything about them. So there's a real need to bring an understanding of the kind of filmmaking that's been done in Latin America and Mexico, not just now but historically."

LALIFF organizers estimate that 30,000 people attended this year, an increase from last year's 23,000 attendees.

DGA member Nigel Noble won best documentary for The Charcoal People. Chilean filmmaker Cristian Galaz won the Opera Prima (for best first-time filmmaker) for Chacotero Sentimental. Best screenplay and director awards went to Mexico's Luis Estrada for his black comedy on Mexican politics and corruption, La Ley de Herodes. His film recently swept Mexico's Arieles, the country's equivalent to the Oscars. Venezuelan director Gustavo Balza won best film for El Valle. The filmmaker noted on stage, "This is the first time in my life I have ever won an award. This film was not an easy film to make or watch. So thank you all very much for this award." In addition Mexican Cinema queen Maria Felix was honored with The Gabriel Figueroa Lifetime Achievement Award.

Inspired to showcase the best Latino films possible, Olmos could not help reiterate the importance of the Guild's involvement with LALIFF. "It's the single most important aspect of all of this. This is the most important Latino festival in the world, not because it's the most prestigious, not because it's the biggest, but because it's in the heart of where the industry is. I take my hat off to the Directors Guild for exposing all these different Latin American directors to the unifying factor of this community. I think everyone who makes movies should be part of this community."

Table of Contents     Top of Page