9th annual Houston Latino Film Festival kicks off with plenty of opportunity to aspiring filmmakers

This story comes from our news partner, ABC13. For more on this story, click here.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — The 9th annual Houston Latino Film Festival is in full swing, featuring musical acts, film-making panels, and film screenings including “American Sons” on Friday night in Houston.

The film follows a brotherhood of Marines decades after their deployment to Afghanistan and documents their lifestyle, their struggles to overcome trauma during and after combat, and the loss of their best friend, Corporal JV Villarreal.

ABC13 sat down with one of the producers of the film, Elizabeth Avellan, about the making of the powerful documentary. She explained how the film has a “universal” message and believes for that reason the story is able to resonate with everyone. It’s also just one of the 70 films being showcased from around the world.

The five-day event is an opportunity to show Latinos are great storytellers, filmmakers, and artists. There’s also so much opportunity for aspiring filmmakers to get their start in the industry. Earlier this week, ABC13 spoke with Pedro Rivas, the events program director, on our 24/7 live stream about Wednesday’s kickoff.

Rivas discussed the importance of representation in inspiring Latinos to enter the industry and start creating.

“Seeing stories that are relatable, you know, to us, and just to see us on screen — it’s a big thing for us,” Rivas said.

He also explained how this year’s festival is expected to be even bigger since they’re really focusing on the musical aspect and plan to have performances during the entire festival.

The Houston Latino Film Festival also comes on the heels of the kickoff for South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin.

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Rivas says it’s perfect timing since they can collaborate by showing all the work artists have to offer.

“The film festivals can work together to our advantage. So, for example, the world premiere of ‘American Sons,’ the director from San Antonio did his world premiere at SXSW. He’s just doing it now. He’s already screened it twice, and he will do it for the third time with us here on Friday,” Rivas said.

Rivas added that aspiring filmmakers could also network with international filmmakers through a number of panels, question-and-answer sessions following film screenings, and workshops that will be held throughout the next few days.

For more information and a full list of the more than 70 films that will be shown, you can visit their website here.