UHD Hosts 8th Annual Cine Cuauhtémoc Film Festival Oct 18

UHD Hosts 8th Annual Cine Cuauhtémoc Film Festival Oct 18

(Houston, Texas October 11, 2007)   The 8th Annual Cine Cuauhtémoc Film Festival (a project of the Museo Guadalupe Aztlan) kicks off at 9 a.m., Thursday, Oct 18 in the Wilhelmina Cullen Robertson Auditorium.

The Festival is a venue for new independent film producers meant to inspire appreciation in the art of film making. It has screened many works of Chicano(a) film originating in Houston, Texas and embraces 'New Indigenism' to celebrate the contributions of Indigenous peoples of the Americas as well as the Chicano(a)/Latino(a) communities.

UHD viewers may be especially interested in a documentary about Vincent Valdez, an artist previously featured in the O'Kane Gallery and an environmental glimpse into a Houston Ship Channel neighborhood.

All the works provide a cultural experience that encourages awareness and educates the audience about the history, strengths and contributions, of indigenous peoples and their descendants.

Locally produced films in the Festival include: Chicken Skin by Carlos Calbillo, Flamingo Pants by Stephanie St. Sanchez, For Not Knowing by Jerry Villareal, Through the Water by Tonantzin Canestaro Garcia, and My Hero Was My Mother by Guadalupe Casares.  

You won't want to miss additional activities to the screenings: Mayan ball game exhibit and performance, film talks, live music, poetry, and Chicano-Latino book fair.

CINE CUAUHTÉMOC PAN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL
UNIVERSITY OF HOUSTON-DOWNTOWN
OCTOBER 18TH 2007
PROGRAM
FILMS

9:00AM-9:15AM
The Lamb/La Oveja            
Horacio Santos: Director and Writer
2006, (9:00), Silent film
This work focuses on anti-violence, pro-activism depicting a life of a young man that could have been were it not for a tragic murder.
Xavierian Production

9:15 AM-9:30AM
First Communion/Primera Comunion            
Ozcar Ramirez, Javier Ramirez and Daniule Eduviges Carrera: Directors and Writers
2006, (13:00), Spanish with English subtitles
Primera Comunion was filmed on location in historic Atlatlahuacan, Morelos (Mexico) with a cast composed primarily of the town's children. Stealing in order to sustain himself and his mother, Eleuterio, a young outsider, is confronted with the harsh rituals of a rustic Mexican pueblo, revealing the cruelty that underlies street life and Catholicism alike.

9:30AM - 10:00 AM
Vincent Valdez: The Art of Boxing
*(Documentary, 30:00, USA, 2006:
Executive Producer: Rey Santiesteban
(Documentary, 9:00 Min., USA, 2006)
Executive Producer: Rey Santisteban
This short documentary profiles the work of Vincent Valdez, an acclaimed San Antonio artist. The filmmaker
explores an alternative interpretation of Valdez' visual work, which often features the sport of Boxing.
Finalist: Houston Film Commission's Texas Filmmaker's Showcase

10:00AM - 10:15 AM
Alma
(Short, 14:00 Min., USA, 2007)
Alma, a typical high school student in the Southwest, has no idea that she's actually an illegal immigrant, and when she rebels against her Mexican American parents by staying out after curfew, she comes dangerously close to being arrested by Border Patrol, unaware of the potentially disastrous consequences.
Winner (2007): Humbolt Film Festival, Ledo Matteoli Award for Best Immigrant Story

10:15AM--11:15AM
(Documentary, 45:00 Min., USA, 2006)
Executive Producer: Bryan Parras
Co-sponsored by: Mothers for Clean Air and Texas Environmental Justice Services (TEJAS)
The Manchester area in the vicinity of the Houston Ship Channel is dotted with chemical plants, and these plants have been linked to diseases by various community-based organizations. See for yourself the issue of environmental inequity that seems to exist in this area and the courage that the filmmaker has put forward to make this issue known.

11:15AM-12:15PM
Justice Without Law (Justicia Sin Ley)
(Feature, 60:00 Min., USA, 2007:
Executive Producer: Edgar Bamaka
This action thriller is about hard- working immigrants affected by delinquency posed by criminals who demand they pay a price for protection. However, there is a person who comes to their rescue.

12:15 PM - 12:30 NOON----Welcomes/Bienvenidas
Jesus Cantu Medel, M.Ed., Executive Director, Museo Guadalupe Aztlan and
12:30 PM - 1:30 PM: Mayan Ballgame Demonstration by Grupo Ullama, Matamoros, Tamaulipas (Mexico)
1:30 PM-2:30 PM
Search for Chupacabra (La Busqueda de Chupacabras)
(Short, 45:00 Min., USA, 2005)
Henry Serrato: Producer, Writer and Director
The myth of El Chupacabra/The Goat Sucker lives in Texas folklore today, and the filmmaker brings this fact to light. For example, Luis Guerrero, a Texas artist, holds an annual Chupacabra-related art exhibit every October in San Antonio, Texas. He has done so since the year 2000. Also, in South Texas, an annual Chupacabra festival takes place where hundreds of persons attend this event.

2:30PM-3:00PM
North of Ojinaga (Norte de Ojinaga)
(Short, 25:00 Min., USA, 2006)
Executive Producer: Rommel Eclarinal
Two young immigrants, a Chinese woman and a Mexican man in search of their dreams, are smuggled across the US border from Mexico and abandoned in the vast unforgiving Texas desert. Lost and struggling to survive, they discover hope in each other.
Finalist: Houston Film Commission's Texas Filmmaker's Showcase

EVENING EVENTS

Roundtable session, film:
6:00PM-7:15 PM: Roundtable discussion with Houston filmmakers focused on Challenges and Successes on Producing Film in Houston, Texas. Participating filmmakers to be announced. Facilitator: Alfred Cervantes, Houston Film Commission.

7:30 PM-9:00PM
Grupo Tepache: Se Vende Una Mula (A Mule for Sale)
Artistic Coordinator/Grupo Tepache: Mtra. Julia Lezama

Singing presentation: Rosita San Miguel and Sandra Chavez and Gaspar Güevara
Poetry presentation: Sr. Jose Lopez, Por Que Me Deje del Vicio (Why I Left My Bad Habit)

9:00 PM-10:00PM: Reception in Lobby (Music by Idelfonso "Poncho" Martinez)

---Fin---

Museo Guadalupe Aztlan Film Festival Staff
Director, Jesus C. Medel, M.Ed.
Assistant Director, Natalia Rendon Ruiz, B.S.            
Public Relations, David Flores

Master Artist, Javier Quezada
Folk Musician, Poncho Martinez
Poet, Jorge Julian

A Project of   Museo Guadalupe Aztlan
3004 Bagby, Houston, TX 77006 713.527.9010

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