Fresno State launched its first film in the Chicano and Latin American Studies’ “Latin American Film Festival” Friday in the Lyles Center Auditorium.

Dr. Annabella Espana-Najera has taught Chicano Latin American Studies at Fresno State for the past three years and came up with the idea for the festival.

“My hope for the Latin American Film Festival is that it will bring to the Central Valley some glimpses into the complexity and diversity of Latin America in terms of the social, political and economic,” Espana-Najera said.

“I want to give the audience some idea of past and current issues that are relevant there, but that also connect to the United States and the Central Valley.”

In choosing films, Espana-Najera said she wanted to screen films that reflected all of the differences in Latin America.

“I wanted to include films that dealt with important issues that Latin America is facing, such as ‘With My Heart in Yambo’ and ‘The Death of Pinochet’ that deals with the question of memory and the need to address the consequences of repressive regimes in the 1960s to 1980s,” Espana-Najera said. “I also wanted to include films, such as ‘Made in Mexico’ (Hecho en México) and ‘Chinese Take Away’ (Un cuento Chino) that also show us the beauty that we can find in the region,” she said.

Espana-Najera said it took a lot of time and hard work to put the festival together. She started the process last semester and worked on it over the summer.

“It takes quite a bit of work to put together the schedule and coordinate with different campus groups,” she said. “Also, since I have five international speakers coming to campus, it adds another layer as I had to coordinate for the best times with them that would still work for the festival.”

Director, writer and producer Duncan Bridgeman was on hand to introduce his film “Hecho En Mexico,” which he spent two years in Mexico filming, to a full house of students and the general public.

In the discussion following the film, many audience members expressed excitement because they finally got to see a movie in which Mexico was depicted in a positive light.

Bridgeman is an independent filmmaker from England, but said he is first and foremost a musician.

Bridgeman also said his films are nonlinear, calling them “art films”: films with no script and based around the idea of being human.

“About 15 years ago, I came up with the idea of adding film to my music,” Bridgeman said. “Not making music for a film but making a film out of my music.”

He said he was invited to Mexico to make a film on its beauty, which most people couldn’t see.

Bridgeman said he went in “looking for another side of Mexico.”

“I can see Mexico from an outsider’s perspective,” Bridgeman said. “So I would be able to make a film Mexicans have not seen.”

Bridgeman said he is obsessed with the human condition, and this is his third film about it. He said for this film, he had Mexican artists, philosophers and thinkers reflect on the idea of the human condition.

“The language of music is a lot more powerful than words itself,” Bridgeman said.

Jeanette Tellez is a third-year Fresno State student majoring in criminology with the option in law enforcement. Tellez said she enjoyed the film and liked that it focused on the side of Mexico that is rarely seen.

“I liked how the film showed the different cultures within Mexico,” Tellez said. “We always tend to see narcs and drugs, and we never really see the true culture or the true traditions and the true beauty that Mexico has to offer.

“I thought it was a great movie, it shows the positive side of Mexico.”

Cesar Orosco is a mass communication and journalism major with an emphasis in electronic media. He said although he thought the movie would be boring, he liked it.

“It turned out good; the music was really good,” Orosco said. “I really connected to it.

“I’m a first-generation Mexican in the U.S., so I connected to these people. I know all of the traditions, and I really understood all of the jokes.”

Espana-Najera would like more students and members of the public to come out to the Latin American Film Festival.

“I hope that students from Fresno State and the Central Valley take advantage of this opportunity to see some great independent films and talk to interesting artists about their work,” Espana-Najera said. “I also want them to consider thinking about studying Latin America with the department of Chicano and Latin American Studies.

“Given the United States’ own history and ties to the region, as well as the growing economies to the south, it makes a great deal of sense for those living here, especially in the Central Valley, to learn more about our neighbors to the south.”

All films are free and open to the public. There are also parking codes available for the films screened during the week. Those interested may contact the department of Chicano and Latin American Studies for the codes. All films start at 5:30 p.m.

The festival will continue through Nov. 21. The next film, “Marimbas from Hell” (Guatemala), will be screened on Wednesday.

For more information, contact Dr. Annabella Espana-Najera at [email protected] or call 278-3020.