We're talking about the ¡Presente! Latin Film Fest at the George Eastman Museum, commencing on September 17th. As we delve into this crucial initiative, we engage with Jason Barber, whose extensive background in the arts and commitment to representation in cinema make him an invaluable contributor to this conversation. The series aims to illuminate the significant impact of Latino and Latinx artists within the cinematic landscape, offering a platform to explore their narratives and contributions. Throughout our dialogue, we will also reflect on the broader implications of representation in film, particularly in light of current socio-political climates affecting marginalized communities. Through this series, we aspire to foster a deeper understanding of the richness and diversity inherent in Latin cinema, while simultaneously advocating for authentic representation and storytelling.

Links referenced in this episode:

• Latin Film Fest: eastman.org/latinfilmseries
• IBERO Rochester: https://www.ibero.org/
• Poder 97.1 FM: https://www.ibero.org/poder/
• International Plaza: https://www.cityofrochester.gov/departments/department-recreation-and-human-services-drhs/international-plaza

Mentioned in this episode:

Our Voices Project - Land Acknowledgement

Food About Town

Food About Town hosted by Chris Lindstrom, focusing on restaurants, food and drink of all kinds, and whatever topics I want to cover! https://foodabouttown.captivate.fm/

Lunchador Podcast Network

Lunchador Podcast Network is a network of podcasts originating in Rochester, NY. Our goal is bringing creative people together to be a positive force in the arts community. The shows that make up Lunchador are owned by the creators and cover a wide range of topics and backgrounds. http://lunchador.org/

Welcome back to the podcast, y'.

All.

This is Jackie McGriff, your host for today's episode of Representation in Cinema.

If you are watching on YouTube, make sure y' all hit that subscribe button.

And if you're watching or listening anywhere else, please hit follow for all of your conversations concerning authentic, genuine, real representation of black, brown, indigenous peoples in movies.

It has been a minute since we've been in the studio, but we are back and we've been busy.

But I'll catch you all up on that later tonight.

We want to mainly focus on the Latin film series coming to the George Eastman Museum later this month and we have Jason Barber to thank for that.

Jason is back on the pod today to talk through what we can expect from the series.

For anyone who's unfamiliar, Jason Barber is a Cuban American educator, an artist with over a decade of experience in Rochester's arts and non for profit sectors.

As an active public artist in Rochester, he has served in many roles for a variety of Rochester's art institutions.

Rochester Brainery, Oxford Gallery, Memorial Art Gallery, Wall Therapy, and the Yards Art Collective.

He currently sits on the development and outreach boards for AC3 Arts Council, Latinx Art Council and Catholic Charities of Rochester.

Currently he is the site manager for the International Plaza, which is part of the public market.

Mr. Barber's presentation will explore the impacts that Latino Latinx artists are having in in Rochester through their murals and public artworks.

He is also a massive film lover with an encyclopedia's worth of knowledge in cinema.

Welcome back to the podcast, Jason.

Thanks for having me.

Okay, and then Jason was also on our podcast previously for our episode on Latino representation focusing on Edward James Almost films.

Definitely go give that a listen and then go watch those films expeditiously.

Today he's here to talk about the Latin film series, of course, starting on September 17th at the George Eastman Museum.

So, Jason, first things first, tell us about the Latin film series.

The Presidente film series is something that has been a passion project for me for several years.

Well, during the pandemic, I reached out to Annette Ramos, who is one of the most amazing people in Rochester when it comes to just fundraising and Latinos in the arts.

And she's like, all right, I'm behind you.

And I organized a committee.

CeeLo, you probably met before Hector Manuel, and we kind of just started trying to figure out ways in which we can present Latin cinema.

Last year we did two Cinema two showings at the Little.

We did Salina, which was a good success, and Spy Kids, you know, to kind of highlight Latino Importance in cinema.

And this year we started working on our building our relationship with the Eastman House with Jared Case and Danielle Ramo and everyone there at the Dryden Theater.

And they welcomed it, they felt there was a need and we were just in awe of what they could offer.

And many of it was offering the opportunity to showcase film that's already in their collection.

So it's a lot more affordable and it will be free to the public is what something we wanted to.

We really wanted to do is to showcase the Latinos impact in cinema since.

Impact in cinemas, since the beginning of cinema, you know, because we literally have been there since the first film crew like started shooting stuff in Los Angeles.

You know, there have been Mexican Teano, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Dominican voices and Spanish voices throughout all the history of cinema.

And I think it was just a way that, you know, talking to Jared Case, who's the, you know, who is head of the Dryden and head of collections, he, he understood that completely, that it's a really important story and a really important narrative.

So did Bruce Barnes, the, the director of, of the Eastman House.

Yeah, Bruce and Jared.

So in getting this started, you hit a little bit of this.

But what was the motivation to finally say, you know what, let me start talking to people.

I think for me it was the motivation of not seeing our stories be told.

I grew up in a really golden era for Latino cinema.

But also in the 80s you had, you had really good movies like Me, Familia, Selena, American Me, which we're going to be showing.

Also you had JLO movies, you had regimes, almost like you had a culture.

You had Spy Kids, Robert Rodriguez movies, El Mariachi, you know, and his work with Quentin Tarantino and the Death Proof stuff.

So we had this really great renaissance.

And then, you know, watching during the.

Pandemic, I was just seeing what's the.

Number one show on Netflix?

Narcos.

And I was seeing that story and then knowing my, you know, knowing the history of Latinos, knowing the importance of like Desi Arnaz and Ricardo Montabana, Dolores del Rio or Rita Morano, like these stories have to be told more.

And knowing that Latinos were.

Are still one of the largest people that go to the movies, largest minorities and it's the large will be the largest minority in America.

I didn't know in the next 20 years in many states where Latinos are already the largest minority.

So to us, also, it's a very important time with what's happened in politics to tell our stories and to tell our stories and that it is not just us crossing the border.

It's us.

We've been here for 500 years.

We need to be telling those stories.

It's not just a bunch of white guys in the Alamo protecting themselves from the Mexicans.

It's a bunch of white guys who technically invaded their own country and said, we're not gonna leave.

You know, and the Mexican.

Mexican government going, excuse me, you're not.

You're not supposed to be here.

Yeah, excuse me.

You know, so there's a lot of stories there, and there's also these really great narratives of how important these roles were throughout our.

Throughout the history of cinema.

So I think, for me, it was just something natural.

It was something I taught about when I was in college.

It was something I've always studied.

So to me, like, knowing those voices and learning even more about this, especially even Jared kind of saying, okay, oh, what about this movie?

And I was like, oh, I forgot about this movie.

Oh, I forgot that that movie was Latino, you know, so.

Oh, man, thank you for sharing.

I didn't know.

Yeah.

I didn't know.

Latinos make up the largest minority.

I think, putting that into perspective, like, yeah, these are the people you should be reflecting in film and authentically.

Right.

This is most.

This is a lot of your audience.

And that's why in Southern states, you're seeing the harshest things about immigration.

Yeah.

Because they are everywhere.

Are everywhere, and we will be everywhere.

Yeah, for sure, man.

So how long has the film series been running?

It's been at least a couple of years.

Or this is the second year.

Yeah, second year.

Yeah, that's right.

And then what are some of the ones of the challenges and also some of the triumphs that you've seen with this?

I think, for me, some of the challenges has been really seeing for institutions to see the importance of the narrative.

I think what is hard with Rochester is we're very bipolar.

Like, not bipolar.

Binary.

Not bipolar.

Wrong word.

I mean, both.

I mean, but we're more binary.

And because of our history of segregation, both the black and white communities often see their importance as, you know, as like, the story narrative.

And they want to control the narrative within the institutions and especially the cultural institutions, which is nothing wrong with that.

It is important.

But Latinos have often been kind of treated because we're not the largest group in Rochester, even though we're about 25% of the city.

You know, like it's.

And growing.

But it is still, it's still like that narrative hasn't always.

We've always been kind of treated like, well, maybe during Hispanic Heritage, maybe during this, maybe during that.

But.

But the reality is, you know, within these institutions, we're here and we've been here for a very long time.

And often if you go to the mag, the only Latin art you're going to see is Aztec.

You know, the Eastman House, I think, was the best suited to show in Latin cinema and Latin contribution because of their collection.

Even with the little.

It was a hard time because the little often, you know, was seeing stuff as this, you know, left, you know, like in that binary sense.

But they understood it too.

But it's just, you know, that has been the biggest challenge to kind of break free from the, the binary and say Latinos are a non binary culture.

You know, we're a culture that doesn't complete.

We identify of our cultural place of origin as much as we identify for race.

Yeah.

And are like.

So it's very hard to kind of narrow that.

You can't say it.

Or Latino.

Are you white?

No, I'm white.

Cuban, you know, like.

Or like, are you black?

No, I'm Cuban.

Or I'm, you know.

Are you Dominican?

No, like, I'm Dominican.

I'm not black, you know, like.

Or I'm not, you know, and it's a whole separate conversation on race.

But like, that's, that's the reality of Latino culture, you know, we don't see ourselves and we see ourselves in a very, I would say, in a non binary sense.

We, you know, we don't see ourselves, you know, we see ourselves as Afro Cuban, you know, or, you know, Dominican, Puerto Rican, Chilean, you know, like American, you know, we see ourselves as this big melt in cultural melts in pot, which we are as a people, you know.

But like, I think that's very hard for institutions to see because they want to see it in a very binary narrative model.

Right.

Yeah.

Well, what, what are you looking forward to this year and what's your vision for the future of the series?

For my vision, it's to grow.

It's to not just have, you know, to really kind of make this, you know, a regular part of the narrative, not just within the Eastman House, but also within other institutions, you know, that every year we can kind of highlight the importance of Latino throughout, not just through, not just in Hispanic Heritage Month, but throughout the whole year.

Much like last Year with Spike Lee, what the Jason did.

They spread that across several months, and it wasn't just in February.

And I think, like, that's important.

We want, we want.

I want that, you know, I would like us to show movies around Christmas time that have Hispanic narrative.

I want us, you know, just as, you know, like.

And I want.

I, I think that's.

It's important.

I also think it's also important for our institutions to recognize both Hispanic and black contributions to cinema on a regular basis, you know, within, within their narrative.

And I think that's.

Sometimes that's a struggle.

I would like to see.

I would love to see college students come to the story.

And I also would like to see, you know, I would like to see how, how unique.

I mean, for this, this is a very unique kind of start.

You know, we're starting with films that are, across the board, very different from each other, but also have a very commonality about her and all say a different point, like, of, like, the Hispanic journey or the Latino journey throughout history, throughout the 20th century.

Yeah, I, I.

Before we get into films, I want to go back to what you were saying, especially about, like, kind of, well, thinking outside of that binary.

And also in terms of, like, institutions, normally when they're reaching out to more diverse audiences, it's usually within the framework of a Heritage month.

Right.

So, because we've, because we've struggled with that as well, it's like, so folks know I'm a filmmaker.

They want to show our films.

Great.

So then they're like, are you available?

You know, it's either during, you know, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Around his birthday, or it's Black History Month.

And it's like, okay, well, I'm black 24, 7, 365 days a year.

366 of a leap year.

Like, we can show this throughout.

So, yeah, no, it's, it, it is.

It's difficult.

Right?

Do you find that it's like, like, you go, you go along with it.

Like, this is our thinking, at least.

Like, we go along with it because it's like, okay, we know that's when a lot of people are paying more attention so that we can then, like, put that out.

But then hopefully, you know, as, as we progress through this, to be able to show, you know, to be able to show these, you know, and educate people, like, outside of that month.

I mean, I, I completely agree with you.

I think it's something that.

It's a struggle everywhere, especially at the large institutions, you know, like, I My, luckily, my job now with the plaza being part of a barrel, being part of this, you know, cultural institution that has been a nonprofit that's been part of Latino, like Latino culture in Rochester for almost 50 years.

Over 50 years, you know, and it's been part of my life growing up.

It's important because I get to see this narrative all the time.

I get to do Hispanic related events every few weeks at the plaza, you know, with salsa, Dominican, merengue, machata, you know, like Cumberia, you know, like just doing all this, like, aspects of our heritage.

But I agree, like, the institutions only often see it during this period.

And I.

It's a struggle because I feel that they're missing out the narrative.

But I will respect, I will honestly praise Georgie Espinos because they've started reaching out before the month and saying, hey, can we get pulled there to do Latin ads for the Dutch Connection?

Like, this is what we want to see.

We want to see the institutions and the cultural institutions reach out to us not just for Hispanic Heritage Month, but for any of their events.

You know, we want them to pay Podeir, our radio station and say, hey, can you do ads for us to reach out to a Hispanic audience?

Yes, we definitely want that.

Right?

You know, we want the mag, we want these maps, we want the strong museum of play to say, hey, we have these discounted memberships for people on SNAP or the science Museum, you know, and it really, we should.

We would like to see these institutions, like put that budget in for DKX for PO there so that these advertisements are a regular basis and like, are first off before they go off and reach out to, you know, some other commercial radio station or some commercial TV station, you know, and I think that's important.

I admire WXSI also starting to build up that process, like communication with, with PODER and a Baro.

Like, I think this is a narrative that has to happen more.

And I also know, I know WXSI is also reaching out to DKX more and try to build that relationship and strengthen that relationship, which is important for these institutions.

And I think that's something I want to see more often.

And I think that's what we need to see outside of just, hey, it's Black Heritage Month.

Hey, it's Hispanic Heritage Month.

You know, can you come, can you.

Can you make some empanadas for you and just dance in traditional costumes or, you know, wear certain foods and talk about, you know, Kwanzaa in February?

Thank you, Chris.

Sorry.

Yes.

So did I Spare.

No, no, no.

Thank you, Chris.

Just being Chris.

Thank you so much.

We appreciate our producer here at Representation Cinema.

Yes.

And so we will.

We're gonna dive into films.

We are.

We're also gonna talk about later International Plaza because you kept mentioning it.

And it's something that I definitely wanna dig into a little bit more and to promote.

So people come out, pull up.

So as far as the film.

So as you introduce each of these films, kind of give us like a, a brief plot synopsis.

Well, I didn't give us spoilers.

I'm not.

No, don't give spoilers.

There's no spoilers on this show.

Okay.

We can do a spoiler filled show later.

Definitely dig in.

Like I said.

Go listen to our podcast episode about Latin Latino representation with Edward James almost.

Seriously, we get into all the, all the things.

Oh yeah.

But for this we're just going to focus on the synopses without.

Without spoilers.

And then also too like why this specific film?

If there are any, you know, post screening discussions?

Because we love panels over here at our voices project.

And then also when folks can see it.

So let's start off with the first one.

First movie is American Me, which will be on September 17th.

All these films I will point out, are going to be in the original 35 millimeter film.

None of these are digital prints, which is amazing.

They were watching the original film the way that it was supposed to be seen.

American Me is a very controversial movie.

It's considered one of the most dangerous movies in film history because it's talking about the Chicano cartel and California and California and the California prison system.

Actually Danny Trejo is one of his first movies.

The legendary Machete, it's one.

But he actually is the one who did a peace deal because he was at the time working with gangs and gangs leaders to create this movie.

But there is as far as I know, over 20 confirmed murders related to this movie.

So it is a very controversial movie and it's one of the few movies out of.

James Almost directed was a passion project of his.

This producing company did it and this is.

It's very rare and it's still.

I mean I will recommend if you come and see this movie.

Please do not bring children.

There are scenes in prison that are not recommended for.

This is a hard R. But it's important because this is a narrative of redemption.

Sorry, Hard.

Rated R. Hard.

Rated R. Cause hard R is something.

That'S not just a story of like the cartels.

Like we hear all these, we see all These stories, this is a story of, like, a cartel and a redemption story.

So it's a little bit different, you know, like, how it's a true story.

It's based on that narrative of this man's actual life.

So I think Edward James was very aware that I don't wanna have, like, the bad guy, you know, Like, I want to show how dark the system is all around.

So I think that's where it's unique.

The next movie is a early talkie with our first Latino superstar, Dolores Del Rio, or as they used to call her.

Her and Greta Garba were the face.

Of Hollywood, These two beautiful faces.

And Dolores was one of the early silent movie stars in Hollywood with Ramon Navarro, who's another famous Latin silent movie star.

But she's somebody who transitioned into comedies, into talkies.

Yes.

Elvis Presley was Latino in a movie.

What?

Yeah.

I mean, he looked it.

Like it wasn't it, but, like.

But.

I know.

But Dolores Delaria also became one of the early, huge.

So we kind of want to tell that story of.

Here's one of the first women who was proud of her heritage and was proud of her name.

You know, we're going to be talking about one of them in a little bit, but, like, you have Rita Hayworth, Anthony Quinn.

Anybody ever heard of Martin Sheen, Charlie Sheen?

They're both Latino, you know, like Raquel Welch, the great actress.

She's 100% Mexican, you know, like.

And so we forget that, like, people did that even up to the.

You know, up until the 90s.

You know, John Leguizamo tells stories of how people tried to change his name.

So did Benicio Del Toro, so did Benjamin Bratt, and so did Jimmy Smits.

They all were forced to say, oh, you got to hide your heritage, you know, so this was happening even into, like, very early on that you had to not pretend to be Latino.

Now we have the biggest stars, like General Ortega and Selena Gomez, who are proud of them.

Yeah, Pedro Vasquez, like Oscar Isaac, you know, like Diego Luna gave it, you know, like, you know, so you have all these huge stars that are Latino, and now that's something we don't get to see.

And they're proud of their names.

They're proud of their names.

You know, Pedro Pascal loves saying Pedro Pascal, his full name, Pedro Venicio, but something like that.

But, like, his full name, Jose.

Pedro.

So, like, that's something that you kind of.

You trace back to Dolores.

You know, she was somebody who's like, I'm proud of this.

I'm proud of my heritage.

I'm going to go back to Mexico and tell those stories.

So.

And I think that's why, I mean, she was one of the first people I talked about forever to get a film.

So I'm glad we have a Dolosa Rio.

The next one is kind of one of Jared's picks, Tierra de Trense.

It's kind of like I gotta sit down and watch it myself.

I haven't yet, but it's a new wave, like a Brazilian new wave.

Okay, so we're not talking about Latino.

We think, oh, this is gonna be Spanish culture.

I'm not saying the word Hispanic for a reason.

I'm trying not to, because when I say Latin, I'm talking about all of Latin America.

And Brazil is a huge part of Latin America, and they speak a Latin language.

Portuguese.

Right?

Yeah.

But, but we also can tell the Brazilian stories, the Cuban stories, the Puerto Rican, the Dominican.

We can tell this huge, huge narrative, and we can grab from so many different resources.

And that's what's so unique about this, is we're talking about a Latin American festival film series.

And that's why I was important to say that word Latin American, because if I said Hispanic or Spanish or Cuban, I'm narrowing it down to a very small narrative.

And it's there, you know, like.

And I, I, I think it's great for us to expand that narrative, that we can have Dominican films, that we can have Afro Latino, we can have, you know, LGBT voices, and we can have all these voices because of the commonality of the Latin voice and the Latin culture and the Latin identity.

And I think that's.

This is why we chose this.

This, this movie was kind of put into it.

It's a unique film.

It's barely ever shown, so it's a very rare film to be seen outside of.

Outside of, outside of Brazil.

So it's.

And it's something that's in the collection that nobody gets to really see that often.

But then that's on October 1st, I forgot to mention El Chiante will be on September 24th.

Some of these films will have post screening talks, but we'll talk a little bit more about that later.

But then on October 8th is one.

Of my legendary favorite movies, Kevin Gilda, which is a Rita Hayworth movie.

But to become part of Hollywood, she had to drop her name, take her mother's Irish ancestry name, Hayworth, and dye her hair red and pretend to be white.

And she wasn't the first.

You would later have, you know, Raquel Welch doing something very similar.

You know, so it is, this is something that we wanted to talk about.

We want to talk about the whitening of the Latin identity, you know, like how Rita, even Rita Morano, somebody who's gonna be at the Eastman House in October, had to do that, you know, like, also she had to play Native Americans.

She had to play everybody, you know, but like she had to whiten herself even in that cultural prism.

And I think this is kind of the first and most famous.

But also Guilt is a crazy movie.

It's this amazing movie of sexuality.

So much sexual subtext.

There's a love triangle between a man, a man and a woman, you know, like, and there's, there's innuendo left and right in this movie you watch and you're going to be like, oh my gosh, don't bring your kids to this movie.

Yeah, well, your kids can come this movie.

They're not going to get the jokes, but the parents are going to be like, wow, they got away with that.

So that's going to be something very unique.

And we are going to have a talk after that one.

We're going to.

Annette Ramos will be hosting that and kind of talking about even her own experience trying to get an act in and that aspect of whitening her identity to be part of like the acting.

And this was happening all the time into the 90s, even up till recently.

So it's not something that like.

And also you think about it, it's very hard for Latinos.

You don't see that many Latino women that are not white, you know, like, so it's very, it's very, it's still sometimes prevalent.

You know, you can see darker skinned Latino men in films, but not women.

And the whiter they are, the more famous they Are so it's something that's.

This is a struggle we struggle with to this day within cinema.

So it's.

I think Gilda is a really good way of re looking at a classic film, like one of the most famous classic film noirs and saying, okay, but let's look at it through the Latin prism.

Yeah, yeah.

And then the next is the Others.

Alejandro Imparte, Chilean, Spanish director who does a British horror movie with Nicole Kidman.

Yes.

And that's what I love about this movie because even there you have a Chilean director, a Spanish director who's coming from a period in Spanish cinema that was amazing.

This is where Guillermo started to work.

This is Pedro Almodova.

This is a very unique period for Latin directors because you're having the Tres Grandes, Alejandro, you're having Alfonso Quran, you're having these Mexican directors that are going to Spain and making movies or going to England and making movies, you know, for Hollywood making bigger budget movies.

You have Alfonso Cuaran, who at the time was doing little.

Little, you know, did Little Princess and then some thing called Harry Potter in the Prisoner, Azkaban, some, some, you know, or Guillermo del Toro doing Mimic and Hellboy, you know, this late 90s period in which you have these Spanish directors that are doing these horror movies, they're doing these unique films and they're coming out of Spain, they're coming out of Chile, they're coming out of Mexico.

And we don't even say like, oh.

Wow, this is such a crazy period.

So I love this aspect and that one I'm kind of helping organize that ceelo is going to be there.

They also have another person who's going to come in and talk about two other people.

One actually, one for the nominee.

I think she's going to be coming to talk for just about Latin horror, like Hispanic horror, like the.

How Latinos.

That gothic horror that we do really well, that we're all going to be going to see Frankenstein because that's why we love Guillermo, who's like the peak of that, you know, like how does, how does Latin horror play a role and you know, reshaping even traditional horror like this traditional British style horror.

What's the others about?

The Others is just a ghost story.

It's a British manner.

It's a ghost story film.

You know, like I remember seeing it a long time ago and I would love to see it again with an audience that wasn't screaming and yelling, there's nobody in the closet.

Yeah.

Like, oh, great.

You ruined the movie.

Thanks.

Yeah, so that'd be great, because I actually didn't get to see the end of this movie.

Oh, my gosh.

So with all of these films, and also, again, remind us of when all of these movies are going to be.

Every Wednesday from September 17th all the way to October 15th, really, the whole span of Hispanic Heritage Month.

This will be at the.

At the.

At the dryden Theater at 7:30.

Free entry.

Free people, y'.

All.

Free, Free.

Free.

All right.

We are spending money so that you can get a free showing at the Eastman.

Yes, we love free.

So with this series, what are you hoping.

Again, you've kind of said this throughout, but just to reiterate, what are you hoping audiences come away with?

I'm just hoping that audiences come away with a unique.

I just want people to know that we've been here.

You know, like, it's something that's very interesting with Latin history is that we get eroded from the historical narrative.

Even though we've been here longer than, like, next to the Native Americans, we've been here the longest, you know, and it's something that, you know, Cubans funded the American Revolution.

People forget that, you know, like, we fought in every single war since before there was America, you know, like, and I think we had Latin generals on both sides of the Civil War.

So it's this complexity in this story that we are here.

And when this time, when this narrative of us not being welcomed, specifically our culture, you know, Cubans and Cubans and Dominicans and Mexicans and Salvadorians and Venezuelans being deported in large, large numbers, that, to me, it matters more than ever that our narrative gets talked about.

It matters more than, I think, in any other time in my recent history that, you know, this is what I stand on.

I say, you know, our art has been here since the very beginning.

You know, it's influenced everything.

It's influenced jazz, it's influenced hip hop.

It's influenced every part of it.

You know, jazz came out of the combination of ragtime and Cuban brass bands.

Going to New Orleans.

You know, like, black and Latino culture have always been played a role of each other.

You know, the drums that we hear.

In black came from.

Was also in Latin culture, salsa.

You know, salsa, merengue, buchata bomba, which.

Which is started by Afro Puerto Ricans as a form of protest against the slave owners.

You know, like, son in Latin.

And most Cuba, almost all Cuban music comes from that derivedness of the beauty of us.

And I think that narrative needs to be said more often.

All right, so.

And I believe that was very well said.

As always, Jason, I tried.

Yes.

And like I said, we could go on forever and we'll probably do another deep dive at some point because I also wanted just like so many different directions that we could go with this.

But as always, whenever we have guests on our podcast, we like to also give them the platform to also talk about anything else that they've got going on.

So can you tell us more about the International Plaza?

You know, I would love to talk about the Plaza.

I could talk about the Plaza forever.

Well, actually, today I found a very interesting fact.

And, and last.

In the last five years, it's been happening.

You know, some people who are not alive today got to, you know, really tried to make this happen, and it's finally happening.

Here's a space in North Clinton where, you know, where there are cultures where Latino, black, Afro, Latino, international cultures can come and have a safe space and tell their stories, listen to their music, have, have their food.

You know, it's a business incubator space.

I mean, with the idea that we have five different businesses, Mexican, Colombian, Romanian, Puerto Rican, Venezuelan, Ecuadorian in one space where you can try food from all these different cultures and not just American style food, but you can get four different styles of empanadas.

Mexican, Venezuelan, American and Puerto Rican, and even Ecuadorian style if you, if you ask, you know, so it's, it's, it's, it's something very unique and it's something beautiful.

And it's the idea that immigrant voices, people who are coming to this country, are starting their business and creating the dream.

And it's a space that is helping to reshape the neighborhood.

You know, around the plaza is not just our space where we have these events and where the city does.

That's more than some people come to Parcel five for one of those reasons, you know, and we're doing what Parcel 5 wants wanted to do with the shipping containers and businesses.

We've done it, you know, and we're doing it at less cost than the commissary, which I love.

The commissary, which is always the way.

Which is always the way.

And I get.

Commissary is also an amazing space.

But, like, yeah, we're.

We're doing this, and we're, you know, we are in a neighborhood that is.

Yes, it's a rough neighborhood, but it's also a neighborhood where the cops find it, call it an oasis, and where the drug dealers call it an oasis.

They don't want to mess with it.

They want to take care of the space.

They love the space, and I love that.

And I'm so proud that I get to be part of an agency like Abero and IADC that I grew up with.

And I get to be with people like Angelica and Miguel Menendez, who are just the most amazing people in Marin, who are, you know, who are people that really care about the health of the city and changing it and making something happen that's gonna last.

And I think it's also important that lift up our Latin voices.

You know, the idea that a bear right now is helping over 1,000 different asylum seekers.

Wow.

You know, and yet we're helping to keep them settled and make them, you know, and many of those people are people who've come to the Pause and created their own businesses, and we're proud of that.

I'm proud of everything that we do there.

And I love that I get to dance.

I love the abuelitas.

I love the food.

I love, like, all of it.

It's.

It's one of you.

Every Sunday, I have the biggest smile on my face being part of the Pause, and I wish everybody in Rochester can come and I'll produce.

You've come, you've loved it.

You know, you ate like crazy.

It's a great time.

And seeing everybody just really enjoying each other's company is such a valuable thing.

The positivity that food and, you know, real culture brings is, you know, hard to.

Hard to undervalue.

Yeah.

We're gonna get into more after this brief break.

So when can people come to the International Plaza?

Well, we are open Wednesday through Sunday, 12 to noon.

Some of our vendors are even open Monday through Sunday.

Depends on, you know, which vendor it is.

But if you go there anytime, afternoon around lunchtime, you'll see one of our vendors open.

It could be Roxy's for Empanadas or Luce's Ecuadorian Store.

It could be Yasmine's New Generation Eats or Alex's Di Miterra Mexican Food or Johnny's Puerto Rican Food.

So you can see a lot there on that time.

But Sundays are the best days to go there.

I say, because you're going to have music, you're going to have some vibes.

You're going to have a really great time on a Sunday.

There's always live music or a live DJ or something happening on a Sunday.

Yeah.

And where.

Remind us where international it is on North Clinton Ave.

Right.

Kitty quarter from the beautiful St. Michael's Church, which is the epicenter of the Latino community and always has been 8 29, 828 North Clinton Ave.

So you'll see it.

It's big blue ship containers.

Awesome.

We will be there.

And make sure y' all pull up.

For real.

Better see some of y' all there.

Okay.

So throughout our.

Oh, yeah, we close on October 13th.

October 13th.

Yeah.

So you only got that much.

Few Sundays left.

Okay.

So pull up before October 13th.

Okay.

And don't wait until then to go there either, unless it'll be cold.

Yeah.

For real?

For real.

Oh, well, thank you so much for that, Jason.

Now, throughout this podcast, we've of course, like, talked about, we've talked about film, obviously, with the Latin film series, and you have at points pointed to, of course, current events.

We, you know, feel as though, you know, there's.

There's no talking about films without also talking about current events.

And so throughout this, you've talked about deportations, you've talked about how, you know, we've talked on the break, like, how Ibero has, you know, provided for, like, so many families seeking asylum.

And I, and I would like to know, you know, on your opinion, like, in talking about the film series and in talking about film.

Right.

You know, if we're, if we're talking about, if we're reflecting a people, you know, and, and with those people, in reflecting those people were also reflecting their stories, which also points to current events.

What role do you see the film series or movies in general that center Latin voices or where do you see that in the talks about deportation, especially in this time right now?

Well, first, the title of our film series is Presente Presente Present.

We're here.

We've always been here.

We are part of this narrative.

We are part of this country.

We're part of these stories that we are often not told, that we are not of.

They built a wall to stop us, but we have been here before the wall existed.

So for me, one of the reasons I even started the this film series, one of the reasons was I took my cousin Carlos, who is Cuban, who is a film professor from Cuba, who speaks three languages fluently, who had to cross the Mexican border in the back of a cargo truck, and yet he is now in Hiding.

And many Latinos have these common stories.

Many of us, it doesn't matter if you're Puerto Rican, you're Dominican, you're Mexican, you're Guatemalan, you know people, you know people who've gotten the letters threatened and deportation, even though they have green cards, you know that people are asylum that are afraid of people coming.

And the reality is when I, you've, you've heard my arguments on you and I have had many discussions.

When I see a protest, I get angry because I don't see a Latin voice.

And I also, I don't see them.

At the places like talking about our culture, you know, coming to the plaza and eating our food, celebrating our music.

I see them holding up a sign.

That you know, about immigrants rights, but I don't see them supporting immigrant businesses.

And it's hard for me for that.

Sense because it's personal to me.

And this film series is personal because.

When I got to take my cousin.

To the Georgie Smith house, he was in awe.

He's sitting there and he's like, I feel like I'm at holy ground, you know, because he's like, jay, Citizen Kane is below me.

Casablanca's below me.

And I'm like, yeah, all this is right below your feet.

He's like, this, this is what I studied in college.

This is what I taught about in Cuba.

And he's like, all of this is right below you.

You know, and that to me is.

Why I did it.

It's because, you know, Carlos is trying his hard up to live the American dream, to escape communism and so are millions of other people.

And it's important because that's my mom, that's my aunts, that's my family, that's.

The people who raised me.

Every single person that raised me came this country in different ways, not there.

Was no perfect way.

And you know, film is the greatest storyteller of that because it can tell our stories and say we are been important from day one, you know, like, I always love to brag.

Television was created by a Cuban, Desi Arnaz.

He also created two of the longest running franchises in film history.

He greenlit some TV show called Star Trek and another one called Mission Impossible.

You know, and also the Untouchables, you know, like, and yet it was a Cuban that created the three camera system in the live studio audience just for his wife.

He all did this for his wife, you know, like, yo, you know, like, his wife does get the credit she deserves because Lucy Ball is a queen.

Yeah, but Desi Arnaz doesn't have five statues around the country.

Like.

Yeah, and two.

One.

Two really ugly ones in Palm Springs and Jamestown.

Two ugly ones.

I'm sorry, Lucy fans, but sure, there's two ugly statues of Lucille Ball.

One in Palm Springs and the other one, Jamestown.

They got rid of the one in Jamestown at least.

Thank God.

Okay, okay, now it's just the one.

The one.

Oh, my goodness gracious.

I. Yeah, I.

That is so very well said.

And like.

And yeah, as you're saying, yeah, we've had many conversations, especially when we were talking about like, more of like the activist spaces.

And while I'm seeing.

Because, because like you said, we've talked about this.

Like, there will be instances where I will see, like, I, you know, I'll be at a protest or at least I'll see, you know, pictures or video footage, you know, from it.

And there may be like, like someone who is Latin, like, talking.

But then it.

What it sounds like to me is like, number one, we need more of that representation.

And all the organizers are white or black.

Let's be honest.

That's all like.

Or they're 60 year old women.

Ah, okay.

Yeah.

Voices.

Yeah.

So what you're saying is not only do.

And they have a lot of money, they should be buying tons of food at the Plaza.

Tons of food.

That's what I'm saying, y'.

All.

And giving money to the film series and to Barrow and many different organizations.

I'm sorry if I'm being.

No, you're not.

First of all, first of all, you're not sorry.

Second of all, I'm not sorry.

You're not sorry.

But also, like, that's what we're.

What we're about.

That's what we're about.

Truth telling on this podcast.

You know, we're getting into the history, we're getting into film.

But then of course, it also reaches out there into the community.

I don't think that you can.

Again, I don't think you can talk about film without talking about what's happening in current events.

If you're talking about authentic representation, it has to represent the people, has to represent the stories.

And the stories are what's happening out there.

And so what it sounds like to me is that what needs to happen is that number one, there needs to be again, folks who are, you know, let.

And also clear up something for me.

Do you usually.

Is it usually.

Do you usually say Latin representation?

Do you say Latin?

Do you say Latinx?

Yeah, I like to say Latin if I'm talking about the plural or Latin.

I try to avoid the word Latinx sometimes.

I get the historical context, but it comes from a white professor.

Okay, so just like that, like, Hispanic comes from Nixon.

You know what?

Yeah, so, like, in Latin is not even the best word to describe it either.

But, like, how do you describe a continent that literally goes from Canada?

Like that Latinos are a part of Canada to from one point of the world to the.

Like.

Okay, so when we're talking.

Okay, so then we're talking.

That is a whole continent, right?

Yeah.

And like the Caribbean and like, most of the United States was at one point.

All is bad.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

So, okay, so then we're talking.

You're talking about, like, again, these activist faces.

Right?

Having representation, you know, people speaking.

Right.

Who can speak to that experience.

Right.

That is Latin.

Right?

And then also, like, going and supporting these businesses that are.

By the very people that you are advocating for, or at least claiming to advocate for, but showing in those places.

It also, I mean, of course, like, would also mean supporting those filmmakers, supporting those artists that are putting work out there that is reflecting them, their stories, their families, all of these things.

That's what it sounds like to me is what you're getting at, which is all important.

Like, yes, we should absolutely be out here again on International Plaza.

Get there, be there, support the businesses, eat their food, you know, buy from them, buy merch.

Yeah, that's what it sounds like, at least to me.

Am I.

Are we missing anything?

Is there anything else I want to say about that?

I think you've nailed a lot of aspects of it.

I think.

I do think, like, when we.

When we.

When we talk about these.

These.

These.

The impact of what's happening right now.

And it's a very crazy time.

It really is.

It's.

It's something that, like, I fear every day when I work in the plaza, but also something that, like, I really have a drive to speak for.

And it's hard because, you know, I am.

I am a very.

I am Cuban, but I am a branito, as everyone says, you know, like, I am a gringo or blito, you know, like, I'm white.

I'm a whitey.

The saving at the plaza, you know, like.

And.

But.

And also I have a very Anglo name, you know, Jason Thomas Barber.

I love my father.

He's American, you know, Rochester.

But, yeah, I have to kind of face that aspect of my culture.

But I also feel like I have a position in a point in my life where I can say, this is Important.

And this is why it's important.

And this is why I'm going to be annoying sometimes.

And.

Yeah.

Like.

And, you know, be tough on people and say, okay, where are you?

Where's your point of view?

Look at it from a different point, you know, And I think, because here we are and here we've always been.

When I'm on North Clinton, I don't see it as, like, I feel very home at it because this is where my family arrived when they first came here, you know, like, so to me, it's a very important neighborhood.

Just same as Maplewood is in Kodak park, where my father lived and my parents met.

But Maplewood, I mean, Avenue D and North Clinton are our epicenter.

They are where our culture is.

It's where Puerto Ricans and Dominicans and Mexicans and Hondurans and Guatemalans and El Salvadorians.

I can go down them.

We've all landed there, and we've all started our lives there.

And it should be treated like awesome part of Rochester, you know, like, just like the 19th Ward is, you know, African American culture in Rochester.

This is the.

This is North Clinton.

This is El Camino, you know, and we should look at that and say, okay, this is very important to us.

You know, so is Clarissa Street.

So is.

You know, so is Cornhill.

You know, like, these are important neighborhoods.

Park Avenue, whatever.

They have the worst Latin food.

I just want to point that.

Well, no, there.

Is that good.

This is like a good little Takawita that's right across from the worst restaurant in Rochester, which is El Dorado.

I forget the new.

I forget the new name, but it's.

In the old Nino's.

Yeah, I did try their food.

It's.

It is delightful.

It's good.

That's why.

El Capitan.

El Capitan.

Yeah, that's.

That's good.

El Dorado, on the other hand.

Please close.

Oh, my God.

This is why we don't live stream everything.

Are you gonna cut that?

It's for her to decide.

Keep it.

Keep it.

I don't.

I have it.

First of all, in the history of representation in cinema, I have never cut, like, anything.

And I don't think anyone has Al also ever requested that we cut anything.

So that will be left in.

He gets to cease and assist.

Letter from the swans.

We support free speech unless it is.

Hey, I love burns.

Unless it's bigotry.

Absolutely not.

Okay, so remind us where folks can get amazing.

The International Plaza on North Clinton Ave. Also, if you want to also have.

There's amazing New Puerto Rican place that just opened at North Clinton.

There's the Boricua Bakery, which is some of the best breakfast sandwiches, not bad Cubans and of course, Sofritos.

And at Pion, which is the legendary place all on North Clinton.

And I often like to say, I, I, I, I think South Clinton and North Clinton are the food meccas of Rochester for international food.

And they connect us to the two neighborhoods that the, the two, I would say the two towns that have the most international representation, which is Henrietta and Irondequoit.

And people don't realize that South Clinton and North Clinton are pretty much the thoroughfare of the best international food in Rochester.

Best Japanese, Chinese, Thai, Indian, you know, like.

And then you really connect it all the way to Henrietta, where all the Asian markets are, where Latin markets are and Pan Asian food.

And then you go all the way.

To Rondacort where you have Rubinos and Palusa Casca and Atlas Eats and Pasta Villa.

You know, you have all these like, narratives and it's like it connects the world.

And we talk about one street in Rochester.

I'm sorry, south of North Clinton.

Best food in Rochester's.

Here we go.

Hand down, right?

Food about town.

I'm a big fan.

I love it south of North Clinton.

It's got it.

There we go.

It really does.

It truly has it.

Well, Jason, we appreciate you, you know, being on this podcast, but then also just helping curate all these films for the Latin film series, which you can.

See when and where at the, at the dryden Theater from September 17th to October 15th, every Wednesday for 7:30pm so we'll love to see you there.

You're going to have an amazing time, amazing talks.

I think I'll be doing one or two of the talks.

I don't even know.

I got to touch Jared.

Also, can we just point out before we end up.

Yes, the Eastman also will be having orchestra has reached out to Obero and other organizations because we have Rita Morano coming to Rochester.

Can we just say that I've said to these men, this is going to sell out more than any other celebrity, more than Julia Roberts, more than Michael.

Keaton, more than anybody.

This, your gala is going to be packed with Latinos that I want to see Rita Morano.

And it's true.

I think this is also.

We've talked about it.

This is one of the first times Eastman House has given the George Eastman Award to an actress or an actor of color.

And the importance that they will be showing west side Story in October.

They will be Having Rita talk about it beforehand, and they'll be doing the.

Gala and honoring her.

And that is an amazing thing.

When I found out that Rita was.

Was gonna be the Judgment Award, that they chose her, I literally jumped in the air.

I was just like you.

She's one of our queens.

She's one of the legends of cinema for, you know, and it's.

It's a perfect way to end this film series.

The idea that we end on October 15 and not even two weeks later is gonna be Rita.

Yeah.

Is like.

That's insane.

It's so perfect.

The timing to kind of show that, like, we're literally almost every Wednesday for.

Until the November will be a Latin voice, you know, and the end with Rita Moreno, like Anita herself, the first Latino I ever saw until.

In a movie as a child, you know, like, when I hear America, it's.

That is like my childhood signature.

Yeah.

I like.

So.

Yeah, that.

Ah, I love that.

And I love that, you know, that they have reached out to the radio stations for po there.

I love that they reached out to our bands or Cincinnati.

That they are working very hard to create a culture and a dialogue within the Latin community in Rochester.

So.

Sorry, I went on a tangent.

No, you're.

It's all.

Yeah, it's all.

It's all good.

First Rita Moreno, and next Spike Lee, George Eastman.

Make it happen.

Anyway, I think they are.

Let's be patient.

But I think if they're doing Rita, next is gonna be Spike.

Let's go.

Edward James almost as well.

I'm gonna.

What about Denzel?

Denzel.

Oh, my God.

They would.

Seriously, it would be over, like, the amount of people that would be knocking down the doors to get in.

Exactly, exactly, exactly, exactly.

Oh, yes.

Well, thank you, Jason, for sharing everything.

For sharing your insight, your wisdom, the.

The.

The motivation, and just the.

Everything that went into and is going into the Latin film series.

We absolutely appreciate it and thank you for coming on the podcast to talk about it.

Thank you for having me.

Absolutely.

So for everyone who is listening, who is watching, we always appreciate your support with the Representation in Cinema podcast.

Like I said before, at the top of this episode, you can Find us on YouTube.

Please go ahead and hit that subscribe button.

Make sure you go to the Latin film series, okay.

Starting on September 17th, where you can watch films with Latin representation, curated by Jason Barber.

Well, Jared Case, too.

Jared Case.

Jared Case.

Mainly Jared Case as well.

Jared Case as well.

I have a few says.

Sorry, Jared, didn't mean to disclose.

You know, that man speaks fluent, like his mother was a Spanish teacher.

Did not know this.

There you go.

There you go.

I love that.

You can go get your free.

That's right, Free, free tickets.

Viet eastman.org Latin film series.

Well, you don't have to get tickets.

There's no tickets.

You're just going to come in.

Free entry.

Free free tickets.

You could still rsvp, man.

I'm trying to, I'm trying to.

Okay, Trying, trying to get them in.

That's what I'm saying.

Get them in.

Yes, exactly.

So free spots, walk in, whatever.

But you can go find more information, of course.

Listen to this podcast as well as visiting Eastman.org Latin Film Series.

And if you are not watching or listening on YouTube for any other platforms, if you're on TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, like we, we don't really do Twitter anymore.

Threads, Blue Sky.

Make sure y' all go ahead and hit those Follow or subscribe subscribe buttons.

You can also find us on ourvoicesproject.com to find out more about what we do, our films, our panels, our podcast, as well as signing up for our newsletter where you can get more information about all of the, the projects that we're working on.

We just submitted a film in collaboration with the Rochester I'm sorry, Rainbow Seniors Rock for their Legacy of Pride film.

Getting the stories of queer seniors over 50 years of age talking about their coming out stories and about their activism back in the day.

We're actually really excited about that film.

We just entered it into the Image Out Film festival.

So we'll give you more information about that as well as our being Black in America community screenings.

You have one of my childhood babysitters.

That'S in your video, Evelyn, Evelyn Holmes, who used to babysit Jason, which I did not know.

Hey, it's a small Latino community.

She was my babysitter, so I definitely gave her some gray hairs as a, as an 18 year old and now that's on camera.

So yeah, she's amazing.

I love her.

Yes.

And you'll be finding out more about our community screenings happening right here in Rochester.

Stay tuned.

Make sure you sign up for our newsletter for more information about that and also follow us on social.

We're also trying to be more consistent, you know, with this podcast, trying to move into more weekly episodes.

So you will be hearing back from us later on in the month.

This, of course, has been Jackie McGriff, your host for this episode of Representation in Cinema.

And as always, thank you for listening.

This has been a presentation of the.

Luncheon podcast network.