Martina Paseggi stars as Elisa in Un futuro brillante (A Bright Future), a film by Uruguayan director Lucía Garibaldi. Credit: Courtesy Image / Raza Cósmica
International film festival Raza Cósmica, now in its fifth year, showcases independent cinema for underserved communities and prides itself on curating a “constellation of Latinx sci-fi cinema.”
Created by the San Antonio-based organization MonteVideo and sponsored by the Mexican American Civil Rights Institute (MACRI) and American Indians in Texas at the Spanish Colonial Missions (AIT-SCM), Raza Cósmica spotlights science fiction and sci-fi-adjacent films by Latinx and BIPOC filmmakers.
MonteVideo founder Manuel Solis, an occasional Current contributor, said he settled on the sci-fi theme for the festival, which gets underway Thursday, Oct. 9, because of the accessibility of the genre.
“Science fiction is often present and influential in many Latino households growing up, via television shows like Star Trek and The Twilight Zone,” Solis said. “It’s often passed down by tíos and tías. [Sci-fi] allows filmmakers to imagine and create new worlds where Latino narratives are centered in new ways.”
This year, Raza Cósmica has a robust selection of films around the world, including Argentina, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Scotland, the United Arab Emirates, Uruguay and the United States.
The opening night film is the Texas premiere of Un futuro brillante (A Bright Future) by director Lucia Garibaldi. Set in a dystopian world, the film follows Elisa (Martina Passeggi), a young woman from South America who’s selected through a lottery to travel “North” in hopes of reuniting with her sister.
“Not everyone has an opportunity to migrate and make a better life for themselves,” Solis said. “I think a film like Un futuro brillante is a great example of that – exploring immigration from a fresh lens. In the film, [Elisa] sees the value of her own community and the importance of being true to yourself.”
Other films screening at Raza Cósmica that highlight the migrant experience are Illegal Alien, which uncovers the physical and emotional journeys that Venezuelan women endure while migrating; and M.A.M.O.N. (Monitor Against Mexican Over Nationwide), a comedy that explores the consequences of banning immigration. Think of Sergio Arau’s 2004 film A Day Without a Mexican, except instead of Mexicans disappearing into thin air, they are catapulted back into Mexico.
“We’re looking at immigration from a satirical point of view and from a fresh perspective,” Solis said. “It’s a meaningful way to engage, have a dialogue and share different viewpoints. You can see immigration from a basic human level … instead of the rhetoric that’s on the news.”
A full festival schedule is available online at the website below.
Free, various times, Thursday, Oct. 9-Saturday, Oct. 11, Arthouse at Blue Star and Central Library, 134 Blue Star and 600 Soledad St, montevideo210.com.
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