FEATURED |
By Claudia Meléndez Salinas
The only feature film acclaimed producer Brenda Ávila-Hanna has directed focuses on a transgender, Indigenous Mexican immigrant and her quest for political asylum in the U.S.
Alejandra, a health care provider, escaped her hometown in rural Oaxaca after surviving a brutal assault when she was a teenager. Ávila-Hanna began documenting her journey about a decade ago, before Alejandra decided to apply for asylum so she could go back to Mexico to see her ailing mother.
It would be hard to find another person who so perfectly encapsulates everything that the current administration is against. A transgender person. Immigrant. Asylum seeker. A woman who describes her existence as “resistance.” For a film festival centered around resistance through art. It’s as if Ávila-Hanna had been preparing for this moment for an entire decade.
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Centering Alejandra’s story for her film “Libertad” was a natural for the director, an immigrant herself who has dedicated her career to uplifting stories that resonate with her background.
“We sometimes connect all groups that are about immigrants rights,” she said. “But then, when we are in immigrant spaces, sometimes we don’t think about our trans siblings, right? And even in our own communities, we have very negative attitudes.”
“Libertad” is among the more than 50 films included in the 14th annual Watsonville Film Festival, which runs March 11-21 in Salinas, Santa Cruz and Watsonville. “Libertad” will be shown March 14 at Green Valley Cinema in Watsonville.
“It is historically marginalized communities that will ultimately set us free." Brenda Ávila-Hanna, film producer
The screening will also include “The Long Labor,” a short documentary that was co-produced and co-directed by Ávila-Hanna and Consuelo Alba, the festival’s director.
The two stories connect because they are both about Indigenous women who are leaders in a health care environment. “The Long Labor” documents the story of Maria, a Mexican immigrant who becomes a nurse practitioner and is challenging current childbirth practices inspired by Indigenous wellness customs.
“In both films, it is the leadership of the most vulnerable,” Ávila-Hanna said. “It is historically marginalized communities that will ultimately set us free. We are following the same type of leadership and practices that center the same things. And it’s not really working out, so communities that aren’t used to this historic marginalization know how to survive, know how to take care of each other, know how to be resourceful. And so that is what they have in common. We hope that audiences can go and see their leadership and (imagine that) there’s another world possible.”
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It is no coincidence that this year’s theme for the festival is “Art is Resistance.”
“At a time when immigrants and communities of color are under attack, independent films told through the lens of filmmakers who come from impacted communities are a powerful tool to reclaim agency, share stories, and inspire positive change,” Alba said in a statement.
“At a time when immigrants and communities of color are under attack, independent films told through the lens of filmmakers who come from impacted communities are a powerful tool to reclaim agency, share stories, and inspire positive change." Consuelo Alba, director, Watsonville Film Festival
Ávila-Hanna met Alejandra when working on a film about the first transgender health care team in Santa Cruz. Soon, the film became a short about Alejandra’s life. As their relationship progressed, Ávila-Hanna realized there was so much to the story, so many layers, that she decided to make a feature film. It was during that time that Alejandra’s mother fell ill, and she decided to seek asylum. That way she would be able to leave the country and legally come back again.
“We saw how amazing she was when we presented the film many years ago in community spaces, college campuses and different places,” Ávila-Hanna said, referring to the short version of the film. “And everybody had so many questions for Ale, and everybody loved her so much as she was so passionate about her dreams. We just decided that there was much more to it. We were very fortunate that she allowed us to remain in her life, and that she trusted us with her story and her journey through asylum, because we had no idea at that point that she was going to be going for asylum.”
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In the film, Ávila-Hanna uses some of Alejandra’s art work to illustrate challenging episodes of her life. The attack that nearly killed her. The distance between mother and daughter. Animation, a tool that’s traditionally been used in fiction films, is increasingly being used in documentaries.
“Sometimes, animation can be a tool,” she said. “How do we protect others? Or how do we show situations that we don’t have a record for? Or how do we show situations without retraumatizing people? How do we allow ourselves to dream or to rewrite or reshape our own narrative? So I think animation can become that sort of tool. We decided to work with animation because we wanted to make sure to honor the memories that the protagonist has of her childhood, and to give space to have her own story in her own terms.”
If you go
What: Watsonville Film Festival
When: March 11-21
Where: Santa Cruz, Salinas, Watsonville, various locations
Online: https://watsonvillefilmfest.org/
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