The Oscar-nominated Spanish actor takes on one of history’s most controversial figures in a new film directed by Paul Mignot, with a screenplay by Oscar nominee Nicholas Kazan. Production is underway in Paris.

Antonio Banderas is stepping into one of history’s most complex and controversial roles of the journey of a man that changed the course of the existing lands.

The Spanish-born, Academy Award-nominated actor will portray Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés in Cortés, an ambitious historical epic to be produced by Utopai Studios and Ex Machina Studios. French filmmaker Paul Mignot will direct the feature from a screenplay by Oscar-nominated writer Nicholas Kazan, with producer Marco Weber overseeing the production.

Announced today in Paris, the film brings together an internationally acclaimed creative team to revisit a defining and deeply consequential chapter in the history of Mexico and the Americas.

The project has been more than 35 years in the making, with Kazan’s screenplay offering a deeply human exploration of one of history’s most consequential encounters. Now, with Banderas at its center, the long-anticipated epic is moving forward through a production model that combines traditional filmmaking with next-generation production technologies.

A Conquistador, an Indigenous Woman and a Turning Point in History

Set in 1519, Cortés follows a restless Spanish soldier whose hunger for glory drives him to seize command of an expedition to the Yucatán and sail without authorization from Cuba.

After reaching the coast of what is now Mexico, Cortés encounters Marina (patterned after the real life indigenous woman Malinche Cortes actually encountered), an enslaved Indigenous woman whose extraordinary linguistic abilities make her indispensable to his campaign. As he builds alliances and uses faith and fear to advance his conquest, Marina witnesses his transformation from an ambitious outlaw into a man who sees himself as a messianic figure.

The story places Marina at the center of a historical collision shaped by power, ambition, cultural conflict and conquest—an encounter whose consequences continue to resonate throughout Mexican and Latin American history.

For audiences, the film offers an opportunity to revisit this pivotal period through a character-driven narrative that explores not only the man who led the expedition, but also the Indigenous woman whose linguistic skills and position made her a crucial figure in his advance.

Antonio Banderas Brings a Powerful Screen Legacy to the Role

Banderas has built an international career portraying characters defined by intensity, complexity and charisma. His casting as Cortés reunites his commanding screen presence with a historical figure whose legacy remains the subject of debate.

The actor earned an Academy Award nomination and won Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival for his acclaimed performance in Pedro Almodóvar’s Pain and Glory. His extensive filmography includes The Mask of Zorro, Desperado, Evita, Philadelphia, The Skin I Live In and the beloved Puss in Boots franchise.

He also earned Primetime Emmy Award nominations for portraying artist Pablo Picasso in Genius: Picasso and Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa in And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself.

His experience portraying historical figures, combined with his ability to bring humanity to larger-than-life characters, makes this latest role a significant addition to his career.

Banderas will perform the role under Mignot’s direction, with production already underway in Paris and additional filming scheduled in Spain.

An Ambitious Vision for a Historical Epic

“Cortés is exactly why we built Utopai Studios,” said Cecilia Shen, co-founder and CEO of Utopai Studios. She described the project as an opportunity to bring together Kazan’s screenplay, Mignot’s cinematic vision and Banderas’ ability to bring humanity to the film’s central character.

Marco Weber, producer of Cortés and CEO and co-founder of Ex Machina Studios, emphasized the importance of believable, complex characters in historical storytelling.

Weber said Banderas brings a commanding yet deeply human dimension to Cortés, while Mignot’s vision will help translate Kazan’s screenplay into a film that seeks to bring the breathtaking world-building with an intimate human story.

The partnership also reflects the studios’ commitment to combining filmmaker-led creative work with evolving production technologies.

Mignot’s directing credits include the historical feature Vaincre ou Mourir and the award-winning short All Blood Runs Red. His experience also extends to international campaigns for major brands, including BMW, Porsche, Audi, Lexus, Jeep, L’Oréal, Louis Vuitton and Emporio Armani.

Kazan brings a distinguished screenwriting résumé to the project. He received Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for his adapted screenplay for Reversal of Fortune. His other writing credits include Frances, Patty Hearst, Matilda, Fallen and Bicentennial Man.

Together, the director, screenwriter and lead actor will tackle a historical narrative that demands both cinematic scale and a nuanced examination of human ambition and its consequences.

Global Distribution Plans Announced

Utopai Studios and Ex Machina Studios will co-produce and co-finance the film, with each company taking responsibility for sales and distribution in designated international territories.

Utopai Studios will oversee sales and distribution in the United States, Canada, Asia, the Middle East and Africa. Ex Machina Studios will handle most of Europe, Latin America, Australia and New Zealand.

For Latin American audiences in particular, the film’s subject matter carries significant historical and cultural weight, making its eventual release and interpretation a point of interest for the region.

Additional casting announcements and production details are expected at a later date.

As Cortés moves from a screenplay decades in the making to a major international production, one of Spain’s most recognizable actors is preparing to embody a figure whose actions helped reshape the history of Mexico—and whose legacy remains anything but simple.

Latin Heat will continue to follow developments on Cortés as production progresses.

The post BREAKING NEWS: Antonio Banderas To Star as Hernàn Cortés In Historical Epic Drama first appeared on .

The Dominican multi-hyphenate producer discusses representation, humanitarian work and the mentors like Forest Whitaker who shaped her Hollywood journey.

Jessica Medina has spent years on Hollywood’s big productions. She has worked on Marvel and DC projects and films with Forest Whitaker, John Travolta, John Cena, and Liam Neeson. Now, the Dominican actress is taking on some of the biggest opportunities of her career while increasingly using her platform to create opportunities for others.

Medina stars in the film Divided, her first leading film role, while also stepping behind the camera as a producer. Through her production company, JM Films, she is developing a television series dealing in part with human trafficking and says she wants to create more opportunities for Latinos and people who aren’t often represented on screen.

Away from entertainment, Medina serves as U.S. Director for Heaven’s Kitchen, helping the humanitarian organization provide food, clothing and other resources to communities around the world, including in her native Dominican Republic.

Jessica Medina Takes the Lead in Divided

For Medina, Divided represents an opportunity she had spent years working toward: the chance to show what she could do with a character who remains central to a story from beginning to end.

Asked how the opportunities she’s receiving today compare with earlier in her career, Medina said:

“Oh my God, it’s so different now because people really are able to see what I really can do. And I’m able to do more work and show my skill set. For Divided, I got a whole script, from the beginning all the way to the end, 98 pages. And to me, that was amazing, like a big deal, because I usually used to get a couple of lines, you know. But with Divided, I was from the beginning of the movie all the way to the finish. And as an actor that’s been doing this for a while, that was a big deal, for real.”

Medina plays Isabella, a deeply religious woman whose devotion to her family ultimately reveals a much darker side of the character.

The role also arrived at an extraordinary moment in Medina’s life. She says she was in the hospital when Brely Evans called her about the project.

“I was actually in the hospital when I booked this job, literally almost dying. And it was like 12 o’clock at night and Brely called me. She’s like, ‘Hey, I’m thinking about you. Do you want to play this role?’ She sent me the script. Isabella was so interesting because she was a woman of God, but at the same time, she was somebody that would do anything for her family, especially her husband.”

That duality allowed Medina to explore emotional territory she hadn’t previously been given the opportunity to show.

“You see the rage, the different beats as a woman of God, but at the same time, if you see the movie, you can see the other dark side of Isabella, which, me personally, I think every human definitely has that side of them. We have our good side, but also we have our dark side. I think for me to show that was interesting because, you know, you have to go to places from your past. I’m glad I did it because it pushed me as an actress to do something that I never did before.”

Divided also gave Medina her first opportunity to serve as a producer, something she credits Evans with making possible.

“Brely gave me my first opportunity of being a producer, and I’m so grateful for her because she’s an amazing person. It was very interesting to play so many parts and just to see the end product. It’s like a baby, you’re so proud of it. We did it, and it was so quick, everything. It was just interesting to see the final product and so many details that people don’t understand about what it is to be a producer.”

JM Films, Latino Representation and Human Trafficking

Producing is becoming much more than another credit for Medina.

Through JM Films, she says she wants to create opportunities for Latino performers and others who have traditionally struggled to find space on screen.

“I opened my production company, JM Films, with the idea of creating opportunities for Latinos and people that you don’t usually see on the screen, and for everybody, literally. For the outcasts and people that you will never see. So I’m proud of that.”

Medina is already developing a television series through the company that she wrote and plans to produce and star in. She said discussions with potential investors are underway.

“Now I’m creating a TV series. Actually, we’re talking with a few investors. I wrote the whole TV show. I’m producing it, and I’m starring in it too. So we’re working on that.”

The series incorporates human trafficking and cartel activity into a story based in Atlanta. Medina says JM Films is focused on stories inspired by things that happen in the real world.

Human trafficking, in particular, is an issue Medina says has personal significance because of experiences from earlier in her life.

“I think certain things I lived in my personal life when I was younger and the things I’ve been through, I think people need a voice, somebody that can really speak on that issue, especially in Atlanta, that people really don’t talk about. To me, that is really important, you know, because there are so many kids and people out there that have been trafficked.”

As a Latina, Medina says she is particularly interested in drawing attention to trafficking affecting Latino women and children and encouraging others with platforms of their own to become involved.

“I think as a Latina, in our community, we need a strong voice because there are so many Latino kids and women out there getting trafficked. A lot of people don’t know about that. If I can help speak on it, if I can tell the community or the government, ‘Hey, this is what’s happening,’ I think people will pay attention, and other Latinos in Hollywood or politics can really help our community, or any community that is having this issue.”

Medina pointed to Eduardo Verástegui and Sound of Freedom as an example of a Latino filmmaker using entertainment to bring attention to human trafficking.

“Definitely, the movie Sound of Freedom, that was produced by Eduardo Verástegui. Just seeing a Latino, and he’s a Christian too, produce an entire movie about human trafficking in Latin America, but based in the United States. That story is based on a real story because I did my research. I was really impressed with the job he has done and he continues to do. So he’s definitely one of my biggest inspirations, besides my personal reasons for writing these stories.”

Medina’s Humanitarian Work With Heaven’s Kitchen

Medina’s desire to help underserved communities isn’t limited to the stories she wants to put on screen.

As U.S. Director for Heaven’s Kitchen, Medina says she has helped the organization reach families across Venezuela, El Salvador, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Colombia and Pakistan.

“What we’re doing in Heaven’s Kitchen is we are feeding hundreds of thousands of people and families all over the world. We’ve been to Venezuela, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Colombia, Pakistan. We go to different countries and we feed them, we give them clothes, and we actually help them become professionals and learn a skill set. For me as a human being, I just want to help a little and just help people in general. That’s the bottom line.”

Medina became involved after she began researching nonprofits and was introduced to Chef Roberto Mendoza. Discovering another Latino who shared many of her values and humanitarian goals immediately resonated with her.

“Somebody introduced me to Chef Roberto, and he’s a Latino as well. So to me, that was like, ‘Oh my God, a Latino that believes in the same concept as I believe.’ I think we can come together and create this beautiful thing. We just kind of united, two powerful people with the same cause and the same beliefs in God and helping families and kids. That’s how it started. And I’m so grateful to be part of this nonprofit.”

The organization’s work has also allowed Medina to give back directly to communities in the Dominican Republic, including her hometown of La Romana.

But Medina says her ambitions for the organization extend well beyond her home country.

“I think the more we can do, open schools, help with health, anything. Not just in my country, Dominican Republic, but we have done a lot there. We are helping La Romana, Puerto Plata. We have helped in different cities in the Dominican Republic, my country. But it’s not just my country. We just want to help the whole planet, if we could. That’s what I want, to continue helping.”

Medina also encouraged people interested in Heaven’s Kitchen to become involved themselves.

“If people want to donate, they can go to the website. If they want to talk to me or have any type of question, or anybody wants me to help out in some type of way, I’m here too.”

Mexicali Shows Audiences a Different Side of Medina

Alongside Divided, Medina recently appeared in Mexicali, reuniting her with director Luke LaFontaine and producer Jesse Johnson, collaborators she says she has worked with on several films.

For Medina, one of the attractions was getting the opportunity to shed the glamorous image audiences may associate with some of her previous roles.

“Oh my God, they’re great friends. They’re amazing, talented individuals. So talented, so kind, so humble. I’ve already done a few movies, like four movies with them. Actually, Luke called me, and this is what I love about this part, because usually people are used to seeing me sexy and running around. In this part, I got no makeup. I was just playing a humble farm girl that gets killed and shot.”

Medina says LaFontaine specifically wanted the role to showcase another dimension of her acting.

“It was so much fun because Luke was like, ‘Well, I want people to see your talent, how talented you are, because you really are. This is not a pretty part. This is more of a real part.’ And I was happy to do it. I think it looks amazing.”

Medina also appears in the first season of Love Don’t Pay the Bills, another recent project she encouraged audiences to seek out.

Forest Whitaker, Ty Walker and the Mentors Who Helped Medina

Medina has worked with major names throughout her career, but when asked which collaborators have left the greatest impression on her, she immediately returned to Forest Whitaker.

The Academy Award winner met Medina early in her career and encouraged her to leave Miami and pursue acting in Los Angeles. Medina previously described Whitaker as someone who continued to inspire her years after that initial encounter.

“First and foremost, Forest Whitaker was my first mentor and somebody that really changed my life and my career, who I still respect. Ty Walker gave me so many opportunities, my first stunt coordinating opportunity, and kind of mentored me into what producing is too. So I’m blessed to know him and to call him a friend. And another amazing big director, Joe Carnahan, who also mentored me and told me a few things, that I’m valuable. I can call them friends, not just colleagues. They’re amazing.”

For Medina, Ty Walker represents a different stage of that journey. By then, she had already established herself as a performer, but Walker gave her opportunities to begin taking on greater responsibility behind the camera, including her first opportunity in stunt coordination.

She also credits Walker with helping introduce her to producing, something that has since become an increasingly important part of her career.

“Ty Walker gave me so many opportunities. He gave me my first stunt coordinating opportunity, and he also really helped mentor me as I started learning about producing and understanding that side of filmmaking. That was important for me because it gave me the opportunity to grow and start doing more than what people were already used to seeing me do. He helped open that door for me and gave me the opportunity to learn. I’m very blessed to know him and to be able to call him a friend.”

That evolution can now be seen in Medina’s own work, as she increasingly balances performing with producing and developing projects of her own.

Joe Carnahan Reminded Medina of Her Value

Medina separately points to Joe Carnahan as another filmmaker who became an important mentor. For Medina, one of the things that stayed with her was Carnahan reminding her of the value she already brought to the industry.

“Joe Carnahan is another amazing director who mentored me. He talked to me about the business and reminded me that I’m valuable and that what I bring to this industry has value. Sometimes you need someone who has that experience to remind you of that and help you see it in yourself. That meant a lot to me. And now I’m fortunate that I can call him a friend, not just a colleague. That’s something I’m very grateful for.”

Jessica Medina’s Advice to the Next Generation of Latino Actors

After years of navigating Hollywood herself, Medina has a simple message for the next generation of Latino performers: don’t allow the industry to erase what makes them different.

“I would say don’t lose yourself. Always be yourself. A lot of the time when you get in the business, you’re going to hear a lot of no’s, and you’re going to hear a lot of, ‘You have to change this, change that.’ But always be yourself, be unique. I think by you being yourself and believing in yourself and what you bring to the table, because everybody is different, what you bring to the table originally is what’s going to make you different from the different actors.”

It’s advice informed by Medina’s own experiences entering the industry with a stronger accent and encountering people who had specific ideas about how a Latina actress was supposed to look and sound.

“I remember when I started, I still have an accent, but my accent was stronger. I didn’t look like Salma Hayek, so a lot of people were like, ‘Well, you need to get rid of the accent. You need to look this way.’ So one thing I think that really worked for me was being authentic and just being yourself. Believe in yourself and what you can do and who you are.”

For Medina, the qualities young performers can sometimes be pressured to change may ultimately be the same qualities that distinguish them.

“I think for the new generation out there, boys and girls, just be you and don’t let it change you. You’re going to see good things happening, because whatever it is that you bring to the table is what’s going to set you apart from the rest.”

From leading Divided to building JM Films and expanding her humanitarian work, Medina is using each new opportunity to create space for stories and voices that have too often been overlooked. And after years of learning from those who opened doors for her, she is increasingly focused on holding those doors open for the next generation.

The post EXCLUSIVE: Jessica Medina on Leading Roles, Producing, Representation, Giving Back & Her Hollywood Mentors first appeared on .

LOS ANGELES — Independent bilingual comedy Comedia Del Adri has won Best TV Pilot and Best International Film at the Comedy Film Festival, as well as the Audience Award at FilmGate Miami, ahead of its Hollywood premiere at the TCL Chinese Theatre.

The Spanish-English series, written by and starring Adrian Manzano and directed by Chase Bradburn, will screen September 12 as part of the inaugural Indiewood Film Festival.

The 30-minute pilot is designed as the first episode of a nine-episode series following Adri, a middle-aged Mexican-Colombian comedian rebuilding his life and career in Mexico City. His relationship with Bella, a younger German woman, brings questions of family, identity and cultural differences into the story.

Manzano stars as Adri alongside Dilara Foscht as Bella, Alejandra Herrera as Maria, Byungsun Kim as Ramon and Mabel de la Luz. Manzano and Samira Mekibes Meza serve as producers.

The TCL Chinese Theatre screening takes place three days before the start of Latino Heritage Month on September 15 and is part of the inaugural Indiewood Film Festival’s independent film and television program.

Manzano said the project’s bilingual format and focus on Latino characters were central to its development.

“We’re making this show while ICE raids are tearing through our neighborhoods and Latinx families are living in fear of being separated,” Manzano said. “Getting to tell our own stories, in our own languages, and to laugh at ourselves instead of being laughed at, matters more right now than it ever has.”

Manzano, a Queens, New York native, is a writer, actor and filmmaker whose previous credits include the feature Sex, Love & Salsa, which received awards at international festivals including the Montreal Latino Film Festival and Stattkino Festival in Zurich. The film is currently in development as a television series.

His other credits include writing and directing The Gradua and writing Ilegítimo, which was sold to Panama’s Jacobo Silvera Productions. In 2026, he appears in Hard Redemption with Lou Ferrigno and Dustslickers.

The Hollywood screening gives Comedia Del Adri a showcase at one of the city’s best-known theatrical venues following its recent festival recognition.

‘COMEDIA DEL ADRI’
Indiewood Film Festival
September 12, 2026
TCL Chinese Theatre — Hollywood

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LOS ANGELES — Filmmaker Joaquim Adrià Pujol is bringing his acclaimed documentary Màquina to Hollywood, with the 90-minute film set for its Los Angeles premiere Sunday, September 13 at 9:45 p.m. during the Indiewood Film Festival.

The Spanish- and English-language documentary takes an unflinching look at addiction, alcoholism and generational trauma through an unusually personal lens: Pujol documents his own father and brother as they travel across the American West in an aging Winnebago en route to Colorado for ibogaine-assisted addiction treatment.

What could have been framed as a conventional addiction-recovery documentary instead becomes an intimate family drama — one that asks difficult questions about responsibility, codependency and the emotional toll of trying to save someone you love.

Pujol directs, produces and shoots the film, placing himself directly inside the story alongside his father, Xavi Pujol Berlanga, and brother, Marcel Enric Pujol. The result is a portrait of a family confronting its history in real time, with the filmmaker capturing the arguments, awkward silences, humor and tenderness that accompany their journey.

Even the vehicle becomes part of the narrative.

As the aging Winnebago repeatedly breaks down along the route, it emerges as a visual metaphor for a family struggling to keep itself moving forward.

Màquina also avoids presenting psychedelic-assisted treatment as a simplistic answer to addiction. Instead, the film examines what happens before, during and after the decision to seek help — and the complicated emotional terrain occupied by the people surrounding an addict.

That approach has already drawn critical attention. Film Threat gave the documentary a 9/10, calling it “a parade of stunning visual metaphors for the struggle with addiction.” The film has also received positive reviews from DMovies and High on Films.

At its heart, however, Màquina is a father-and-son story.

Pujol’s decision to make himself part of the film allows the documentary to move beyond the traditional observer role, confronting the inherited wounds, family dynamics and blurred boundaries that can accompany addiction. The film explores the difficult distinction between supporting someone and becoming consumed by their struggle.

The Los Angeles premiere comes as the documentary continues to build attention for its raw, observational approach and its refusal to package recovery into an easy Hollywood narrative.

The film features Xavi Pujol Berlanga, Marcel Enric Pujol, Joaquim Adrià Pujol, Charles B. Shaw, John Dias, John Anthony Dias, Hana Farky, Dennis Bouverie, Gerardo Ortiz, Bryan Davis and Shawn Johnson.

Vesta Tu?kut? produces alongside Pujol, with Silvija Vilkait?-Ramanausk? editing and acclaimed composer Jozef van Wissem providing the score. Pujol also serves as cinematographer.

Màquina is a 2025 U.S. documentary, presented in English and Spanish, with a runtime of 90 minutes.

Maquina — LOS ANGELES PREMIERE

Indiewood Film Festival
Sunday, September 13, 2026
9:45 p.m.
Hollywood, California

For Pujol, the journey at the center of Màquina is ultimately about more than addiction treatment. It is about the machinery of family itself — how it breaks down, how people carry one another, and whether something damaged can still be repaired.

The post Joaquim Adrià Pujol’s Addiction Doc ‘Màquina’ Set for LA Premiere at Indiewood Film Festival first appeared on .

By Bel Hernandez Castillo

LOS ANGELES — The 2026 Indiewood Film Festival is bringing two distinctly bicultural stories to Hollywood this September, with Del Zamora’s Chicano drama The Last Brown Beret and Varahi Pooja Mallipamula’s provocative dramedy IMPURE set to screen at the iconic TCL Chinese Theatres.

The films arrive at the festival following notable festival recognition and represent two generations and cultures grappling with identity, tradition, activism and the pressures of societal expectations.

‘The Last Brown Beret’

Written and directed by Del Zamora, The Last Brown Beret will make its Los Angeles premiere September 14 following its Grand Prize – Best Feature win at the 2026 Golden State Film Festival.

Inspired by Alfredo Ramos’ stage play The Last Angry Brown Hat, the film revisits the legacy of the Chicano civil rights movement through a group of former Brown Beret activists who reunite decades after their days of organizing and activism.

Following the funeral of a former member, the men gather in the garage where they once planned protests and debated how to change the world. Their reunion forces them to reckon with the movement they helped build, the sacrifices they made and the battles that remain unresolved.

Starring Daniel E. Mora, Randy Vasquez, Vance Valencia, Linda Lopez, David Castro, Karen E. Wright and Zamora, the film blends political history with an intimate exploration of friendship, aging, identity and the complicated legacy of activism.

The Last Brown Beret is presented by Nestorita Limited in association with Con Safos Production.

‘IMPURE’

Three days later, on September 17, IMPURE will make its Los Angeles premiere, bringing a very different—but equally personal—bicultural story to the festival.

Written and produced by Varahi Pooja Mallipamula and directed by Nishanti Evani, the dramedy centers on Sandhya, a 25-year-old woman from a traditional Telugu family whose wedding is called off after her ex-boyfriend publicly reveals that she is not a virgin.

The incident sparks a viral social-media controversy when Sandhya’s American cousin, Veera, speaks out against the double standard surrounding female sexuality. With Indian-American artist Raja Kumari amplifying the video, Sandhya becomes the target of public scrutiny and cultural judgment.

Set in Visakhapatnam, IMPURE uses comedy, romance and friendship to tackle female sexuality, patriarchy, marriage, reputation, family expectations and the complicated process of defining oneself between cultures.

The film stars Yashna Muthuluri, Mallipamula, Sai Krishna and Abhijith Sreenath, with Raja Kumari serving as music director and appearing in a cameo.

At the heart of IMPURE is a provocative redefinition of its title: “IMPURE” becomes “I’M PURE.”

Two Films, Two Generations, One Cultural Conversation

While The Last Brown Beret looks backward at a generation that fought to change society, IMPURE examines the cultural expectations confronting a younger generation determined to define itself.

Together, the films underscore the breadth of independent cinema—and the power of filmmakers to bring stories of identity, heritage and social change to the Hollywood screen.

Both films will screen as part of the 2026 Indiewood Film Festival at the TCL Chinese Theatres in Hollywood.

The Last Brown Beret
Los Angeles Premiere — September 14, 2026

IMPURE
Los Angeles Premiere — September 17, 2026

Indiewood Film Festival
TCL Chinese Theatres — Hollywood, California

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Mighty Aphrodite Pictures Sets October Shoot

Oscar-nominated actor Eric Roberts and emerging performer Ben King are set to star in filmmaker Jorge Xolalpa’s new comedy-drama Hello, My Name Is Richard!, with production slated to begin October 19 in Los Angeles, Latin Heat can exclusively reveal.

The film is being produced under Xolalpa’s Mighty Aphrodite Pictures, the Los Angeles-based banner behind the filmmaker’s growing slate of independently produced features.

King will star as Richard Brown, a young autistic man who decides to run for city council, while Roberts is set to play Albert.

Written and directed by Xolalpa, Hello, My Name Is Richard! is built around an unconventional political candidate whose determination to make a difference in his community becomes the catalyst for a story that balances comedy and drama with themes of inclusion, ambition, family and human connection.

Rather than treating Richard’s political aspirations simply as a campaign story, the film centers on the man behind the candidacy—and the personal drive that compels him to step into a world where his voice has not traditionally been heard.

The project represents another collaboration between Xolalpa and NYTA Films, which is financing the production. The companies have developed an established working relationship, with NYTA Films having financed Xolalpa’s previous five feature films.

That continued partnership underscores a production model Xolalpa has increasingly embraced: developing character-driven stories and moving them from script to screen through a combination of independent financing and a consistent creative team.

For King, the role marks a significant leading-man opportunity opposite a veteran performer whose filmography spans decades of film and television. Roberts, an Oscar nominee for Runaway Train, has built one of the industry’s most prolific careers, with hundreds of screen credits across features, television and independent productions.

Xolalpa’s Expanding Slate

Hello, My Name Is Richard! arrives as Xolalpa continues to expand his slate beyond his existing body of independent features.

The filmmaker recently secured an exclusive option agreement to develop the authorized feature film based on the life and legacy of U.S. Army Specialist Vanessa Guillén, partnering with producer Jolene Rodriguez on the project.

The Vanessa Guillén film will explore the life of the late Army soldier and the circumstances surrounding her death, a case that generated national attention and contributed to a larger conversation about accountability and protections for service members.

Taken together, the projects illustrate the breadth of Xolalpa’s current development strategy. While the Vanessa Guillén project tackles a real-life story with significant cultural and social implications, Hello, My Name Is Richard! takes a more intimate and comedic route, focusing on an individual pursuing a place in his community and the people surrounding him.

Both, however, share a central component of Xolalpa’s filmmaking: placing characters and perspectives that have historically received limited representation at the center of the story.

For Hello, My Name Is Richard!, that perspective belongs to Richard Brown, whose decision to seek public office becomes both a source of humor and a vehicle for exploring what it means to be seen, heard and taken seriously.

With principal photography now set for October, Xolalpa is moving quickly on what is shaping up to be another independently mounted feature from the filmmaker and Mighty Aphrodite Pictures.

Principal photography on Hello, My Name Is Richard! is scheduled to begin October 19 in Los Angeles.

The post EXCLUSIVE: Eric Roberts, Ben King Set to Lead Jorge Xolalpa’s ‘Hello, My Name Is Richard!’ first appeared on .

Mighty Aphrodite Pictures Taps Jolene Rodriguez to Produce

BREAKING NEWS

LATINOWood — Award-winning director, producer and bestselling author Jorge Xolalpa is taking on one of the most significant projects of his career. Xolalpa has secured the exclusive option agreement to develop the authorized feature film based on the life and legacy of U.S. Army Specialist Vanessa Guillén, whose 2020 disappearance and murder at Fort Hood ignited a national movement for justice, military accountability and systemic reform.

The option, signed with Vanessa’s sister Mayra Guillén, gives Xolalpa and his company, Mighty Aphrodite Pictures, the exclusive right to develop, package, pitch, negotiate and market the authorized film. The project will be developed in cooperation with the Guillén family, with their participation and support intended to help ensure that Vanessa’s story is told with authenticity and respect.

The deal comes after interest from multiple entertainment-industry players, with the Guillén family ultimately entrusting Xolalpa with the project. For the filmmaker, the significance goes well beyond adding another title to an increasingly ambitious independent film slate.

“This is far more than an opportunity to make a film. It’s a responsibility,” said Xolalpa, who heads Mighty Aphrodite Pictures. “From the very beginning, our commitment has been to honor Vanessa’s life with honesty, compassion, and authenticity. We are deeply grateful to Mayra and the Guillén family for placing their trust in us. Our promise is to tell Vanessa’s story in a way that preserves her legacy and inspires audiences for generations to come.”

A Story That Changed the Conversation

Vanessa Guillén was a 20-year-old U.S. Army Specialist stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, when she disappeared in April 2020. Her murder and the subsequent investigation thrust the experiences of military families into the national spotlight and prompted widespread questions about sexual harassment, reporting procedures and accountability within the military.

The Guillén family’s campaign for justice ultimately helped drive legislative change, including provisions addressing sexual harassment and assault within the armed forces.

The forthcoming film is expected to chronicle not only Vanessa’s life and death, but also the extraordinary advocacy of her family and the movement that grew around her name. That distinction is important to Xolalpa.

Rather than approaching the story solely as a tragedy, the filmmaker and the Guillén family are positioning the project as a story about Vanessa the person, her aspirations and her legacy — and the determination of a family that refused to let her disappearance be forgotten.

For Xolalpa, whose body of work has centered on underrepresented voices and culturally specific stories, the project represents a natural extension of his filmmaking mission.

His films have screened at more than 50 film festivals worldwide and earned dozens of awards and accolades. His work has consistently explored identity, immigration, resilience, belonging and the experiences of communities historically underrepresented on screen. Now, that approach is being applied to a story with national resonance.

Jolene Rodriguez Comes Aboard

Joining Xolalpa is producer Jolene Rodriguez (7th & Union) of Broken English Productions. Rodriguez brings significant industry credentials to the project and was previously named by Variety as one of its “10 Producers to Watch.”

Her involvement also marks the beginning of a broader creative partnership with Xolalpa.

The two filmmakers have entered into a three-film producing agreement, establishing a partnership that will see them collaborate on three feature films, with additional projects expected to be announced.

For Xolalpa and Rodriguez, the Vanessa Guillén film therefore represents both a major standalone project and the first chapter of a larger producing relationship. Mayra Guillén and Alejandra Palomera will serve as executive producers.

The option agreement was facilitated by Palomera Group and Levy Law PLLC, Mayra Guillén’s team.

Building a Latino Indie Film Powerhouse

The deal further positions Xolalpa’s Mighty Aphrodite Pictures as a company focused on commercially viable films with culturally specific stories and strong social relevance.

Xolalpa has spent more than a decade establishing himself as an independent filmmaker while expanding his work beyond directing. He is also the bestselling author of “Ni De Aquí, Ni De Allá: A Soul Suspended Between Two Worlds“, a memoir exploring identity, immigration and belonging.

Following the book’s release, Xolalpa embarked on a 25-city national tour, appearing at universities, cultural institutions, bookstores and community organizations across the country. His expanding literary slate includes the upcoming children’s book The Boy Who Reached the Stars and his debut novel, The Woman in My Mirror.

But it is the Vanessa Guillén project that could represent his most consequential cinematic opportunity to date.

For an independent filmmaker who has built his career around stories that challenge the industry’s traditional center of gravity, being selected by the Guillén family carries a significance that cannot be measured simply by budget or box office potential. It is a vote of confidence in the idea that who tells a story — and how that story is told — matters.

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By Bel Hernandez Castillo & Andrea Nuñez

To understand what Chicano Hollywood “wants”, you first need to understand what a “Chicano” is.  

In 1970 award-winning journalist Ruben Salazar wrote the definitive article defining the word Chicano in his Los Angeles Times article titled:  “Who is a Chicano and What is it that Chicanos Want?

In his article Salazar wrote, “A Chicano is a Mexican-American with a non-Anglo image of himself. He resents being told Columbus “discovered” America when the Chicano’s ancestors, the Mayans and the Aztecs, founded highly sophisticated civilizations centuries before Spain financed the Italian explorer’s trip to the “New World.”

The passage captures why the term became associated by many Mexican-Americans  with cultural pride and self-determination.

However over the past five decades, the meaning of “Chicano” has evolved. Once embraced as a political identity rooted in the Chicano Movement, it later fell out of favor among some Mexican Americans, while others continued to wear it as a badge of cultural pride. Today, a new generation, and not just Mexican- Americans, are reclaiming the term in ways that emphasize identity, history, and empowerment.  

So what is Chicano Hollywood?

Johnny Murillo, founder of Chicano Hollywood, defines it as a platform “a community built to elevate, empower, and showcase Chicanos and Latino storytellers”. But the vision extends far beyond that simple definition.

That vision might be rooted in past efforts by several Latino organization, who throughout the years were founded for the same purpose.  Chicano Hollywood is part of a broader Latino entertainment ecosystem that has been nurtured over past decades by these organization.  Most notably Nosotros (Founded in 1970 by Ricardo Montalban), Hispanic Organization of Latin Actors (HOLA) (Founded in 1975);  LatinHeat LEMI Conference (Founded 1995); and NALIP (Founded in 1999) – among them.

What distinguishes Chicano Hollywood is its early focus on Mexican-American independent filmmakers—many who existed outside the Hollywood’s traditional power structure. However, Murillo’s vision went beyond its core base, growing to include all Latinos and making alliances with non-Latino entities and filmmakers. Chicano Hollywood created an infostructure from production to distribution.

“For too long, our stories have been underrepresented or misrepresented in mainstream media,” Murillo explains. adding, “Chicano Hollywood was created to change that — to build our own lane, our own economy, and our own global stage.”  

Murillo, who has been working in Hollywood for more than 15 years as an actor/line producer and screenwriter, began building Chicano Hollywood in 2021.  According to Murillo, the impetus for the Chicano Hollywood brand came from his lived experiences, as well of those of his peers in the Mexican-American community, attempting to pitch stories to the studios.

It is no secret that Chicanos/Latinos represent one of the largest minority groups in the United States. Their economic influence, is noted in the Latino Donor Collaborative studies — increasingly their economic, cultural and creative impact—is undeniable.

For decades, Chicano culture has been portrayed stereotypically in major Hollywood films (Walk Proud (1979), Spanglish (2004), without a balance of characters. It took Latino filmmakers like the following to make independent films that portrayed another side of the Latino experience.

Robert Rodriguez

• El Mariachi (1992)
• Desperado (1995)
• From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)
• Spy Kids (2001)

Gregory Nava

• El Norte (1983)
• Selena (1997)
• My Family (1995)

Luis Valdez

• Cisco Kid (1994)
• La Bamba (1987)

Eva Longoria

• La Guerra Civil (2022)
• Flamin’ Hot (2023)

Despite the box office success of these films, Latino-led films have generally received fewer large-scale studio investments than comparable projects centered on Black film projects, as the 2026 UCLA’s latest Hollywood Diversity Report notes.

So what does Chicano Hollywood want?

Murillo quickly understood that success in entertainment requires more than talent alone. It demands infrastructure, education, access, and ownership. In other words, it requires an ecosystem.

At its core, Chicano Hollywood focuses on three major pillars.

1. Building a Creative Ecosystem for Chicano and Latino Talent

One of the organization’s primary goals is to provide career development and professional education for emerging storytellers, filmmakers, and creatives. Access to industry knowledge has historically been inequitable, and many talented voices simply never receive the tools or mentorship needed to navigate the entertainment industry.

Through the Chicano Hollywood Academy, aspiring creators can access courses such as How to Produce a Micro-Budget Film, How to Write a Contained Script, and the academy’s latest offering, How to Write a Vertical Series.

The company’s vision is ambitious—to establish creative hubs in 15 to 20 major cities and build a pipeline of in-house talent capable of becoming the next generation of writers, producers, directors, and entertainment professionals. The goal is not simply participation in the industry but ownership within it.

2. Creating Independent Media and Distribution Platforms

Another key aspect of Chicano Hollywood’s mission is the creation of multimedia platforms that allow creators to independently produce, distribute, and promote their work.

For many filmmakers and storytellers, gaining access to traditional media channels, distribution deals, or large promotional platforms remains a significant challenge. Chicano Hollywood understands that representation is not only about creating content; it is also about controlling where, how, and by whom those stories are shared.

In response, the organization launched ChicanoHollywood.tv, a streaming and media platform featuring original in-house productions ranging from drama to documentary. Some of its titles include The Calipso Show (2024), Dirt City (2021), and Ruben Gutierrez: My Story (2025), among others.

In publishing, Chicano Hollywood Magazine serves as an additional platform dedicated to showcasing original productions while highlighting influential Chicano and Latino voices across entertainment, business, and technology. The magazine has featured notable figures, such as Eva Longoria, Edward James Olmos, Emilio Rivera, and Oscar-nominated makeup artist Ken Diaz.

The organization’s long-term vision includes developing original content, building subscriber-based revenue, securing advertising partnerships, expanding merchandising opportunities, and increasing distribution channels. In many ways, Chicano Hollywood is working toward creating a self-sustaining entertainment network rooted in cultural ownership, creative independence, and community visibility.

3. Developing an Economic Engine for Latino Creatives and Entrepreneurs

Chicano Hollywood also recognizes that the entertainment industry is deeply driven by relationships, networking, and economic collaboration. For that reason, the organization seeks to create opportunities not only for artists but also for entrepreneurs, vendors, producers, and creative professionals working across the entertainment landscape.

Its first public initiatives was their Elevate Conference, where Chicano Hollywood brought together keynote speakers, industry panels, and entertainment-focused businesses to foster spaces for inspiration, collaboration, and professional growth. Over the past three years, the conference has featured notable voices such as Xolo Maridueña (Blue Beetle, Cobra Kai), producer and actress Lisa Vidal (The Division, Being Mary Jane), actress Maria Canals-Barrera (Wizards of Waverly Place, Camp Rock), actors Edward James Olmos (Blade Runner, Miami Vice, Zoot Suit), Luis Guzmán (Wednesday, Narcos), Enrique Castillo (Deja Vu, Blood In Blood Out, The Waltons) and others, helping establish the Chicano Hollywood as an important space for dialogue, visibility, and industry exchange. 

Last year, the organization also launched its first Chicano Hollywood Film Festival, showcasing films, documentaries, short films, and series that were created by Chicano and Latino filmmakers from across the country.

The momentum continues to grow. The next edition, the 2026 Chicano Hollywood Film Festival, is scheduled to take place from July 29 through August 2, 2026 at the The Union On Garey, further expanding the organization’s vision of creating a national platform for Chicano and Latino storytelling, collaboration, and cultural ownership.

This year over 100 features and short film will screened, workshops that include How To Self-Distribute Your Indie Film with Selina Ringal; Stuntman Fighting with Geo Perez and Joe Chacon and even a marketing activations — a Chess Match: Keanu Reeves vs Bianca Mitchell followed by a panel with Reeves and the filmmaking team, followed by a screening of their Mad Woman’s Game feature documentary. The five day festival will culminate on Augut 2nd with the awards ceremony. Tickets can be purchased HERE

This is only the beginning 

Organizations willing to articulate a long-term vision often inspire broader participation. By defining its ambitions publicly, Chicano Hollywood invites filmmakers, entrepreneurs, educators, and audiences to imagine themselves as part of a larger movement.

Ambition invites collaboration, and movements grow when communities see themselves reflected in them. Chicano Hollywood possesses many of the elements necessary to become one of the leading independent Chicano and Latino entertainment networks in the United States, namely education, infrastructure, distribution, community, and perhaps most importantly, a commitment to telling stories authentically.

Earlier generations relied almost exclusively on access to Hollywood’s gatekeepers, today’s creators are increasingly building their own educational institutions, media platforms, festivals, distribution channels, and business networks.

Representation is not just about being seen. It is about people having the power to tell their own stories, in their own voice, with their own faces.

Andrea Nuñez-Gamboa Co-wrote this article

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REVIEW: If I Could Stay – Documentry

If I Could Stay, a documentary film by the producing and directing team of Theo Rigby and Florencia Krochik tells the complicated deportation struggles of two women, one from Peru, Ingrid, and one from Mexico, Jeanette, who found safety, moral support, and above all, sanctuary in the Unitarian church community in Colorado. It was encouraging and heartening to see a Christian church play such a significant role in the complicated lives of these two women. But not surprising. 

The Unitarian Universalist Church was in the vanguard in the anti-slavery, abolition movement before and during the Civil War. They are an enlightened and progressive church that embraces not only Christianity but all faiths.

Their symbol is the flaming chalice that represents communion, sacrifice, and service.

Both filmmakers, Rigby and Krochik, have produced many films on the subject of immigration, deportation, and the emotional perils of living under the uncertain, racist, anti-immigrant Sword of Damocles, that hangs over the heads of people like Ingrid, Jeanette, and their families. 

The story of the two women in sanctuary is a compelling and important one, often filled with genuine moments of life-affirming love and local community support for the two women.

But paradoxically, If I Could Stay, is also a grim reminder of the over-arching cruelty, and madness we find ourselves in now, which dominates our daily national headlines.

After watching If I Could Stay, I kept asking myself: “How did we arrive at this dark point in our history where we are on the verge of becoming a Third World, fascist, dystopian nightmare of a country?”

It all started when Donald descended that Golden Escalator in 2015. and described Mexicans coming to America as drug dealers, rapists, and murderers.

But to truly reflect the real symbolism of that moment, he should have been seen ascending from the Basement of Hell engulfed in a stinking fog of sulfur. 

Is this our Apocalypse Now? We have masked ICE Men thugs terrorizing innocent Hispanics in their so-called search for “the worst of the worst”. 

We have for-profit detention centers (concentration camps) springing up all over the country, and shamefully, one of “the worst of the worst” is right here in Dilly, Texas, not too far from my homebase of San Antonio

Have we forgotten:

• The Palmer Raids of 1919
• The Asian Exclusion Act of 1924
• The Internment of Japanese-Americans in 1942
• Operation Wetback in 1954

Have we forgotten those other “rhyming” racist, anti-immigrant, anti-foreigner, White supremacist legislation  

Aimed at oppressing, excluding, and, suppressing the rights of “The Other”?

The stories of Ingrid and Jeanette ended basically unresolved, because If I Could Stay ends with the beginning of the  Trump Second Reich in 2024, and his mass deportation “pogrom” engineered by that odious, skinhead, jackal trying to pass for a human being, Stephen Miller.

However, the worm is beginning to turn. Recent reported and documented atrocities, executions, abductions, illegal deportations, acts of torture in detention centers, and the forced separation of children from their mothers by Trump’s ICE goons has caused Americans to protest these Gestapo tactics by the ICE Men in growing numbers and intensity.

If I Could Stay, a hopeful film gifted to us by the filmmakers, Theo Rigby, and Florencia Krochik, is an intimate portrait into the sanctuary oasis provided to Ingrid and Jeannette by the Unitarian Universalist Church, whose clergy and members are guided by what Abraham Lincoln called “the better angels of our nature”. It demonstrates that even if history often rhymes in misguided ways, sometimes it can rhyme with the pure poetry of compassion and justice.

If I Could Stay Premiered on PBS Stations,PBS.org and the PBS App on June 1, 2026

The post A Ray of Sunshine in a Land of Darkness first appeared on .

Pure Flix Familia Launches the Partnership

In a strategic move that underscores the accelerating demand for short-form storytelling, Great American Media has partnered with Minivela to develop, distribute and monetize a slate of premium micro-dramas aimed at U.S. Latinos and Latin American audiences.

The alliance—announced April 8 in New York during ANA GrowthFronts—will anchor the launch of Pure Flix Familia, a new Spanish-language and bilingual destination focused on faith- and family-driven content, set to debut later this year.

The partnership is notable within the evolving vertical video ecosystem: it represents one of the first Latino-centric ventures creating culturally specific content in English and bilingual formats, positioning both companies at the intersection of mobile-first consumption and underserved Hispanic audiences.

Minivela is the first bilingual vertical shorts platform serving the U.S. Latinos and Latin American markets, Brilla Media co-founder and former Hispanicize CEO Manny Ruiz is its Chief Executive Officer.

A Mobile-First Bet on Cultural Relevance

The collaboration combines Pure Flix’s established base in values-driven entertainment with Minivela’s creator-led, mobile-first production model. The result is a pipeline of vertical-format micro-dramas tailored for audiences increasingly consuming content on smartphones.

As part of a multi-project agreement, Minivela will produce original IP as well as adaptations from Pure Flix’s existing library—reimagined specifically for short-form vertical viewing. Content will be produced across key production hubs including Miami, Los Angeles, New York and locations throughout Latin America.

“We’re excited to build Pure Flix Familia with a highly creative partner that shares our commitment to meaningful storytelling for Latino audiences,” said Bill Abbott, President and CEO of Great American Media, about the strategic alignment.

Data-Driven Development Meets Creator Economy

A key component of the partnership is the use of Pure Flix’s proprietary audience data to inform development decisions—an increasingly critical advantage in the fragmented streaming landscape. The companies will also collaborate on distribution opportunities and content acquisition strategies aimed at scaling reach among Latino viewers.

Beyond content, the alliance opens the door to integrated brand partnerships, giving advertisers new ways to engage audiences through culturally resonant storytelling rather than traditional ad formats.

Expanding Latino Creative Opportunities

For Minivela, the deal represents both scale and mission alignment as Co-founder Carlos Ponce highlighted the creative upside: “This creates opportunities for Latino writers, directors and creators to bring their voices into purpose-driven storytelling.” Ponce is also set to star in upcoming projects under the Pure Flix Familia banner.

“We’re focused on delivering stories that truly entertain, inspire and connect,” said Co-founder Manny Ruiz, added that the partnership stands apart in a crowded micro-drama space often driven by volume.

The micro-drama format—short, serialized content optimized for mobile viewing—has seen rapid growth globally, but remains relatively underdeveloped for U.S. Larino audiences, particularly in the faith and family segment.

With this move, Great American Media continues to build a multiplatform ecosystem targeting audiences seeking values-based entertainment, while Minivela strengthens its position as a leading creative and production partner in the vertical content space.

The launch of Pure Flix Familia later this year will test the viability of this hybrid model—combining bilingual storytelling, culturally specific narratives and mobile-first distribution—at a time when Latino audiences remain both one of the fastest-growing and most underserved segments in streaming.

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