Crowdfunding:  A way of raising money to finance projects and businesses. It enables fundraisers to collect money from a large number of people via online platforms. Crowdfunding is most often used by startup companies or growing businesses as a way of accessing alternative funds.

Note: This is part of a listing service Latin Heat provides.  Any project listing in the LH Crowdfunding Listing is not endorsed by Latin Heat. Please do your own research before making any investment.

AVENIDA ENTERTAINMENT GROUP, INC

Avenida the first 100% Latino-owned movie studio in Hollywood!

Support at: wefunder.com/avenida

The world of filmmaking has historically been dominated by major studios and established filmmakers, leaving little room for underrepresented voices to tell their stories. However, a revolution is underway, as Latino independent producers are harnessing the power of crowdfunding to bring their unique narratives to the silver screen. Crowdfunding has become a vital tool for Latino filmmakers, empowering them to create powerful, diverse, and impactful films.  Avenida Entertainment Group, Inc. is taking their crowdfunding effort to a whole new level.  They are crowdfunding to raise money to help indie filmmakers create their independent films and to launch a streaming platform where they can also distribute the films of Latino independent filmmakers.

Avenida Entertainment Group, Inc. is sharing an opportunity to be a part of something that not only represents Latino roots but also the future of U.S. Latinos. Avenida has launched a wefunder.com/avenida campaign.  With an impeccable record of supporting filmmakers, Avenida has now been in business for seven years, providing solutions for Latino filmmakers to get their projects funded and produced. Soon they will be launch an English language streaming platform where US Latinos can stream their films, TV project, podcasts and more.

The Latino voice, stories, and perspectives have long been underrepresented in mainstream media. Yet, the rich tapestry of the Latino experience, the vibrant culture, and their unwavering spirit deserves a platform that does justice to their narrative. As Nelson Grande and Fanny Grande, the two principals of Avenida say, “The time has come to rise, unite, and be part of the change we wish to see in the media landscape.”

If you are interested you can get details in the offering and see how you can get involved.  Visit www.Wefunder.com/Avenida  

Avenida is ‘testing the waters’ to gauge investor interest in an offering under Regulation Crowdfunding. No money or other consideration is being solicited. If sent, it will not be accepted. No offer to buy securities will be accepted. No part of the purchase price will be received until a Form C is filed and only through Wefunder’s platform. Any indication of interest involves no obligation or commitment of any kind

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The animated series is based on Ojeda’s book “Learn How to be Your Own Jefa” and was created to help nurture the next generation of Latino/a entrepreneurs.

The announcement is made during Small Business Month by SUMA, a wealth-building digital platform dedicated to teaching the Latinx Community how to build and sustain wealth. SUMA uses the holistic approach of digital media, fin-tech and virtual experiences to spice up dry and complex topics of investment, debt management, and creating and sustaining wealth. 

Learn How To Be Your Own Jefa will highlight fundamental lessons from the book to provide creatives and entrepreneurs with valuable tips and information on how to successfully build their businesses.

The initial five episodes include:

1. Pa’ Empezar – Focuses on key fundamental questions to ask when starting a business – Where do I start? How do I come up with an idea? What is my mission, vision and values? What is my brand? This first episode can be seen on the SUMA Instagram

2. ¡Prepárate! – Covers everything needed to legally-protect a business idea, the name, and services – A.K.A all the legal stuff!

3. Ser Diferente Es Ser Fuerte – Features tips and examples on how to be unique in the highly competitive business world.

4. ¡A Vender! – Highlights the ideal checklist needed to ensure one is “entrepreneur-ready”: Idea, check! Legal, check! Unique Selling Proposition, check! El cash flow, check!

5. Sigue Creciendo – Since a successful business extends beyond its doors, this episode features ways to nurture the surrounding community, while still promoting the business, and collaborating with individuals who can help escalate it!

The talented team for the animated series are: Lead animator, Sergio Romero; Narrator: Miriam Bribiesca; Copywriter Manuel Jesse Nieto Jr.; Creative Director Gabriel Torrelles; and Executive Producer Beatriz Acevedo 

For more information on the projects follow @wearesuma.

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The original Party of Five television series made its debut in September 1994. Created by Christopher Keyser and Amy Lippman, it chronicled the lives and misadventures of the five youthful Salinger siblings, following the loss of their parents in a car accident. Last month, Keyser and Lippman have brought back a brand new version of the series with a twist and it is currently streaming on Freeform, a streaming platform owned by Walt Disney Television, which specializes in programming for teenagers and young adults. 

In this iteration of the series Lippman is joined by Mexican-American Gabriel Llanas (previously Supervising Producer of Supergirl) as co-Executive Producer while Keyser is now committed to other projects.  

This new reboot focuses on the five Acosta children, who must survive in Los Angeles as a family unit after their restaurant-owning parents are suddenly deported to Mexico. The Acosta siblings are portrayed by Brandon Larracuente (Emilio), Emily Tosta (Lucia), Niko Guardado (Beto) and Elle Paris Legaspi (Valentina). The fifth Acosta child is a non-speaking infant. 

In the opening episode, a team from the U.S. Immigration Enforcement ICE) invade the Acosta’s successful restaurant and place the children’s parents, Javier (Bruno Bichir) and Gloria (Fernanda Urrejola) under arrest for having entered the U.S. illegally.  The Acosta siblings, after they overcome the shock of this monumental disruption to their happy family life, must not now deal with the task of keeping the restaurant going and keep their family from being separated by the city’s Department of Family Services, while also struggling with their own individual adolescent problems.  

Party of Five realistically balances the very real socio/political environment they are now facing with the very real often painful, social maturation they must deal with on a day to day basis.   

The eldest, socially confident Emilio, on his way to becoming a successful singer/songwriter and band leader, must now put his ambitions on hold to take over managing the restaurant. His academically brilliant 16-year-old sister Lucia, just entering the insecurities of young adulthood, is struggling to help her academically challenged fraternal twin, Beto, and take on added maternal responsibilities for her infant sister. Beto, the most sensitive of the five children, is struggling in all areas, particularly aware that the girl he adores has taken a fancy to his older brother. Precocious pre-teen Valentina cannot let go of her parents, constantly phoning and texting them at their current residence in Tijuana, Mexico. 

Larracunte, who is of Puerto Rican heritage, grew up in New York, and began his show business performing with a small opera company. “I never had to deal with the immigration problems the Acostas are facing.”  However, it is different for Emily Tosta, who portrays 16-year-old Lucia. “I’m an immigrant myself, from the Dominican Republic. I came here when I was 12 years old. And obviously there was a period of time when my mom and I were not documented to work, so I have definitely experienced countless immigration difficulties and so has my mother.” Tosta adds, “I mean my grandmother, she can’t come into this country. Sadly, she and my mother haven’t seen each other in over 10 years because of the current policies. So yeah, I’ve definitely experienced firsthand a lot of immigration troubles.”

Nico Guardado, who plays Beto, the fraternal twin to Lucia, is a second-generation Mexican-American (previously recurring on ABC’s The Goldbergs), the son of Major League Baseball All-Star Pitcher Eddie Guardado, the son of a Mexican immigrant who, for a time, picked fruit in California. “I’m the oldest of my siblings,” says Nico. “From the day my brother was born, my parents instilled in me that I had to be a role model. I had to set a positive example for my younger siblings. That’s what I bring to my character.”

Elle Paris Legaspi, who plays Valentina, has been performing most of her life, including dancing on stage by the age of five. “I can’t even imagine what it would be like to lose my parents,” she admits. “If that were happening to me and my family right now, I’d be very sad because I’d need them for so much. I depend on my parents a whole lot because I am 11 years old.”

“The issues we deal in the series are complex,” said co-creator Lippman. “The Acosta children realize that Social Services could disrupt their household and place them in foster care. In an early episode, the first person who voices any kind of opposition to what the family has done (coming to the country without documentation) is a Mexican American. It’s not just Caucasian people who have an attitude about people coming into the country.  There are people who are here of Latinx backgrounds who also have issues and concerns. They have a problem welcoming a community of people who did not come to this country the same way they did”.  

Lippman also talked about the writers room and the importance of bringing on board Latinx writers, adding, “We’re looking at immigration from lots of points of view. I think that’s the goal. We are trying not to pass judgment on this family and how they got here.  We’re just saying this happens. It’s just a situation that lots of people now find themselves in. And always the kids have no choice in the matter.”

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