The festival is five days of screenings, live music, panels, and networking opportunities, celebrating the diversity and talent of the Latino/a artists and storytellers from our community. This year’s lineup features 44 females (representing over 50% of the program), 13 Afro/Black Latino, nine Indigenous, and 16 LGBTQ+ directors, with 19 different countries represented.

OPENING NIGHT FILM AND GALA

LALIFF kicks off on May 31 with the West Coast premiere of Eva Longoria’s feature film directorial debut Flamin’ Hot, the story of Richard Montañez a Frito Lay janitor who had an idea that a spiced up Cheetos snack would resonate with his community with a little “chili” added. With his grassroots marketing the snack to his community, Flamin’ Hot Cheetos became a global pop culture phenomenon.

Jesse Garcia plays Montañez with Annie Gonzalez playing his wife Judy. Included in the cast are Emilio Rivera, Tony Shalhoub, Bobby Soto, Pepe Serna and Brice Gonzalez among others. The after party will include musical performances, featuring La Misa Negra.

HIGHLIGHTED FEATURES: June 1, 2023

You Were My First Boyfriend: Directed by Cecilia Aldarondo & Sarah Enid Hagey. Synopsis: In this high school reunion movie turned inside out, filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo relives her tortured adolescence, wondering if she remembered it all wrong.

HIGHLIGHTED FEATURES: June 3, 2023

Patria Y Vida: The Power of Music. Directed by Beatriz Luengo. Synopsis: The powerful story of six afro descendants rappers who have rewritten Cuban history and sparked a lyrical battle for human rights through a song called “Patria y Vida”. 

Moe: Directed by Jose Luis Valenzuela. Synopsis: is name is Moises, but his friends call him Moe. He’s having a going away party because he’s dying of AIDS.

For Full schedule of features screeing June 1 – June 4 CLICK HERE

A SLATE OF SHORT FILMS

For the 2023 edition of LALIFF, we are proud to be presenting a collection of 42 live action short films directed by Latino filmmakers from regions all over the world including the U.S., Latin America, and Europe! Be sure to check out the different short programs, as well as the ones that will be presented alongside a feature.

Thursday, June 1 at 6:30 PM

This short program aptly includes teenagers looking to have their first time (Before Madrid), grocery store workers facing creatures from out of this world (Dead Enders), a poetic contemplation of queer activism (Flores del Otro Patio), a cowgirl learning the ropes (How to Lasso), the fight of migrant workers against wage theft in Florida (Monarcas), a love affair with a fictional heartthrob (Consuelo), a young woman facing her obsession with food (Detox), and a gathering at the hottest dance spot in town (Hot Latin Nights at the Granada!).

FRIDAY, JUNE 2 at 8:30 PM

In this program we see a young woman whose best friend is a ghost (A History of Sitting in Waiting Rooms (Or Whatever Longer Title you Prefer)), the last two speakers of an Indigenous language struggling to keep it alive (Still Here), a maid in search for her place in society (Clinging to Air), the paranoia inside an office (In the Static), a couple struggling to choose a name for their newborn (23 Semanas), a love letter to Afro-Latina islanders (Negra, Yo Soy Bella), a damning criticism of gentrification (This One is for the Neighborhood) and a look into vibrant a Mexico City dance subculture (Danzoneros). There is something for everyone.

SUNDAY, JUNE 4 at 1:45 PM

The final shorts program, come watch a strange phenomenon overtaking people in the streets (The Hour of the Birds), a complicated look into family relationships (Mother’s Daughter), a gang of badass women standing up for themselves (Bumblebees), a group of young immigrant children helping their parents survive (Translators), the undying love for a mother amidst a health crisis (Pedacito de Carne), an unlikely connection in the underbelly of Mexico City (Strange World), and the most bizarre commercial shoot you’ve experienced (SABORRRR!). We have great stories up until the very end!

LALIFF will wrap up the festival on a high with Problemista, from writer, director, and actor Julio Torres. The film tells the story of an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador, struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in New York City. As time on his work visa runs out, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast, interpreted by Tilda Swinton, becomes his only hope to stay in the country and realize his dream.

LALIFF offers a schedule feature films, shorts and workshops. SEE IT HERE

Purchase tickets at https://bit.ly/3VU8AlE.

The post 22nd Edition of LALIFF May 31-June 4, 2023 at TCL Chinese Theatre first appeared on .