Tribeca Film Fest - https://latinheat.com Covering Latinos in Hollywood Since 1992 Wed, 13 Dec 2023 19:17:34 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://latinheat.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/cropped-cropped-LATIN-HEAT-512-LOGO-32x32.jpg Tribeca Film Fest - https://latinheat.com 32 32 REVIEW: The Ballad of Tita and The Machines has an unorthodox hero https://latinheat.com/review-the-ballad-of-tita-and-the-machines/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=review-the-ballad-of-tita-and-the-machines https://latinheat.com/review-the-ballad-of-tita-and-the-machines/?noamp=mobile#respond Wed, 13 Dec 2023 19:14:05 +0000 https://latinheat.com/?p=83272 Throughout the years the sci-fi genre has been littered with cautionary tales of advanced machines taking over. From

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]]> Throughout the years the sci-fi genre has been littered with cautionary tales of advanced machines taking over. From 2001 A Space Odyssey to Terminator to The Matrix, these films display the level of fear we humans have of our own obsolescence on a grand scale. More often than not, the cinematic figures we’ve turned to to help quell our fears through the rise of the machines have been seemingly superhuman. But in The Ballad of Tita and The Machines, director Miguel Angel Caballero turns to an unorthodox and exciting new savior : an elderly, queer, arthritic farmworker. 

(L-R) Rafael Cobos Delgado (Gerardo), Laura Patalano (Tita), Miguel Angel Caballero, Cheryl Umana (Lidia)

When an AI Productivity Monitoring Software deems widow Tita (Laura Patalano) no longer fit for work due to her swelling joints, she reluctantly hires an AI humanoid to fill in for her picking strawberries out in the fields. Yet, as model after model breaks down during the arduous labor, it becomes clear that no AI Humanoid the company provides is capable of executing the same back-breaking work. 

Patalano is endearing and just the right amount of tough in her role as Tita, who navigates both a humorous and heartfelt performance. She is surrounded by an equally engaging cast that convinces us that Caballero’s world in the not-too-distant future could very soon be a reality. 

Nico Greetham (Bob AI)

Written by Luis Antonio Aldana & Miguel Angel Caballero, this film was produced by Helena Sardinha and Rafael Thomaseto, presented at the Tribeca Festival and was made as part of Indeed’s Rising Voices program – an initiative set up to discover, invest in and share stories created by BIPOC filmmakers and storytellers, and has qualified to be considered for a 2024 Academy® Award. Rising Voices was created in collaboration with Emmy® Award-winning writer, creator, and actor Lena Waithe, Hillman Grad Productions, Ventureland and 271 Films.

(L-R) Nico Greetham (Bob AI), Miguel Angel Caballero, Laura Patalano (Tita)

Miguel Angel Caballero (co-writer/director) is the son of Mexican immigrant farm workers and an award-winning Queer Mexican-American/Chicano writer, director, and producer. His short film, ACUITZERAMO, premiered at the Morelia International Film Festival, won 20 awards internationally, and is screening on MAX. Miguel Angel is an Outfest Screenwriting Lab Fellow, Film Independent Project Involve fellow, and the Warner Bros. Discovery 150 Artist Grant recipient. Miguel Angel was one of ten directors selected to participate in the 2022 inaugural Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences Accelerator Program and won the Humanitas New Voices Fellowship. 

STARRING

Laura Patalano

Luis Antonio Aldana

Nico Greetham 

Cheryll Umaña

Rocío Lopez

Geoffrey Rivas

Rafael Cobos Delgado

Juan Alfonso

Elia Saldana

Joan Almedilla

Arlene Santana

Christain Jaime Garcia

Kiara Bletran

David Rodriguez Estrada

PRODUCTION: Indeed, Hillman Grad Productions, 271 Flms

DIRECTOR:  Miguel Angel Caballero

WRITERS: Luis Antonio Aldana, Miguel Angel Caballero

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Lena Waite, Rishi Rajani, Doménica Castro, Constanza Castro

PRODUCERS: Helena Sardinha, Rafael Thomaseto

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