The Cine+Mas Latino Film Festival in San Francisco has kicked off a two-week schedule of screenings from American, Latin American and European filmmakers. And much to our delight, four queer entries have made it on the roster.
Screening on Sunday, September 16, the documentary Homeboy explores the lives of gay Latinos who were L.A. gang members with raw and often explicit interviews detailing their struggle to come out after confusing first same-sex experiences. The film took 10 years to compile and features commentary from former gang member Luis J. Rodriguez, now a noted activist and author of the memoir, Always Running: La Vida Loca, Gang Days in L.A. As a whole, Homeboy sheds light on the inseparable bond between machismo and homophobia and the interplay between violent urges and sexual ones. Director Dino Dinco will be at Sunday’s screening.
On Wednesday, September 26, Cine+Mas will screen a compilation of LGBT shorts: Fallen Comrade is a beautifully-shot love story set in the army after a tragedy takes a soldier’s life. (Director James Valdez spent four years in the U.S. Army and continues his service in the Reserves.) Todas Ibamos a Ser Reinas (or We’re All Meant to Be Queens) follows two Mexican trans women who immigrate to San Francisco to create a new community. And the Brazilian/San Francisco lovechild Recipe for Love is a spicy romantic comedy, a lesbian Eat, Pray, Love—only with more food and sex and less self-absorbed spirituality.
The SF Latino Film festival runs through September 28. For a full schedule of screenings, ticket info and more, visit the official website.
