New website - lamentoborincano.com

I am combining both my blogs, this one and Lamento Borincano project. The new website is Lamentoborincano.com

Please visit the website and give me feedback. It is a work in progress but I find I can provide more information by consolidating.

Thanks to all the visitors. This blog will still be active but to see any current content please go to my other site.

Feliz Navidad: Puerto Rican tradition says Christmas isn't over yet

Growing up in Puerto Rico, I have fond memories of the holidays. Christmas, was just the beginning and we would receive one gift. The real holiday came on January 6, El Dia de los Reyes (Three Kings Day).  I remember the day before and going in the fields with the other children in the neighborhood to gather grass. We would put the grass in a shoebox and leave it out for the camels. 

After waking up and receiving our presents our family would get in the car and visit relatives who live in the mountains for the real celebration.  Lots of relatives, lots of children and the food, arroz con gandules, lechon, all made for an experience I still long for today. Unfortunately, times have changed and that tradition is being forgotten. 

Reading the article below brought back all these fond memories. 

Feliz Navidad: Puerto Rican tradition says Christmas isn't over yet

A doctorate from the school of life - Los Angeles Times

An inspiring story that shows that you are never too old to make a difference.

Rueben Martinez is known for his many callings: Barber. Longtime bookstore owner. MacArthur award winner. Speaker at high schools, colleges and universities across the country. Holder of more honorary degrees than he can count.

And now Martinez, 68, is a college professor. A presidential fellow, to be exact.

Starting next month, Martinez will be responsible for Chapman University's efforts to recruit first-generation students, especially Latinos, into science and math programs. 

For the complete story follow the link below. 

A doctorate from the school of life - Los Angeles Times

Eartha Kitt, a Seductive Talent, Dies at 81 - NYTimes.com

Sad to hear about Eartha Kitt dying but she lead a very interesting life. She was most known to audiences as Catwoman in the Batman series from the 1960's. 

Eartha Kitt, a Seductive Talent, Dies at 81 - NYTimes.com

Latinoteca - A Portal for Learning About Latino History and Culture

Latinoteca.com

I just came across this very informative and comprehensive website for Latino culture and history in the United States. The site is run by the University of Houston and its publishing firm Arte Public Press. They break down the site into different components, information for teachers and students, authors and artists and for scholars and researchers.

You can find free content as well as content that can be licensed for publication. They provide articles, chapters from their publications, music and art. 

It is a valuable resource for anyone wanting to know more about Latino culture and history or for anyone needing to do research for papers or publications. 

In The Heights . . . Dreams Come True

It's videos like this that warm the heart. A ten year old fan of the Broadway show "In the Heights" got more than he imagined when he wrote Lin-Manuel Miranda, the star and writer of the show asking to meet him backstage. Lin-Manuel orchestrated for the boy to perform the finale of the show in an after show performance. The boy had been posting videos on You Tube singing songs from the show. The look on Lin-Manuel as he watches the boy get his dream is priceless.

You can head an interview with the boy and his mother as well as a video of Lin-Manuel speaking about the experience and how it came about at Broadway World.

Help our children

In this time of giving, I have chosen to support our children's education. There is a great site called Donors Choose, where teachers can post projects that they are trying to fund. You can see a link on the left column of this page.

Most of the projects are very low cost, sometimes less than $100.00 can provide classroom supplies that should be a right for any student.

Here in the U.S. education seems to be left behind when budget cuts are considered. It is a testament to the true heroes in our society, the teachers that commit themselves in spite of the lack of support.

I have created a donors page that can be accessed through the link above. In here I have posted some projects that will be expiring soon and need very little money to complete.

Please help in any way you can and be proud of the fact that you are doing some good in a child's life.

Annie Lennox - Sing for World AIDS Day

In this holiday of Thanksgiving, let's not forget about others here in the U.S.A. and around the world dealing with AIDS. This is a song recorded by Annie Lennox to raise money for those suffering with AIDS in South Africa.

To learn more about her charity go to www.annielennoxsing.com

More Videos

Let's not forget those we have lost in our lives to this disease and let's do whatever we can to help the spread of it.

Teatro La Tea "Asi Somos" Bi-lingual Playwrights Festival

You can click on the images for a larger view.

The festival runs from December 5th- December 14th. All plays will be performed first in English, then in Spanish. The theater is located at 107 Suffolk St. New York, NY 10002. Tickets can be bought at Smarttix.com

I conducted an interview with one of the playwrights, A.B. Lugo, writer of Geneva. You can listen to the interview here Cumba Media Presents Podcast Episode 1 - A.B. Lugo

In the meantime, support Latino theater!

Nothing Like The Holidays Trailer

Opening December 12 in wide release in the U.S. "Nothing Like the Holidays" boasts a great Latino cast. The movie stars Luis Guzman, John Leguizamo, Alfred Molina, Jay Hernandez and Freddy Rodriguez (who also produced the film) and directed by Alfredo de Villa (Washington Heights, Adrift in Manhattan). 

Here is the trailer:

Slumdog Millionaire

The new movie from director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, 28 Days Later, Sunshine, Shallow Grave) is opening up in limited release. So far, the reviews have been positive. The story focuses on an 18 year old orphan from the slums who goes on India's "Who Wants to be a Millionaire." With just one question away from winning it all, he is accused of cheating because no one believes a street kid could be so smart.

Calavera Highway Director Renee Tajima-Peña Interview

You can read an interview with director Renee Tajima-Peña about the challenges of working with her husband and his family in the documentary Calavera Highway by clicking here.

P.O.V. - Calavera Highway | PBS 2008

Calavera Highway was a movie that I missed at the New York Latino Film Festival. It will be having its television premiere this week on PBS as part of the POV documentary film series. Directed by Renee Tajima-Peña (producer/director of the Academy Award nominated film, Who Killed Vincent Chin?), she follows her husband and his five brothers in a search for the truth of their parent's life. Check your local listing. I have heard great things about this documentary.

Hollywood Reporter Article - Latinos in Entertainment

Interesting article giving an overview of some of the Latino writer-directors in Hollywood.

Latinos in Entertainment by Noel Murray

Two years after Alfonso Cuaron, Guillermo del Toro and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu took the year-end awards circuits by storm with "Pan's Labyrinth" and "Babel," and a year after they inked a $100 million deal with Universal to produce five films under their Cha Cha Cha banner, opportunities for other Latino filmmakers -- both veterans and those relatively new to the scene -- have been on the rise.

For complete article click here.

On the Road in America, Baghdad High and Quid Pro Quo

I have been watching the reality show, “On the Road in America” on the Sundance Channel. It follows four young Arabs traveling the United States and documenting their reactions as well as their interactions with the people across the country. It allows the viewer to see what Arabs are like and helps to break our perceptions formed from watching mainstream media. The show does not try to make them out to be perfect models of Arab youth but shows them as humans with positive and negative aspects to their personality. You do see them struggling with their preconceptions about Americans and at times trying to hold on to these preconceptions but ultimately becoming more open. The series ends with the original pilot with a slightly different cast. Next week, the series is being re-aired. It is worth checking out.
Today, I watched two films, one a documentary called “Baghdad High” and a drama, “Quid Pro Quo”. The first film, much like “On the Road in America” gives us an insight into a different culture. This time, four high school boys in Baghdad are given video cameras to document their last year of high school. The four boys are friends in spite of being from different ethnic and religious backgrounds. The boys are Christian, Kurdish, Shia and Sunni. We get a glimpse into their every day struggles trying to get an education while dealing with a war raging around them, with bombs exploding and bullets flying. This is a documentary that should be shown to students here in the United States to give them a view of how fortunate they are.
The second film I watched was first time director Carlos Brooks’ “Quid Pro Quo.” The plot revolves around a radio host who is a paraplegic. He gets a tip about someone bribing a doctor to amputate his leg and while investigating comes upon a subculture of people who are wannabe amputees or paraplegics. The film is a very sensitive portrayal of people with disabilities and their struggles. At the same time, the film is not judgmental of people with psychological issues. The performances by Nick Stahl (In the Bedroom, Carnivale) and Vera Farmiga (The Departed) are excellent, taking you with them into their world.

Angel Movie Trailer - A Jacobo Morales Film

This is the trailer for the latest film by Jacobo Morales. The movie stars Braulio Castillo Jr. and Jacobo Morales.It is one of the films to be screened at the Film Society of Lincoln Center Latin Beat 2008.

Tribute to Jacobo Morales

The Film Society of Lincoln Center is presenting Latin Beat 2008, their annual survey of Latin American Cinema. In this series, they are presenting a tribute to Puerto Rican auteur, Jacobo Morales, three of his films will be shown with an introduction by the director.
The three films to be screened are “Angel” (his most recent film), “What Happened to Santiago” (1990 nominee for an Academy Award for Best Foreign Film) and “Linda Sara” (starring popular Puerto Rican singer Chayanne and former Miss Universe Dayanara Torres).
Jacobo Morales was born in Lajas, Puerto Rico in 1934. He began his career as an actor in theater and radio when he was fourteen years old. In 1954 he began working in television as an actor, writer and director. He worked in Hollywood, as an actor in the 1970’s then became a film director in 1979. He has written and directed six films.
If anyone is in the New York City area the Latin Beat 2008 is running from September 5-September 25. In addition to the tribute to Jacobo Morales, there will other panels and film series. For more information click here.

Made in Japan - NYILFF Short Film

This is a short film shown at the New York International Latino Film Festival about a Spanish man who finds out that his father is Japanese.

Off Jackson Avenue

This is the trailer for one of the films I reviewed previously from the New York International Latino Film Festival. I don't think the trailer does the movie justice, the movie is so much better that what the trailer sets up.

Harrison Montgomery Trailer

This is the trailer for a film at the New York International Latino Film Festival. My review is in a previous post.