Culture

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jessica
Jessica Maria Gilhooley, actor, filmmaker

Since graduating from the prestigious Drama Centre this British-Colombian Actor has appeared in Miramax's box office hit 'The Beekeeper…

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gabriela
CRASHING THE BALL: Gabriela Garcia. Actor. Writer

Born in Mexico, Gabriela García was nominated for Best Actress in a Musical for her performance as Nina in 'In The Heights' (King’s Cross…

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Meow! 2024.
Meow! (2024) by Mexican Ariel de la Garza and Czech Michal Vojtech.

Meow! a comedy short film that has just premiered at the Norwich Film Festival, is an intriguing,…

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Brazil’s big beautiful – and still illegal – balloon-making culture

From centuries old traditions Balloon-making developed into a competition between dedicated groups…

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Gabriela ( 2024 Evelyn Lorena
Gabriela (2023) Oscar-qualifying short film by Guatemalan-American director…

Gabriela, a young Guatemalan undocumented immigrant struggles to fulfill her dreams of becoming a…

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MAGDALENA, TE AMO (2024) by Andrea Calao

‘Magdalena, Te Amo’ (2024) is a moving short film about student sex workers in New York. Premiered…

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Power Alley (Levante- 2023) by Brazilian director Lillah Halla
Power Alley (Levante- 2023) by Brazilian director Lillah Halla

Lillah Halla is emerging as the new kid on the block in Brazil with her opera prima, Levante (Power…

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Sol Carballo in Memories of Burning body
Memories of a Burning Body (2024) by Costa Rican director Antonella Sudasassi…

The Costa Rican submission to the 97th Academy Awards for ‘Best International Feature’ is Antonella…

Features

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desta
Culture
Resilience and Resistance: a History of the Colombian London

Over the last 50 years, hundreds of thousands of Colombians have made their mark as the UK's…

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Dandelion
Film
The Rise of Female Mexican Filmmaking

Mexican filmmaker Lorena Valencia’s “DANDELION” (Cuanacaquilitl) recently won the top prize at the…

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Literature
Listening to Nature

“Our father, listen attentively to the voice of our rivers, listen to the fearsome trees of the…

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Culture
AMAZONAS: The Beauty of Britain's Afro-Indigenous Latinas

Carina Costa Londono brings together some of Britain’s proud Afro-Indigenous to show their natural…

Interviews

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Brazil’s big beautiful – and still illegal –…

From centuries old traditions Balloon-making developed into a competition between dedicated groups to create the biggest and most beautiful balloons…

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fado
As Fado Bicha – Challenging the Taboos of…

Whilst the ‘Three Fs’ of fado - Fatima (the shrine), Football and Fado - which cemented the genre's association with the Salazar dictatorship,…

Top 10s

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Culture
10 Distinguished Brits You Didn't Know Were Colombian

The UK hosts the world's second largest Colombian diaspora, and has born generations of talent…

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Culture
10 Stand Out UK Afro-Latinos y Latinas

In the last of our series celebrating Black HIstory Month...it’s time to bring it home. While the…

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Culture
10 Latin@ LGBTQ+ Creatives in London

Over the years, London has attracted some of the finest creatives from Latin America and Spain,…

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latinolover
Film
10 RomComs with a Latino Twist

We have to start this list with a disclaimer: some of these films feature offensive stereotypes and…

CRITICS' CHOICE
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Lia Rodrigues' 'Encantado’

Sadler’s Wells presents the four shortlisted pieces, each work selected for its top choreography, distinctive style and performance quality. A jury of five judges announce the audience winner alongside the overall winner of the £40,000 prize in a special event at the end of the competition.The Rose and Bloom Prizes were made possible by a generous donation to Sadler’s Wells from an anonymous individual who chose the name Rose for the prize.

CULTURE GUIDE
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Top 10s...
Top 10 Revolutionary Latinas

We pay tribute to the Latin American women who throughout history have fought for freedom, peace and justice and continue to do say every day. Women who have fought side by side with men for freedom for their countries, even when those countries saw them as lesser. Women who have taken part in armed revolutions but also revolutionized the world by peaceful actions and been persecuted for them. Women who have fought to receive the same benefits and privileges that society automatically to bestow on men. Women who still fight social prejudice and inequality, even when some now argue this fight is lover.

EDITOR'S PICK
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Things You Should Know About...
Things You Should Know About...Latin American Political Cinema

The plethora of social documentaries and politically-committed films that came out of Latin America between the mid-1950s and mid-1970s brought Latin American film onto the focus of world critics. Of course, to reduce the region’s cinema to social documentary and revolutionary film-making would be a big mistake, because the region’s cinema is far richer and more complex, but here is a list of favourites to get you started.

HOTLIST
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Things You Should Know About...
Things you should know about Latin American Oscar Triumphs

Do you remember the days when Latino artists weren’t allowed to sing their songs on mainstream TV because ratings would drop? I know right? Hard to imagine, but it did…Back in 2005, when Jorge Drexler was nominated for an Oscar for ‘El Otro Lado Del Rio’ he was told that he couldn’t sing his song at the ceremony because …’er sorry dude, but nobody knows who you are’. But nobody thought he’d actually win the Oscar. See below what happened next, just one of many other magical history-making moments, when Latin Americans triumphed at the Oscars, from the very first Latin American Oscar victory to the Mexican Invasion

What’s on
LATIN LONDONERS
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Latin Londoners
Latin Londoner #36: Blanca Huertas, Senior Curator, Natural History Museum

Born in Bogotá, Blanca Huertas is Senior Curator of the Lepidoptera collections at the Natural History Museum. She is responsible for the direct care, development and access of the world’s largest and oldest collection of butterflies. Graduated in Biology in Colombia, Blanca moved to the UK to complete a MSc at Imperial College and a PhD at University College London. She coordinated several international expeditions and initiatives such as the Tropical Andean Butterfly Diversity Project, mostly focused on Papilionoidea' (butterflies). In Colombia, her work has contributed to the establishment of two national parks and five nature reserves and the discovery of more than a dozen new species for science. Blanca has published over 60 scientific articles and co-authored two books on insects. She is an advocate for female and BAME inclusion in science and is also a mother of a lovely boy.

By Genre

FILM
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Things You Should Know About...
Things you should know about Spanish Oscar Triumphs

After celebrating Latin America's successes at the Academy Awards, we couldn't carry on without bringing you Spain’s most successful Oscar-winning films and individuals within the film industry.

LITERATURE
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Culture Guides
LatinoLife's Guide to the Latin American Classics

A list we've always wanted to do... the must-reads of Latin America's fantastic array of fiction. Here we begin with the classics, from the 20th century and before, obviously omitting many greats...but you have to start somewhere. More book lists to come!

THEATRE
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Things You Should Know About...
...The Greatest Latin American Plays of all time

A selection by Daniel Goldman, Artistic Director of CASA Latin American Theatre Festival

LIFESTYLE
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Reviews
Maison Cachua by Fernando Montaño

Former Royal Ballet dancer and Colombian dance megastar Fernando Montaño launches new bespoke luxury fashion brand

POETRY
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In-depth Interviews
HOLOGRAM (2022) Book of poems by Miguel Cullen

‘Books should be more than just lines of poetry.’ HOLOGRAM (2022) the new collection of poems by Anglo-Argentine poet and journalist Miguel Cullen, includes visuals and videos and certainly fits the bill of being different.

DANCE
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Flamenco
Paco Peña's Solera

Paco Peña creates the perfect blend using flawless flamenco and fine aging in his show Solera -  an exploration of artistic wisdom and the fearlessness of youth in the search for new expression.Enter their rehearsal room as they explore the genre together and then take to the stage with a unique performance that is both quiet and celebratory, soulful and full of life. Flamenco is not a written tradition but one handed down from one generation to the next. The best performances incorporate part of what has been created before by the great practitioners of the past as well as the vibrancy and innovation of young dancers.

ART
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Things You Should Know About...
Pioneering Black Latina Artists

Recently we published a list of Black Heroines of Latin American History, Afro-Latinas who put their lives at risk, and in some cases gave their lives, in order to shape our history. This week we bring you the brave women who have pushed the boundaries in the artistic world, fighting racism in film, theatre, literature and the arts (not music, that’s for another list!), to get better representation for women of colour and pave the way for generations of Afro-Latinas to come. There is still loads more work to do, but thanks to these wonderful artists, who by nature of being dark skinned had to also be activists, on-screen entertainers and artists are looking a little still less like Xuxa.

Reviews

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Meow! 2024.
Film
Meow! (2024) by Mexican Ariel de la Garza and Czech Michal…

Meow! a comedy short film that has just premiered at the Norwich Film Festival, is an intriguing, quirky and amusing run through the Gothic shadows…

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Gabriela ( 2024 Evelyn Lorena
Film
Gabriela (2023) Oscar-qualifying short film by Guatemalan-…

Gabriela, a young Guatemalan undocumented immigrant struggles to fulfill her dreams of becoming a competitive swimmer for a local Country Club in…

Most Viewed

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TOP TEN Latin Clubnights in London

Latinolife's guide to the best Latin nights out in the capital

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Latin American Myths and Legends

"I'm learning about really scary myths and legends..." my son recently told me,…

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Top Ten Latin Bars in London

Want to do Christmas the Latin way? Try some of London's best Latin bars, from glamourous to…

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Top 10 Latin Series on Netflix

These winter days may be dark, damp and dreary, but we've got you covered with this list of…