
The Lost Children, 2024, by Orlando von Einsiedel, Lali Houghton and Jorge Durán.
“Until we find them” – This gripping documentary reveals the extraordinary trials of 3 young children and a baby, the sole survivors of a small plane crash in the remotest Colombian Amazon, seen from the point of view of their…
No Clowning Around
Vladimir Brichta’s striking good looks and palpable on-screen energy had already made him a household name Brazilian television, from mini- series to hugely popular novellas (long serials). But now non-Brazilians can enjoy these…
The São Paulo Dance Company’s UK tour shook the stage at Sadler’s Wells - but is the depth of the artistic intention communicated to the audience?
Embarking on their Dance Consortium tour, the São Paulo dance company’s programme is undeniably ambitious, tackling lofty themes of nationhood and identity and time in an “invitation to dance together” (Inês Bogéa). To the highly…
London's Latin Culture Under Threat
Stefanie Alvarez, who grew up amidst the bustling 'Pueblito Paisa' market, where her mother works, in Seven Sisters, is set on defending the much-loved north London Latin hub from the designs of property developers who…
CALL ME DIVA: The New Latina Darlings of Hollywood
From centre stage to front page, finally Hollywood studios and media are giving Latina Actors some love. About time! Here are a few of the new Latina stars of the moment.
Lorena Andrea, Actor
Hot off her role as Perla in Disney’s 2023 musical romantic fantasy ‘The Little Mermaid,’ London-born Colombiana Lorena Andrea is best known for her role as Sister Lilith in the Netflix fantasy series 'Warrior Nun'.…
Tango Fire @ the Peacock
This phenomenal show - now in its 7th year - demonstrates new energy and drama every time it returns - a testament to German Cornejo's drive and love of his art, the reason Tango Fire is still as fresh as ever.
'Reputations' by Juan Gabriel Vasquez, translated by Anne McLean (Bloomsbury)
Depicting the slippery nature of the past and the unreliability of memory, Juan Gabriel Vasquez' fifth novel draws a convincing portrait of the complex world of Bogotá in recent years, adding to his own reputation as one of…
Most Beautiful Island (2017 Dir. Ana Asensio)
This Polanski-esque penetrating thrilller, set in New York, is a fantastic debut from a new female multi-talented Spanish director, screenwriter, actor and producer
GRACE: Diaspora, History and Becoming What We Are
Unveiled at the Tate Britain on the 28th of May 2024 and showing until the 26th of January 2025, Alvaro Barrington’s major new commission GRACE aims to take visitors on “an intimate journey through time and place”. Celebrating…
EL FATHER PLAYS HIMSELF (2020) dramatic documentary directed by Mo Scarpelli
“The root of all shades of machismo is fear, the root of family is love. In ‘EL FATHER PLAYS HIMSELF’ this fear and love collide.”
Horror is alive and kicking in THE BREACH (2022) by Rodrigo Gudiño
Mexican- Canadian film director Rodrigo Gudiño, best known for founding the horror magazine and company Rue Morgue, has lived up to his reputation with an entertaining and fun horror film with plenty of gore, ‘The Breach’ (2022)
OLIVIA AND THE CLOUDS (2024) visually exciting animated feature by Tomás Pichardo-Espaillat.
“Like they don’t see something is pulling them apart.” In ‘Olivia and the Clouds’, relationships flounder, steeped in memories and hopes as animator, film maker, professor and artist from the Dominican Republic, Pichardo-…
Things That Matter To…Albert Quesada
Albert Quesada is a Spanish dancer and choreographer who trained in Amsterdam and Brussels (PARTS) after studying philosophy in Barcelona. Quesada is known for translating musical structures into choreography and inviting the…
Miguel Hernandez: The Man with Lots of Heart
Today, on the 30th October in 1910, in the town of Orihuela in southeastern Spain, Miguel Hernandez was born. As we come to the end of the month of October, it would seem an apt moment to delve a little into the work and life of…
The Condor and The Eagle
The Condor and the Eagle (2019) is a prize-winning documentary film directed by Sophie and Clément Guerra, about the collective struggle of the Indigenous peoples of North and South America to defend their land and water against…
Surviving Venezuela
‘Surviving Venezuela: Smuggling Dreams’, directed by Anglo-Peruvian Alexander ‘Lali’ Houghton is a TV documentary filmed in 2017 for ‘Witness’, Al Jazeera. It was short listed for a Rory Peck Award (2018), as well for the Foreign…
LATINOLIFE'S NEW YEAR'S HOTLIST
At Latino Life we like to bring in the New Year with Latin bang...here's a few ways to help
Above All...
‘Sobretodo’ in Spanish is the word for ‘coat’, but the literal translation means ‘about everything’, a detail not lost on the author, as this delightful selection of poems by Argentine author Sylvia Libedinsky is exactly that:…
Women by Women: Changing Photography For The Better
Showing at the OXO Gallery to mark International Women’s Day, ActionAid’s new exhibition Women by Women “aims to shatter stereotypes and celebrate inspiring women refugees from around the world” (ActionAid). One of five…
Latin Shorts
Since short films were removed from accompanying all features at cinemas, they have struggled to find venues to reach an audience. The The 21st London Short Film Festival aims to change that, in style. We review four Latin…
A Big Budget for a Big Man
HANDIA (Giant) swept the boards at the 2018 GOYA AWARDS, with 13 nominations, and carrying away 10 awards. In particular it won Best original Script, Best New Actor, as well as awards for Cinematography, Editing, Special Effects…
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, quirky and amusing run through the Gothic shadows of the city of Prague, as a toilet attendant searches for her lost cat, trying to…
Historias de Lavapies (2014) Dir. Ramon Luque
Historias de Lavapiés is Ramón Luque’s third release which opened this year’s London Spanish Film Festival. It is a truthful, beautiful snapshot into Spain’s multicultural society and continuing economic difficulty. Few films…
DISOBEDIENCE (2018) Forbidden love is never easy, let alone in a closed religious community.
When photographer Ronit Krushka returns from New York to London after many years, for her father’s funeral, a forbidden love that had been the cause of her departure is re-ignited with powerful consequences.
Don Juan in Soho @ The Donmar Warehouse
The myth of Don Juan is well-known. Though it found its origins in literature over four centuries ago, the idea has come into popular culture and evolved to fit the typically modern term of ‘womanizer’. Yes, Don Juan is a…
TIDES (2017) Unwinding down winding canals
Shot in mesmerizing Black & White against a backdrop of Surrey’s serene canals, a group of forty something friends who have not seen each other for a while, decide to spend a weekend on a narrow boat to rekindle their…
ESTÉVEZ / PAÑOS Y COMPAÑÍA wow audiences at Sadler’s Wells
The Flamenco Festival at Sadler’s Wells is lit up again with ‘La Confluencia,’ an adventurous new work created by dancer/ choreographer team Rafael Estévez and Valeriano Paños.
Things We Love About... Mexican Comedy
Ask a British person what they know about Mexico and they might mention tacos and Cancún: for those unacquainted with the country, its image is inextricably linked to bean-laden delicacies and ‘Spring Break’ debauchery. However…
My Own Private Hell / Inferninho (2018) Dir. Guto Parente
A beautiful film that illustrates how a little slice of extraordinary life can survive in a dark, fairytale environment.
A Little Private Heaven?
Is film the last refuge of poetry? Or a refuge of dreams? At the BFI Flare London LGBTQ+ Film Festival, Corina J. Poore talks to Brazilian film maker Guto Parente, director of Inferninho (My Private Hell, 2018), about his film…
'Return to Ithaca' (Dir. Laurent Cantet)
“You can’t talk about Cuba without letting the Cubans speak,” says French filmaker Laurent Cantet, director this this fascinating study in the complexities of human behaviour in difficult times.
‘WE MUST THROW THE COWS DOWN THE RAVINE’ Dir Orlando Arocha
The Teatro Cervantes is opening up to international artists and playwrights and attracting more interesting talent every year. This year ‘La Caja de Fósforos’ Theatre group from Venezuela brings us the moving play: “We must Throw…
The Shape of Water (2017) Dir. Guillermo del Toro
Guillermo del Toro’s stunning and superbly crafted fairy-tale fantasy is brimming with imagination, profound empathy and a deep and powerful sensuality.
Gigi Tisminetzky. Actor, Writer, Theatre Director
Gigi Tisminetzky is a multi-lingual Argentine actor and theatre maker. After arriving in London at 16 to train at LAMDA and The Drama Centre, Gigi embarked on a cross-border TV career which include 'Devils' on Sky and …