Dos Vatos Palabras

By Alonso Soto Joya

Kentucky Kernel (Lexington, KY) 

 People from different backgrounds got together last Wednesday night and packed the Kentucky Theatre to see the premiere of “Beyond the Border,” a documentary filmed in the Bluegrass.

Government officials, police recruits, UK students and Latino families took over the cinema. Many watched the movie standing in the theater’s aisles.

“I’m so glad and surprised by the attendance”, said the film’s producer Eren McGinnis. Ari Palos, director of the film, also spoke at the premiere.

The 56-minute film depicts the struggle of four brothers from Michoacan, Mexico to find a better life in Kentucky.It tells of their hopes and dreams in the new land and the difficult situation they endured in their own country.

The UK Latin American Studies Program, among many other local organizations, sponsored the film that took two and a half years to make.

“We try with events like this to educate the Lexington community and provide a forum for discussion and understanding,” said Chris Pool, the chairman of the UK Latin American Program, who was also surprised and pleased by the attendance of UK students.

Emily Rigdon, a Latin American Studies major, said she was very excited to see people from all over Lexington at the premiere.“The film put a positive light on the Hispanic population of the area,” she said. “But the film was not very critical to the work reality of Hispanics.”

Abdon Ibarra, the immigrant services coordinator for the Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government, believed the film united people from very different social levels.“It’s so pretty to see this happening. Maybe this will not have a long term impact, but at least for this moment, it did,” he said.

McGinnis believes Kentucky is a special place for Hispanics at this moment. “Kentucky is seeing the beginning of something new and different.”McGinnis, thinks the documentary will show people the reality of Mexican workers and help them understand their way of living.

Renzo Benitez, a Peruvian who has lived in Lexington for six years, said he enjoyed the film and had a lot of respect for the brothers who star in the documentary.“The film reflected the unity of the Latino family, how important the parents and brothers are in our culture,” he said.

“At the beginning, being in the movie was difficult, but I meet a lot of new people and made good friends,” said Marcelo Ayala, the youngest of the four brothers who star in the film.Ayala also believes in the importance of the documentary for the understanding of the Kentucky and Latino community.“I don’t think of myself as a star, but just as somebody who reflects all the other Mexican families in this country.”

Source: KY Kernel

TO ORDER DVDS of BEYOND THE BORDER PLEASE VISIT: www.dosvatos.com

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