Latest news with #DeLos
Los Angeles Times
15-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Adrian Quesada, Ozomatli and more. Grand Performances announces 2025 free concert series lineup
Grand Performances, one of Southern California's longest-running outdoor concert series, has announced the musical lineup for its 39th season. The free concert series kicks off at its summer-long venue — the California Plaza in downtown L.A. — with a performance by L.A. band Ozomatli on June 14. 'We're going to be celebrating 30 years of Ozomatli and this was the stage that catapulted them,' Grand Performances President and CEO Rafael González told The Times. 'We've played stages all over the world, but GP always feels like coming home,' said Ozomatli in a statement. 'Thirty years later, L.A. still dances with us — and we're bringing everyone with us to celebrate.' That show is followed up by a tribute to John Coltrane's seminal album 'A Love Supreme,' which is celebrating 60 years since its release, on June 21. Neo soul singer Baby Rose will join singer-songwriter Angélica Garcia on July 26 as part of 'KCRW Summer Nights.' '[Garcia's 2024 album] 'Gemelo' is a fascinating mix of the mystical and the feminine, of self-love and grief, that glides effortlessly from synth-pop to cumbia to trip-hop,' The Times wrote in a review of Garcia's most recent project. 'Songs like 'Color de Dolor' or 'Juanita' slink and shimmy infectiously, even as they channel generational trauma or commune with the dead.' On Aug. 2, Grammy winner Adrian Quesada will play a show in promotion of his forthcoming album 'Boleros Psicodélicos II,' the follow-up to his 2022 Latin psychedelic release 'Boleros Psicodélicos.' Quesada was also nominated for original song at this year's 97th annual Academy Awards alongside Abraham Alexander for writing the track 'Like A Bird,' as featured in the Colman Domingo-led film 'Sing Sing.' (Disclosure notice: De Los is co-presenting Quesada's Grand Performances set.) The annual series comes at a moment when many arts organization are facing budget cuts and being defunded, as was recently seen with NPR and PBS. 'In many instances, the arts is one of the first areas that is cut, and many of my peer organizations across L.A. County are definitely feeling the impact,' González said. 'We're so fortunate because there are so many artists out there that recognize that they need to contribute. Not only do they love playing at Grand performances and being free to experiment and to take risk, but they're also very aware that this is a free service for the community.' The series closes out with a show by Dominican merengue group Oro Sólido on Aug. 23. The music collective is best known for its classic house party track 'El Beeper,' which has collected hundreds of millions of streams across all music platforms. 'We're bringing merengue to Grand Performances,' González said. 'When we have the neighborhoods around the downtown area, you have the mom and pops coming out here.' That community experience is what González believes makes the work of Grand Performances stand out. It's these folks who are coming to celebrate, to hear the music of their lives, to dance, to be with each other,' he said. 'You see folks that you don't necessarily expect to see on Grand Avenue, come to Grand Avenue and make it home.' Since 1987, Grand Performances has hosted free outdoor performances. The organization's focus is on giving a platform to both global and local acts. Previously, acts such as Stevie Wonder, Aloe Blacc and Ana Tijoux have participated in its programming. You can find the full lineup here.
Los Angeles Times
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Award-winning doc ‘Selena y Los Dinos' has been acquired by Netflix
'Selena y Los Dinos,' the latest documentary film about the life of Tejano music icon Selena Quintanilla, has been acquired by Netflix. The film is currently scheduled to begin streaming in winter 2025. The movie, directed by Isabel Castro, features original VHS footage taken by Selena's older sister, Suzette, and is interspersed with present-day interviews with family and friends. Netflix announced its acquisition in a Tuesday press release. 'Through personal archive and intimate interviews with her family, the film reveals new dimensions of her journey that have never been seen before,' Castro shared in the release. 'I am deeply grateful to her family for their trust and support throughout this journey, and I can't wait for a global audience to experience the magic, heart and community that Selena gave to all of us.' Suzette also shared her enthusiasm about the scope of the partnership with Netflix in the Tuesday announcement, stating, 'Grateful to have a platform that helps bring Selena's story to fans around the world.' This is not the first time that the Quintanilla family has collaborated with the streaming giant. They worked with Netflix to help create 'Selena: The Series' — a scripted retelling of Selena's childhood, rise to fame and death starring Christian Serratos as the Texas singer. It was after working as an executive producer on the Netflix series that Suzette consulted her lawyer about making her own documentary. 'There's some things that you just want to hold on to and not share with everyone,' Suzette said at the documentary's 2025 Sundance Film Festival premiere. 'I was always taking the pictures, always with the camera. And look how crazy it is, that I'm sharing it with all of you so many years later.' The documentary surfaces footage from performances in which Selena subverts the idea of the well-manicured image that the Quintanilla family has constantly put out of the singer in the 30 years since her death. It also captures, in real time, the evolution of a bold new identity growing among Latino youth in the 1980s, encapsulated in Los Dinos' cultural hybridity. The film was awarded with a special jury prize for archival storytelling at the renowned movie gathering at Sundance. The jury made note of how the feature 'transported us to a specific time and place, evoking themes of family, heritage, love and adolescence.' So badly were people clamoring to view the movie that the organizers of Sundance pulled it from its online platform. The film had fallen victim to a number of copyright infringements as eager fans were uploading clips from it to social media platforms. This was the first time that Sundance had removed a feature during the festival. De Los assistant editor Suzy Exposito and Times staff writer Mark Olsen contributed to this report.
Los Angeles Times
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
How to make the most of the Festival of Books
Last week, we told you about some of the can't-miss panels and events happening on Saturday, April 25. From a discussion on romance literature to a talk on book bans, there's no shortage of fun events and fantastic authors for attendees to enjoy. But on Sunday, there's even more, so be sure to stick around to take full advantage of the book bonanza. This year's fest is attracting some of the biggest names in Hollywood. The director of last year's smash-hit movie musical 'Wicked,' Jon M. Chu, will be speaking to Times reporter Ashley Lee at 1:30pm. Actor, producer and political activist Wilmer Valderrama will speak with De Los editorial director Fidel Martinez on the Main Stage at 11:30 a.m. Musician Robyn Hitchcock will be in conversation with Jonathan Lethem at 11 a.m. Actor Josh Gad will also be in attendance, talking with Jon Lovett, host of the 'Pod Save America' podcast, at 12:40pm. Chelsea Handler, who released a Netflix special at the end of March, recently turned 50 and she, like many women, is 'not going anywhere. That's why men are so scared of us, because we have become so powerful and so independent,' she said in a recent interview with The Times. Don't miss the conversation between reporter Yvonne Villarreal and Handler on the Main Stage at 1:50 p.m. It's the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's birth. To celebrate, we've got a special screening of the first episode of Masterpiece's 'Miss Austen', with appearances by writer Gill Hornby and the show's executive producer, Christine Langan. These festivities kickoff at 10 a.m. Author 'Pemi Aguda, who is a finalist for the Art Seidenbaum Award at Friday night's Book Awards presentation, will be part of a panel called 'The Oddities of Earthlings: Magical Realism in Contemporary Fiction' that begins at 10:30 a.m. She will be joined on the panel by Hilary Leichter, Muriel Leung and Claire Stanford. Also at 10:30 will be a powerful panel on American politics. 'Unequal Ground: The Silent War Against the Poor and Marginalized' features Melissa Ann Chadburn, Bernadette Atuahene, Sarah Jones and Andrea Freeman discussing the ways that racism and other forms of systematic oppression have played out in agriculture and food policies. Some of the most-acclaimed writers gather for 'The Call Is Coming From Inside the House,' a panel about writers writing novels about writers. Featuring Danzy Senna, Edan Lepucki, Ashley Whitaker and Nnedi Okorafor, the panel is a must-see for aspiring authors. The 'Under My Skin: Gender and Identity in Fiction' panel is happening at a time when the trans community is being targeted by the Trump administration. Taking place at noon, the panel will feature authors Emily St. James, Rax Will, Daniel Lavery and Zee Carlstrom, who will talk about their work that navigates questions of gender, identity and belonging in an often hostile and ever-evolving world. For further reading, check out this recent Publishers Weekly story featuring interviews with trans and nonbinary writers. Percival Everett, hailed as one of his generation's greatest writers, received the 2024 National Book Award for 'James.' He will also be on hand at the festival for a one-on-one discussion with Héctor Tobar. Tickets are going fast for this panel, so don't hesitate to secure your spot. A conversation on this year's devastating fires will take place at 1:30 p.m. 'Red Flag Warning: California, Wildfires and Where We Go From Here' will feature a discussion on the state's present and future challenges as climate change makes wildfires more frequent and more intense. Obi Kaufmann, Manjula Martin, Jordan Thomas, Jack Dolan, and Lucero Chavez-Ramirez will participate in the panel. One of the ways that I've been combating my own climate anxiety is by turning a yard full of invasive weeds into a pollinator garden full of native plants, so I'm stoked for The Times' Native Plants booth at this year's fest, featuring staff from the Theodore Payne Foundation and the California Native Plant Society. Those who visit the booth (and who subscribe to the Plants newsletter) will receive free sunflower (helianthus) seeds and have a chance to take home pots of native flowers. On Saturday, the CNPS will offer advice on growing in your particular zip code. The sunflower-seed giveaway helps support bird-friendly gardening, according to Times' plants writer Jeanette Marantos, which is perfect because this time of year is also when prime bird migration takes place. (Please note: The Times may earn a commission through links to whose fees support independent bookstores.) Want to learn more about birds? You're in luck! Amy Tan's 'The Backyard Bird Chronicles' is a recent bestseller. And actor Lili Taylor debuts next week with 'Turning to Birds: The Beauty and Power of Noticing.' Octavia Butler, the visionary Southern California writer, will soon be accessible for those who prefer to take in their literature via comic books and graphic novels. One of L.A.'s buzziest bookshops, Octavia's Bookshelf, unveiled the graphic novel adaptation of 'Parable of the Talents,' by Damian Duffy, John Jennings and David Brame. Los Angeles native Matthew Specktor argues that the fascist attack on the arts should concern us all, especially the denizens and fans of the film industry: 'The pleasure of making beautiful things and reveling in beautiful things and making art is a bizarre thing in America.' The legacy of Indian boarding schools, a shameful chapter of recent American history, is the focus of 'Medicine River' by Mary Annette Pember. 'Pember's book blends her research and reportage with memoir,' writes Charles Arrowsmith. Aimee Semple McPherson's Venice Beach drowning and subsequent reappearance in the Mexican desert made her a local legend. Author Claire Hoffman notes that 'Aimee's disappearance had made national news, but her resurrection made global headlines.' Over at the New Yorker, festival participant Elaine Pagels discusses the mysterious companion of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, with writer Eliza Griswold. Pagels will appear at a panel on Saturday, April 26 at 2 p.m. The anniversary of Shakespeare's birth was April 23rd. (Happy 459th, Will!) This past week, he was in the news when scholars announced that they had identified the correspondents in a letter fragment found in a book in 1978. Shakespeare had long been thought to have lived in London alone, having left his wife behind in Stratford. But based on the letter, Shakespeare scholar Matthew Steggle says that the couple resided together at a house on Trinity Lane. The young correspondent beseeches 'Good Mrs. Shakspaire' to release funds in a trust held by her husband. 'The letter writer thinks that 'Mrs Shakspaire' has independent access to money, [Steggle said.] 'They hope that Mrs Shakspaire might 'paye your husbands debte.'' If only the Shakespeares had had access to what is likely to be paid next month for the bard's work. Sotheby's has announced that a complete set of all four folios will be auctioned on May 23rd. It is the first time since 1989 that a complete set has been available to purchase. But pack your checkbook. It's expected that the bidding may go as high as $4.5 million. We hope to see you at the Festival of Books for a chance to meet new friends—all those lovely books waiting to find their new forever home with you. After all, as Groucho once reminded us, 'Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.'
Los Angeles Times
11-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Julio Vaqueiro, Codie Sanchez and more will rep Latinos at the L.A. Times Festival of Books
Last year, the De Los and Los Angeles en Español teams joined forces to program the first-ever Latinidad Stage at the L.A. Times Festival of Books: the largest literary event in the United States. Over the course of two days, the stage featured conversations in English, Spanish and Spanglish that centered Latinx topics, storytelling and authors. We'll be back again at the USC campus on April 26 and 27 for the festival's 30th anniversary — and the Latinidad Stage is now the De Los Stage in Association with L.A. Times en Español. This year's program has a little something for everyone: Both days will kick off with readings for the kids from the Los Angeles Public Library and Lil' Libros. Are you a sports fan? The Times' assistant managing editor for sports, Iliana Limón Romero, will sit down with former Dodgers commentators Jaime and Jorge Jarrín to talk about Fernando Valenzuela, who died in October. The father-son duo will discuss the lasting impact the Mexican pitcher had on the Latinx community in Los Angeles and beyond; perhaps no one is more qualified to speak on 'Fernandomania' than Jaime Jarrín, who served as Valenzuela's interpreter during his historic 1981 rookie season. We'll also have conversations on topics such as the Latinx vote, personal finance, well-being, intergenerational healing and more. The lineup will include a panel with essayists Manuel Betancourt, Edgar Gomez and Vanessa Angélica Villareal, as well as interviews with National Book Award winner and MacArthur fellow Jason De León; New York Times best seller Codie Sanchez; chef and cookbook author Karla Tatiana Vasquez; and crossword puzzler Juliana Pache, to name a few. And if you're curious about my own Spanish language skills, make sure you stop by Sunday at 3:45 p.m. for my one-on-one talk (en español!) with Noticias Telemundo anchor Julio Vaqueiro, whose new book, 'Río Bravo: Mexico, Estados Unidos y el Regreso de Trump,' examines the tense relationship between the U.S. and Mexico in the wake of Donald Trump's return to the White House, as well as the historic presidential election of Claudia Sheinbaum. If you're in L.A. that weekend, I encourage you to stop by and say hello! Admission to the L.A. Times Festival of Books is free of charge, and the De Los team will have a table, where you'll be able to meet our staff and pick up some Festival of Books-themed goodies. You can find the complete schedule here. From the L.A. Times Federal officials arrived, denied entry at L.A. schools amid immigration enforcement fears Federal agents were denied entrance to two elementary schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District this week after they showed up unannounced and sought to get in touch with five students who the agents alleged entered the country without documentation, school officials said Thursday. Must-see Latino acts at Coachella 2025: Junior H, The Marías and more The first weekend of the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival kicks off today, and though the lineup features fewer Latin music acts than last year, there are still plenty of artists worth checking out, from Venezuelan rockers Rawayana to música Mexicana sad bois Junior H and Ivan Cornejo. Jenna Ortega says she left 'Scream VII' because the production was 'falling apart' The 'Wednesday' actor finally revealed why she left 'Scream VII.' It wasn't for the pay or a scheduling conflict, as was previously reported; a huge part of it had to do with the firing of her co-star, Melissa Barrera, who was booted from the project by Spyglass Media Group after making pro-Palestinian social media posts that the production company deemed antisemitic. Why a man drives a kids' Cybertruck with a dog and Mexican flag — and how it got him 'banned' from Dodger Stadium If you're like me, chances are the social media algorithms have shown you a video of a man driving a tiny Cybertruck — with a dog and a giant Mexican flag in tow — while being chased by Dodger Stadium security. That man is DJ Swagrman, a social media influencer whose husky, Swaggy Wolfdog, is a viral sensation in his own right. Eaton fire shut down this Spanish immersion school's two campuses. But classes are still in session Rayuela, a Spanish-language immersion program that started in 2014 in Altadena, lost one of its campuses in the Eaton fire. The other one remains closed. Despite the loss, the school has continued with classes at a temporary campus in Highland Park. New film 'Cocodrilos' honors missing and murdered journalists in Mexico Directed by Mexican filmmaker J. Xavier Velasco, 'Cocodrilos' is a thriller that takes a fictionalized approach to highlighting the real-life dangers that journalists and media workers face when covering organized crime. This Mexican zombie movie faces the apocalypse through children's eyes Why did Mexican director Isaac Ezban decide to tell 'Párvulos: Children of the Apocalypse,' his latest film, from the perspective of young people? 'Coming-of-age tropes and horror go hand in hand, because horror is always about discovering another world, and coming-of-age stories are indeed also about discovering a new world,' he explained. 'El Rey,' 'Before the Next Teardrop Falls' and 'Hamilton' to be added to National Recording Registry The Library of Congress announced this week that Vicente Fernández's cover of the Jóse Alfredo Jímenez banger 'El Rey,' Freddy Fender's bilingual 'Before the Next Teardrop Falls' (puro 956, cuh!) and Lin-Manuel Miranda's original cast recording of Broadway's 'Hamilton' will be preserved for posterity by being inducted into the National Recording Registry. Singer Rubby Pérez, former MLB pitcher Octavio Dotel among many dead in Dominican Republic roof collapse Famed Dominican merengue singer Rubby Pérez and former Major League Baseball pitcher Octavio Dotel, who briefly played for the Dodgers, are among the confirmed dead after the roof collapsed at a Dominican nightclub Tuesday. So far, 221 people have been confirmed dead. From elsewhere Latino Democrats launch super PAC to tackle party's problem with key group (Washington Post) Former congressman Tony Cárdenas (D-California) and Democratic strategist Chuck Rocha have launched Campeones PAC, a new political action committee aimed at reversing the gains Republicans have made with Latinx voters over the last few national elections. 'Instead of sitting around and waiting for the party to get better, we decided we will just do it ourselves,' Rocha told the Washington Post. Bad Bunny: Tiny Desk Concert (NPR) In what was easily the best thing on the Latinternet this week, el Conejo Malo performed various tracks from 'Debí Tirar Más Fotos' as part of NPR's Tiny Desk Concert series. Trump's immigration policy is weighing on beer sales, Constellation Brands CEO says (NBC Latino) One of the unintended consequences in President Trump's anti-immigration agenda has been a drop in beer sales, according to Constellation Chief Executive Bill Newlands. 'The fact is, a lot of consumers in the Hispanic community are concerned right now ... Over half are concerned relative to immigration issues and how those impact [them]. A number of them are concerned about job losses in industries that have a high Latino employment base,' Newlands said.
Los Angeles Times
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
This Mexican zombie movie faces the apocalypse through children's eyes
As a film student in the mid-2000s, Mexican writer-director Isaac Ezban watched Guillermo del Toro's masterpiece 'Pan's Labyrinth' in awe. That Del Toro juxtaposed luminous elements fit for a fairy tale with unflinching violence prompted an epiphany for Ezban. The then-emerging filmmaker thought to himself: Are you allowed to do that in a movie? 'In an interview, Del Toro talked about the contrast between beauty and brutality, and that really stuck with me,' Ezban told De Los during a recent Zoom conversation. 'It's something I've tried to do in my work, and this movie is the one that reflects that contrast the most.' Ezban is referring to his latest genre effort, a tonally unpredictable zombie movie titled 'Párvulos: Children of the Apocalypse,' which hits theaters across the country on Friday, In the aftermath of a global pandemic, three young brothers fend for themselves in an isolated home tucked away in a forest. The youngest, Benjamin (Mateo Ortega Casillas), believes their parents will eventually return to join them, but Salvador (Farid Escalante Correa), the teenage sibling whose firm hand has kept the boys alive, knows the harsher truth. Beyond the illusion of safety they've procured, rabid undead creatures and religious fanatics lurk. Historically, there have been few examples of zombie films made in Mexico, even if the horror genre at large has always proven widely popular with Mexican audiences. 'Mexicans aren't as fond of gore or guts, which zombie films often lend themselves to,' Ezban offers as a reason for the lack of homegrown iterations. 'What Mexicans love are paranormal stories, demonic possessions, exorcisms, witchcraft, haunted houses.' With his 2022 film 'Mal de ojo' (Evil Eye), which is streaming on Vix, Ezban tapped into that taste for the supernatural with a story inspired by folktales about witches. But while otherworldly horror films are more commercially viable in Mexico, with 'Párvulos,' the director took a chance on the zombie subgenre as a vehicle to explore his fascination with narratives where young protagonists mature after a difficult ordeal. 'Coming-of-age tropes and horror go hand in hand, because horror is always about discovering another world, and coming-of-age stories are indeed also about discovering a new world,' he explains. Despite what anybody might think, Ezban assures me that 'Párvulos' was conceived long before the COVID-19 pandemic upended the world in 2020. Even though the notion of a deadly disease and the consequences of an untested vaccine only serve as the setup, those aspects of the story have garnered the most attention. 'My intention was to include it just as a little hint. The story isn't about that,' he says, 'but it's very interesting that that's always been the first question from the press and what the distributor decided to include in the trailer. That's what causes controversy in the reviews.' Ezban wrote the first treatment for 'Párvulos' in 2016. It would take five years to secure financing, and two more years to finally shoot the picture in 2023. In that time span, Ezban directed two other movies: his English-language debut, 'Parallel,' and 'Mal de ojo.' He also had two children, and, of course, a real pandemic occurred, further delaying his plans. 'I truly believe that projects you are passionate about should be fought for until they happen,' he says about seeing 'Párvulos' come to fruition through every setback. Over the course of those years, the screenplay for 'Párvulos' would become infused with Ezban's interactions with his children Naomi and Alexander. The dialogue he wrote for Benjamin in the final version of the script feels more naturalistic, he thinks, because it was directly referencing his daughter and son's behaviors and reactions. Aside from Del Toro's 'Pan's Labyrinth' and 'The Devil's Backbone,' Ezban also cites as key references the Austrian psychological horror flick 'Goodnight Mommy,' as well as George A. Romero's 'Day of the Dead' and the Spanish found-footage zombie saga 'Rec.' Played by actors Norma Flores and Horacio F. Lazo, whose physicality earned them the parts, the two main zombies in 'Párvulos' required 3 ½ hours of makeup each day. The result makes them look terrifying but still human, which is particularly important when they interact with the children in some of the more strangely lighthearted scenes. 'The film is a roller coaster, which has divided audiences,' Ezban admits. 'Some people love the first half and don't like it when it suddenly takes on a more comic tone. Others, on the other hand, love that part and don't like the serious tone at the end. I've always had this love for cinema that isn't rigidly tied to one genre.' This amalgamation of tones is a 'flirtation with the bizarre,' as Ezban describes it. 'Depending on the sensitivity and openness of the viewer, it can sometimes be grotesque, or it can be funny,' he adds about a disturbing dinner scene laced with comic relief. Aesthetically, 'Párvulos' also takes inventive swings. After watching Antoine Fuqua's 'Emancipation,' a period piece about slavery starring Will Smith, the director decided on a desaturated look for the film that would reflect the emotional state of the kids' reality. 'We're talking about an oppressed world, a world without hope, a world without joy, and therefore, a world without color,' Ezban says. 'Hope is always in the past. Things like the family photo you see, the book they read, their drawings, the movie they watch on TV.' Though he originally intended to shoot 'Párvulos' in Guadalajara, budget issues pushed him to look at other options, eventually settling on locations near Mexico City, namely La Marquesa National Park. There, the production found the ideal house, which belongs to a retired pilot who divides his time between the forest and the country's bustling capital. Accustomed to the challenges of realizing his ambitious ideas with humble means, the Mexican director was introduced to a different industry when he made the 2018 sci-fi thriller 'Parallel,' about a mirror that works as an interdimensional portal, in Vancouver. 'Even though we make a lot of films in Mexico and there are great crews here, there's a different discipline over there,' he says. 'It was a pleasure to learn in the big leagues.' Following the success of his first two features, 'The Incident' and 'The Similars,' Ezban landed representation in the U.S., which allowed him to pitch himself to direct English-language projects. The screenplay for the sci-fi thriller 'Parallel' caught Ezban's eye for its originality among more generic prospects and became his first crossover venture. To complete 'Parallel,' Ezban spent four months living in Los Angeles during the postproduction process, which revealed to him trials he hadn't experienced before. 'During filming, [the producers] never interfered — not with my vision, nor with my casting decisions,' he says. 'But in postproduction, I did have to experience how editing a studio film works — all the test screenings and focus groups, which can be complicated for a director. But in the end, the film ended up just the way I wanted it.' Now, having dipped his feet in the English-language market, Ezban plans to develop projects both in Mexico and abroad. 'I like to have one foot there and one foot here and see what happens first,' he adds. The U.S. release of 'Párvulos' will hopefully help that goal. While this is best reviewed movie yet and has amassed more than 30 awards at film festivals, when the film opened in Mexico last November it went up against Hollywood behemoths such as 'Wicked' and 'Gladiator II,' which hindered its box-office potential. Though Ezban's early films were theatrically distributed in the U.S., 'Párvulos' marks his widest release stateside with about 200 screens across the country at multiplex chains like AMC Theatres and Regal Cinemas. The film's distributor, Firebook Entertainment, seems to be strategically targeting areas with high concentrations of Latino residents. In California alone, the film will play in South Gate, Norwalk, Riverside, Long Beach, Torrance, San Bernardino among several other cities. 'I know a release in Mexico is very different from one in the United States, because there are so many screens here — in Mexico there are only 5,000 screens — but I'm excited to see how we do,' he concludes.
