Gay Latino LA: Coming of Age at the Q Center hosted by PLGFF and PDX Latino Pride and the QCenter.

Special Guests: Alejandro Aldana, Brian Pacheco, Carlos Gomez, Jonathan Menendez and Mario Novoa. Tickets $8 in advance. $10 at the door. TRAILER & LINKS https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvRvST9pMa4 gaylatino.la facebook.com/gaylatinola twitter.com/gaylatinola ABOUT THE FILM Raw, visceral and real, Producer Jonathan Menendez captures the heart and soul of Latino men in Los Angeles as they wrestle with dual, and often dueling, identities. Latino first, and gay in spite of themselves, the film tracks the emotions, conflicts and trials of three men as they struggle with coming out to family and friends, especially their mothers. From arrests for drugs to alcoholism and lack of opportunities for education and employment, each suffers trying to fit being gay into their lives. None know how to find a relationship; one struggles with a boyfriend due to his own alcoholism. Yet each finds a way to blend their ethnicity and sexual orientation. —Mauro Montoya, Southwest Film Festival "I am thrilled to finally see a representation of the Queer Latino experience in film as a California native. Jonathan Menendez Benavides' film is beautifully done and provides a diverse representation of gay Latino life in Los Angeles.” — David M. Pérez, President, Latino GLBT History Project Situated in various locations throughout the City Company of Angels (CoA) Jonathan Menendez’s braided documentary Gay Latino Los Angeles presents the frank, compelling testimonials of three Latino twenty-somethings from different backgrounds and charts their self-discovery and growth over a two-year period. Alex is a Mexican hipster whose hopes for an education and a better life in the U.S. are compromised by his undocumented status. Brian is a Salvadoran who—though educated at UC Berkeley—lacks confidence to enter the workplace even as he yearns to better the world through engaged activism. And Carlos is a Chicano homeboy from South LA whose party lifestyle is self-destructive compensation for not being able to fully come out of the closet. Menendez nests these three testimonials within imagery of an Indigenous tradition that asserts that the search for identity among gay Latinos will lead to the recovery of a rich, neglected history specific to the region. In episodic turns, Alex, Brian, and Carlos demonstrate the dynamic reality of being gay and Latino in LA through their shared experience of negotiating their sexual orientation with their religious upbringing, being abandoned by their families, hiding behind subcultural shields of machismo, and fighting for human rights in an unjust and homophobic society. Through a snapshot of individual lives, Gay Latino Los Angeles reveals the rites of passage that young gays face in their inspiring journey to self-acceptance. — Michael Guillen, Frameline "An honest portrait that goes beyond gay issues and explores identity, race, family and loneliness; the kind of loneliness you feel when trapped between all the layers that build your place in this world. You don’t relate to these characters just because they’re gay, not even because they’re Latino, but because their eyes reflect the painful reality of not knowing what’s going to happen next in your life. And the glue that keeps it all together is Jonathan Menendez’s natural ability as a storyteller. This could’ve been easily turned into another talking heads show with no spice, no flavor, but Menendez manages to tell his own story through the souls of three young men who could easily represent different pieces of the same troubled puzzle." -— Chucho E. Quintero, Jury and Filmmaker, Mix México Latina/o Queer Arts and Film Festival - LQAFF ------------------------------------ SPECIAL GUESTS Brian Pacheco Corleto --- Born and raised in Los Angeles to Salvadoran immigrant parents, Brian Pacheco is a subject in “Gay Latino L.A.: Coming of Age.” Brian is currently the Social Media and Communications Strategist at the National Hispanic Media Coalition (NHMC). Prior to joining NHMC he was the Spanish-Language Media Strategist at GLAAD. He is also active in the National Association of Salvadoran Professionals (NASP), which he founded along with fellow alumni of the Unión Salvadoreña de Estudiantes Universitarios (USEU), a student organization with chapters at over 10 California universities. Brian graduated from UC Berkeley with a B.A. in History. Mario J. Novoa -- Mario J. Novoa is a professional film writer/director/producer who resides in Los Angeles, California. Mario has produced and directed ad campaigns for The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, Cedar Sinai Hospital, The W Hotel Hollywood, MOFILM UK. In 2012 Mario Novoa directed a feature documentary, produced a feature documentary and produced narrative feature The Miracle of Tony Davis. Currently Mario is in post-production on an original web-series called The Babies Cries for Film Bliss Studios. Jonathan Menendez -- is a new media producer that uses technology to build online communities for social empowerment. He founded Evolutionary Productions, a multimedia company, facilitates social change, promotes understanding and awareness and forges new relationships to build a more common future. Some of his projects include co-founding xQsiMagazine.com, GayLatino.LA and Qulture.org. He earned a B.A. in Multimedia Productions, has six years of employment at a software development firm and consulted for Aids Project Los Angeles. Jonathan’s range of interests within digital media ranges from conceptual/ experimental to more narrative/ mainstream. He dedicated five years of his life to the development of a two part documentary called Gay Latino Los Angeles. The first film premiered in Mexico City and is making its way in film festivals and universities worldwide. More recently, he’s in development of a GPS and video mobile application called Qulture- a technology for activism, community and diversity. His graduate school thesis at the University of California Santa Cruz involves surveying queer people of colors use of new media to mobilize and create new communities for social transformation. HOSTS AND MAIN SPONSORS Portland Lesbian & Gay Film Festival Portland Latino Gay Pride Q Center COMMUNITY SUPPORTERS Portland Gay Men Circles Queer Students of Color Conference 2014 INDIVIDUAL SUPPORTERS Gabriel Mendoza Josue Avelar Alejandro