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Mexican-American filmmaker Gregory Nava’s 1997 film “Selena” was nominated for inclusion in the National Film Registry by members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus as the group ramps up efforts to end “the continued exclusion of Latinos by the film industry, ”said Representative Joaquin. Castro, D-Texas, in a letter to Librarian of Congress Dr. Carla Hayden on Friday.
“Selena is an American icon and she is so celebrated within the Latino community,” Castro, who is also the chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, told NBC News. “I think part of the assertion of that was, not only the success of the film, but the recent success of the television series as well.”
The film with Jennifer Lopez portrays the life, remarkable rise and tragic death of music legend Tejano Selena Quintanilla. The film also addresses important themes of cultural identity and assimilation that Mexican-American communities face as they navigate their personal relationships between two cultures and languages.
“Given its importance as a work of Latin cinema, we believe it deserves to be kept in the Library of Congress,” reads Castro’s letter to Hayden. “We hope you pay special attention to Selena and look forward to seeing her included in the titles added to the National Film Registry in 2021.”
Nava, who directed the film, responded to the nomination in a statement: “For too long the contribution of Latin American filmmakers to the film industry has been overlooked and under-represented. Our community is large and growing and our stories need to be told. I applaud the efforts of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus to bring attention to this and honor the accomplishments of Latinx filmmakers. “
“Latinos have been left out in the portrayal of American culture as a whole, and it is an effort to ensure that Latinos are represented in the narrative of American culture and the narrative of American culture, and part of that includes American films, ”Castro says.
Even two decades after the release of “Selena,” Latinos continue to be significantly under-represented in Hollywood movies. A recent study by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative found that 44 of the top 100 movies of 2019 had absolutely no Latin characters with speaking roles, a rate that didn’t differ much from 2018 (47 movies) or 2015 (40 movies). ).
Only 4.9% of the speaking roles in last year’s Top 100 movies went to Hispanic actors, even though Latinos make up almost 19% of the nation’s population. Latinos were the only major racial and ethnic group that was under-represented in on-screen speech roles in 2019, according to the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative. Latinos made up only 3.7% of directors.
Castro said he feels a renewed sense of urgency to tackle what he sees “as a fundamental problem for the Latin American community” in the wake of the deadliest attack on Latinos in the world recent history of the United States in 2019.
After learning that the gunman who killed 23 people at a local Walmart in El Paso, Texas, told authorities he was targeting people of Mexican descent, Castro took an official delegation of members of Congress to Los Angeles to meet with heads of studios and talent creation agencies. , the Screen Actors Guild, the Directors Guild of America and some 40 Latin American actors, directors and producers.
“People have preconceived notions about you based on the group you’re in. And those notions, in many ways, come from American media and entertainment,” Castro said. “Hollywood continues to be the premier storytelling and image defining institution in the United States and in American media.”
A recent Nielsen study of diversity and inclusion on television found that the overall representation of Latinos on television was 5.5% throughout 2019. “That’s not great,” Stacie de Armas, senior vice president of various consumer news and initiatives for Nielsen, previously told NBC News. “Latinos were significantly under-represented on all platforms, all genres and in total.”
“And yet, the entertainment industry is the one that receives massive tax breaks across the country at different levels of government,” Castro said. “You have to ask yourself how much we subsidize our own exclusion. And so, that’s where I think the government comes in.”
“There are some very progressive individuals in Hollywood who donate to wonderful causes and some incredibly progressive candidates, but the system as a whole is not at all progressive. In fact, it is quite backward and exclusive,” he said. added Castro. “We are serious about seeing real change, for our community to be included in this industry which claims to be a very liberal industry.”
In the new year, the Congressional Hispanic Caucus is expected to identify more films that “present the Latin American experience” that could be included in the National Film Registry in the future. Members of the public can also nominate films for inclusion in the 2021 National Film Registry by visiting the Library of Congress nomination website.
The Library of Congress has previously included Latin films such as “Salt of the Earth”, “I Am Joaquin”, “Zoot Suit”, “El Norte”, “Stand and Deliver” and “Real Women Have Curves” in the National Film register. Last month they included German filmmaker Wim Wenders’ documentary “Buena Vista Social Club,” which follows famous guitarist Ry Cooder and his son, Joachim, as they travel to Havana, Cuba, to reunite some of the biggest stars of Cuban pop music. from the Batista era.
As Castro’s term as chairman of the Congressional Hispanic caucus comes to an end this weekend, he will continue to work on these issues as a caucus member and through his own congressional office, has t -he declares. He also hopes to expand his efforts to combat the invisibility of the Latin American community in other media industries such as publishing and news.
“It will be an incredible day when Latin American children, but also all Americans, will be able to see the full history of a community which is not only great in this country, but which has contributed significantly to its prosperity. and its success over the generations, ”said Castro.
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