Chicano International Film Festival creates a PSA that ignites the American Dream fire of controversy– it challenges the bigotry and hypocrisy and is reminder that the dream is not one that can be white washed.
Jaime Gutierrez, Civil Rights Attorney
The Chicano International Film Festival (CHIFF) has been active for 22 years, making them the longest running film festival in Los Angeles. From the very beginning, Civil Rights Attorney, Jaime Gutierrez, has executive produced the annual event because there were no other venue for Chicano cinema. “I was tired of seeing the gabachos (Caucasian) kills us– confronting one’s enemy is therapeutic, it externalizes colonialism,” Gutierrez declared.
This important PSA is a product executive produced by CHIFF whose production principals are: Jaime Gutierrez, Executive Director; Kayden Phoenix, Development Director; and Charlie Phoenix, Editor. The Dream PSA shows all the different groups and moments (Red Power, Black Panthers, UFW, Stonewall), “Including our sisters in Latin America,” added Gutierrez. “We’re fighting for parity. This is a collaboration, not isolation. It’s an important time to stand together, particularly now with our government trying to disband us all.”
Kayden Phoenix, CHIFF’s Development Directer, added, “We, the Americans, are the underdog. We’ve been fighting and we’re still fighting. This inspirational piece is about empowerment in diversity. The Chicanos are coming, and we don’t back down.”
CHIFF is coined the “activist film festival.” Chicano means Mexican-American but according to Gutierrez, “nowadays it encompasses Latin Americans too.”
Every aspect of making this PSA was a labor of love. Charlie Phoenix, the Editor of CHIFF and Screenwriter, said it best, “There are times throughout history where a spark has ignited a fire. Where change is not some esoteric, nebulous word used to quell the tide of anger and frustration but rather it is a lightning rod for monumental transformation.”
“Intrinsically, social justice is fought for by the people who are oppressed and by those who recognize the oppression of others and refuse to uphold the status quo. I am one of those people,”she added.
“In a country that espouses the slogan ‘the American dream’, I cannot stand idly by and watch as the dreams of many are ruthlessly taken away by the bigotry of the few,” confirmed Kayden Phoenix.
There is always a time to stand up; to use your words, your art, your mind, your love, to create awareness and, in turn, inspire, uplift and empower the diverse voices that need to be amplified and that need to be heard. We consider it an honor to be a part of this Dream PSA.” –Charlie Phoenix and Kayden Phoenix
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