Puerto Rican screenwriter tries to break plans with “The Gordita Chronicles” series

THE ANGELS.- The telling of the events that have characterized your life and your community is the lesson Puerto Rican screenwriter Claudia Forestieri he learned in his attempt to get into Hollywood and tell stories for a Latino audience, which despite multiple phone calls is still under-represented on screens.

“They always encourage someone to write something personal because it will be a story that no one else will have, and this will be a letter of introduction to who you are and what your point of view is,” explains Efe Forestieri, who came over 10 years ago to Los Angeles looking for an opportunity to bring Latino stories to television or film and fill the gap in the industry.

However, he says he had reservations about writing about his life and letting a producer in Hollywood bet he would give his project a shot. It was President Donald Trump’s election in 2016 and the ongoing attacks on immigrants and their communities that prompted her to find inspiration in her own life experience. The Gordita Chronicles.

THE STORY OF THE IMMIGRANT “GORDITA”

Despite having a US passport since birth, Forestieri claims to know what an immigrant encounters in the United States and a lot more about the adaptation problems foreign children face. Born to Dominican parents, the Latina writer moved with her family to Miami, Florida in the 1980s when she was only seven years old.

“It was very difficult because I didn’t know the language and the culture. They told me to change, and they started calling me ‘la chubby’. It was a very shocking combination, ”he recalls. To all this, it is added that Forestieri and his family came to a stage where immigrants were identified as the generators of violence in South Florida. The screenwriter highlights how famous Time magazine declared on its cover in 1981 that South Florida was a “Lost Paradise,” a special with photos showing when Miami was known for its cocaine traffickers, the spate of crimes and an influx of immigrants. from Haiti and the Mariel boats from Cuba.

“There were many negative stories in the press, and this had a major impact on the image of Cubans and other nationalities in Miami. Although the criminals were only a very small percentage, we all got these accusations, ”he says.

THE VALUE OF LATINOS

Forty years later, things have changed in Miami, Forestieri acknowledges, a transformation largely due to Spanish and immigrant hands.

“This new face of Miami is largely due to our contributions,” he says proudly of the city he calls his home, where “The Gordita Chronicles,” a comedy set in the 1980s around a 12-year anniversary, takes place. Dominican girl. HBO Max this month approved the implementation of the program pilot. Forestieri brings the experience of being part of the writing team of Selena: The Series, a Netflix production that premiered December 1 that revives the legend of the Queen of Tex-Mex. The Puerto Rican was also part of the screenwriters “Good Trouble”.

DIFFICULT BARRIERS TO DIG

To reach these teams, the 46-year-old Puerto Rican spent more than 10 years of her career, knocking on dozens of doors and training on NBC, HBO and Disney.

“It’s a very difficult road; you have to work on other things to pay your rent and survive. You have to give up many things to have a chance that may never materialize, and for Latinos the effort is double or triple, ”he says. The absence of Latino stories in film and television is such a problem that the Congressional Hispanic Caucus led a House Judiciary Committee hearing a few weeks ago to address the inequality. The Caucus and the House Oversight and Reform Committee in October requested the U.S. Government Accountability Office to prepare a report on the matter. The ultimate goal of the application is to “enforce federal equal opportunity requirements” in the film, television and publishing industries. “It is time for the federal government to look into this issue of systemic racism and the exclusion of Latinos from such industries as publishing and Hollywood,” he said in a statement. Congressman Joaquín Castro, president of the Caucus. And is that, Latinos, who make up 18% of the population in the United States, make up just 4% of American cinema. A much lower figure than that of African Americans who represent 17% of all images in Hollywood cinema.

“There are many hurdles, such as convincing the producers that our stories are loved by all audiences, not just Latinos,” Forestieri warns of one of the myths that have developed in Hollywood about Spanish issues. Right now, the Puerto Rican is focused on running her creation and a first season is being approved. He is also working on expanding the concept of his short film “Unimundo 45” that tells about the adventures that take place in a news broadcast in Spanish in the United States. “This is a different world full of characters of different nationalities and experiences, but one that brings together the effort and spirit of immigrants in the United States,” he concludes.

Ana Milena Varón / EFE