The Panamanian International Film Festival in Los Angeles (PIFFLA) and the East Los Angeles Film Festival (ELAFF) are coming together as “Take Two,” with the intention of showcasing features, documentaries, and short films from Latine filmmakers throughout the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. The team-up comes as festivals and the industry at large attempt to return to in-person events.
The event is set to start October 7th at Self Help Graphics in East Los Angeles – with a day of workshops for kids and outdoor evening screenings and continue October 8-10 at Raleigh Studios Hollywood. You can purchase tickets for the Raleigh part of the program.
“With Take Two, PIFFLA and ELAFF are teaming up to amplify our shared cultural missions by engaging diverse audiences from the Los Angeles Latino community and far beyond,” Carlos Carrasco, PIFFLA Founder and Creative Director shared in a press release.
“The East L.A. Film Festival continues its mission to heal children and their families through art and film,” Juan Escobedo, director of the East L.A. Society of Film and Arts (TELASOFA) added. “We created the TELASOFA initiative because we believe in the relationship between creative arts and health outcomes. Through our partnership with PIFFLA, we’ve combined resources to expand services to the Boyle Heights and East L.A. areas by working with youth in producing art, photography and film.”
The 2021 version of Take Two features, among its lineup, Mas de Mi (More of Me) a documentary about the journey of Tony Succar, the youngest Latin Grammy winner; The Smile of Gerta a Panamanian short about Gerta Stern, an Austrian Jewish woman who fled the Nazis to Panama; Ixch’umil, a Guatemalan short about a 10-year-old girl who discovers her cultural roots through the teachings of her indigenous grandmother, and the film version of ¡Gaytino! Made in America, the critically acclaimed solo play by Dan Guerrero.
You can check out the full program here.