2nd Annual Film Symposium

4:30 pm Screening Unseen
6:00 pm Dinner Break
7:00 pm Screening Singing Our Way to Freedom
8:30-9:30 pm Panel Discussion & Q&A to immediately follow with
Set Hernandez & Paul Espinosa

NHCC | Bank of America Theatre

Free community event.

Most people dream of a better future. Pedro, an aspiring social worker, is no different. But as a blind, undocumented immigrant, Pedro faces political restrictions to obtain his college degree, secure a job in his field, and support his family. As he finally graduates, uncertainty looms over Pedro. What starts as a journey to provide mental health care for his community ultimately transforms into Pedro’s path towards his own healing. Through experimental cinematography and sound, Unseen reimagines the accessibility of cinema, while exploring the intersections of immigration, disability, and mental health.

Run Time: 90 mins

Singing Our Way To Freedom chronicles the life and music of Ramon “Chunky” Sanchez from his humble beginnings as a farmworker in Blythe, California to the dramatic moment when he received one of his nation’s highest musical honors at the Library of Congress in Washington DC. As a young man in the 1970s, Chunky joined the picket lines in California and became Cesar Chavez’s favorite musician. His journey is a remarkable lens on a time when young Mexican Americans became Chicanos. Chunky learned how to employ humor, honesty and music to inspire folks to stand up and speak truth to power. His arc of transformation from marginalized farm kid to charismatic social activist shows how one person can mobilize people to change the world, reminding us that the battle for freedom has to be fought anew by every generation.

Run Time: 87 mins