Race and Hollywood: TCM looks at Latino images in film

Marking the fourth in an ongoing series of film festivals exploring Hollywood’s portrayal of different racial groups, Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will turn its spotlight on the cinematic depiction of Latinos. Throughout the month of May, TCM’s Race and Hollywood: Latino Images in Film will showcase 40 films, past and present, that show the progression of how Latino characters and culture are depicted in cinema. Joining TCM’s Robert Osborne in hosting the festival will be UCLA professor Chon Noriega, author of Shot in America: Television, the State, and the Rise of Chicano Cinema.

“As has been shown in our past Race and Hollywood editions, the way in which Hollywood depicts different cultural groups can have a tremendous impact on how those groups are viewed in society as a whole,” said Charles Tabesh, senior vice president of programming for TCM. “We’re proud that TCM has the library and resources to delve deeply into issues like racial and cultural identity in a way that no other network on television can. We are also thrilled to welcome the participation of noted scholar Chon Noriega as co-host with Robert Osborne for this project.”

TCM’s Race and Hollywood: Latino Images in Film festival will take place Tuesday and Thursday nights in May, beginning at 8 p.m. (ET). Each night’s collection of films will be centered on a particular theme, such as a look at depictions from the silent era, views of border towns and small ethnic towns, musicals, stories featuring interracial relationships, explorations of social problems and Latino representations in past and current westerns. Also included in the festival line-up will be several contemporary films making their first appearance on TCM, including The Milagro Beanfield War (1988), La Bamba (1987), The Mambo Kings (1992), Stand and Deliver (1988), The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez (1983) ...