A look at Puerto Rico and its cinema through films, documentaries, and commercials from the early twentieth century to the emerging cinema of today. Visual and narrative strategies portray fragments of Puerto Rico's general history and, in turn, answers the questions of who, when, and for whom have films been made in Puerto Rico and the resources that are available to do it.
Related Movies
Luz in Latin America (2016)
The inspiring account on international bodyboarding star Luz 'Loly' Grande - a young woman on a personal mission to make bodyboarding a means to improve the lives of disadvantaged children in Puerto Rico, Argentina, Brazil, and Peru.
Biopsia (2016)
Carmen accompanies a group of women who must travel from the island of Vieques to San Juan, capital of Puerto Rico, in order to perform breast biopsies. The long journey is by water and road. Amid many fears and vicissitudes, Carmen confirms once again the need for appropriate medical services for both women and for the rest of the Vieques population.
Rafael Cancel Miranda: I'm Not Sorry for What I Did (2016)
Explores the trajectory of the young nationalist from the time of his incarceration, at 23 years of age, as a result of the attack on the United States Congress.
Son Afrocaribeño (1998)
Combines animation and documentary footage to illustrate the origins and impact of the musical genres Bomba and Plena in Puerto Rican culture.
Antonio Paoli: Rey de Tenores y Tenor de Reyes (1991)
The life and career of Puerto Rican tenor Antonio Paoli, also known as The King of Tenors and The Tenor of Kings.
Your Day Is My Night (2014)
Immigrant residents of a “shift-bed” apartment in the heart of New York City’s Chinatown share their stories of personal and political upheaval. As the bed transforms into a stage, the film reveals the collective history of the Chinese in the United States through conversations, autobiographical monologues, and theatrical movement pieces. Shot in the kitchens, bedrooms, wedding halls, cafés, and mahjong parlors of Chinatown, this provocative hybrid documentary addresses issues of privacy, intimacy, and urban life.
La otra intención (2014)
In San Juan, Puerto Rico, hundreds of artists gathered to pay honor to the work of Puerto Rican artist Myrna Báez. La otra intención (The Other Intention) is an observational documentary that travels through the work of Myrna while visiting artists, such as Petra Bravo, Deborah Hunt, Yiyo Tirado, Gustavo Castrodad, the theater group Y no había luz, among others, to accompany them in their creative process of re-interpretation.
Una identidad en absurdo Vol. 1 (2011)
Guillermo Gómez Álvarez explores the identity politics of Puerto Rico via archival footage from various sources that clash with nine original songs from local independent musicians and a thematic analysis from a psychoanalyst and a historian. From the juxtaposition the absurd becomes coherent and the coherent becomes absurd as Puerto Rican identity is defined and rejected almost simultaneously.
Luisa tenía razón (1968)
Explores concerns about uterine cancer and the value of the Pap Test in detecting this serious type of cancer.
Ellas: Mujeres en la música (2021)
A musical look at the invaluable contribution made by women to Puerto Rican music.
Islas entretejidas: Puerto Rico y Córcega (2016)
The cultural and architectural phenomenon of the Corsican in Puerto Rico, and the influence of the Corsican immigration in this territory.
After Maria (2019)
Strong Puerto Rican women forced to flee the island after Hurricane Maria have bonded like family in a FEMA hotel in the Bronx. They seek stability in their new life as forces try to pull them apart.
Puerto Rico (1975)
Presents a socio-economic analysis of present day Puerto Rico. Uses archival footage, re-enactments of historic events, and interviews with participants to recount the long history of U.S. involvement in Puerto Rico and the anti-colonial struggle.
PsiQuis: Un Giro Decolonial (2023)
PsiQuis: Un Giro Decolonial is a documentary that presents and discusses the psychological impact that colonialism has had on the Puerto Rican people. The director analyzes the traumas generated in Puerto Rican society by that colonial experience.
Cantares (1960)
Several Puerto Rican Christmas tunes are performed on screen by Juan Rivera, Juan Ortiz Vargas, José Ramón Morales, and the Morgado Brothers.
Melting Snow (2021)
Two tons of snow—flown from New Hampshire to Puerto Rico in 1952 in order to “gift” Puerto Ricans a “white Christmas”—become a metaphor for the colonialist paternalism of America’s relationship to Puerto Rico.
La operación (1982)
Documentary on the mass sterilization of Puerto Rican women during the 1950s and '60s.
