Explore the rich culture of Kansas City’s Latino community with We Are Latinos, a new short documentary from Kansas City PBS by filmmaker Victor Antillanca. The film is available to stream now, plus stories and videos about the film’s subjects are available on Flatland, KCPBS’ digital journalism platform.
We Are Latinos explores the stories, hopes and accomplishments of the vibrant — and underappreciated — Kansas City Latino community. The broad experiences of Latino artists, athletes, entrepreneurs, immigrants and proud Americans unfolds in this cinematic documentary.
“I’m very excited for Kansas City PBS audiences to see the incredible work that Victor has done with We Are Latinos,” said Kliff Kuehl, president and CEO of Kansas City PBS. “It’s an authentic, honest and visually arresting celebration of the Kansas City Latino community.”
“I had a vision for this project,” Antillanca said. “It was in me. I wanted to do something for the community, and I wanted to tell these stories, so my daughters, when they grow up, get to know more about our culture.”
Featured in the series are:
- Jenny Mendez, a third-generation Mexican American artist born and raised on the west side of Kansas City who created her first mural in 1982 and is cultural arts director at the Mattie Rhodes Center.
- Kiki, a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient who came to the United States from Mexico at age 7, as she returns to her country through memories – not being able to visit her family in person, we reunite them through film.
“Jenny and Kiki are great people who are doing something really big for the community,” Antillanca added. “I feel honored to get to know them and that people are going to get to see what they’ve been doing, what they do. They make me even more proud to be Latino. This is the beginning of a project that will impact the entire community and our city.”
For more information, visit Kansas City PBS’ We Are Latinos web page.
