As we in the LGBTQ community know (all too well!)… #RepresentationMatters! Now is a good time to catch up on some great Latinx and Spanish-Language LGBTQ-inclusive storytelling that you may have missed. Here are some amazing pieces of entertainment to get you started!
LGBTQ-inclusive films and docs to stream or rent.
“There’s a film about a grandmother coming out. And it’s in Spanish!” was an actual text received recently. It’s exciting to live a world where this even occurs.
That film, “So My Grandma’s A Lesbian! (“Salir del Ropero”) is on Netflix, where you can also see “The Life Ahead,” starring Sophia Loren and co-starring Abril Zamora, a talented trans actress from Spain, who also has a supporting role in “The Mess You Leave Behind,” also on Netflix.
Other inclusive films you can screen include GLAAD Media Award-nominated Latinx projects like “La Leyenda Negra” which you can catch on HBO Max, “Alice Junior” and the documentary “Mucho, Mucho Amor,” about Walter Mercado, both on Netflix.
Don’t miss “Tu Me Manques,” just out on VOD and streaming platforms. From Bolivia but set mostly in modern-day New York, it tells the story of a father and his son’s boyfriend, trying to understand the man they both loved and lost. Atlhough often joyful, the film explores homophobia and the terrible choice far too many people still feel they have to make, of either staying part of a family you adore or living an open, happy life. Based on a play by Rodrigo Bellott, it is at times theatrical and transcendent. The New York Times called it ”A moving and intellectually rewarding testament to queer life and loss.”
Keep an eye out for the GLAAD Media Award-nominated “I Carry You With Me” from director Heidi Ewing via Sony Pictures Classics, which should finally be getting a theatrical and VOD release this summer.
On Television
To support your binging needs, here is a list of just some LGBTQ-inclusive shows en español or in English with a Latinx stories and characters, like Gentefied, pictured above. Of course, do not miss the GLAAD Media Award winning series Veneno on HBO Max.
Be sure to share on your own social media accounts – or in the comments – about any shows you love that we didn’t include. Some of these shows may be available on streaming platforms other than the one listed.
Alguien Tiene Que Morir (Netflix); Ana (Pantaya/Amazon); Casa de Papel (Netflix); Casa de las Flores (Netflix); Control Z (Netflix); Desenfrenadas (Netflix); Élite (Netflix); Gentefied (Netflix); High School Musical: the Musical: the Series (Disney+); El Juego de las llaves (Pantaya); Madre Hay Solo Dos (Netflix); Manual Para Galanes (Pantaya); Monarca (Netflix); Los Espookys (HBO); Love, Victor (Hulu); #Luimelia (Atresmedia Player Premium); One Day at a Time (Popcorn); Vida (Hulu & Amazon Prime Video); What We Do in the Shadows (Hulu); Zona Rosa (Netflix)
And if you’re looking for a queer, entertaining and smart chat show, tune in to The Q Agenda, which premiered its 4th season on LATV.com.
Notable books by LGBTQ and allied Latinx writers
A great book can get you through the night or chilly afternoon. Here are a few from Latinx LGBTQ or allied writers.
“Finding Latinx: In Search of the Voices Redefining Latino Identity,” by Paola Ramos, who has distinguished herself as a journalist, often covering queer topics for Vice.
Other writers and works of note include “The Low Low Woods” by Carmen Maria Machado; Reyna Grande’s “The Distance Between Us” whose critically-acclaimed work touches on her experiences as a very young immigrant; And Julissa Arce whose books include “My (Underground) American Dream” and “Someone Like Me.”
‘Marvelous and vast,’ compilation of great books
“The state of LGBTQ books in 2021 is marvelous and vast,” wrote Michelle Hart in oprah.com. In her piece looking forward to the best of 2021, Hart includes “Hola Papi!” by J
ohn Paul Brammer.
For more on Latinx writers, check out the La Lista podcast
Newspapers, newsletters and online sites
While you’re perusing book shelves, physical or virtual, don’t forget to support your local newspaper. Check out, “A lifeline for LGBTQ Latinos on the brink of closure,” an interesting, in-depth story on LGBTQ and Latinx bars from Andrea Castillo writing for the Los Angeles Times.
The LA Times also now offers The Latinx Files, a newsletter “dedicated to the American Latino experience.”
Fighting to ensure Nancy Cárdenas is never forgotten
Nancy Cárdenas was a hugely important Mexican theater director, journalist, actress, poet, broadcaster and film critic. Despite her role in helping to birth the first gay and lesbian collective in Mexico, her legacy as an artist is nearly lost and her name forgotten, says U.S. based photographer and filmmaker Olivia Peregrino who six years ago, started working on a documentary about Cárdenas.
To learn a big about Cárdenas and watch the sizzle reel and here’s how to support the documentary, now in post-production.