Queer Latinos use Des Moines film festival to 'show the beauty and value of our lives'

Migrants, a transgender butch lesbian and a young couple exploring their sexuality. These were some of the people Iowans met during a recent pride night at the Des Moines Latino Film Festival. They were leading the way on the big screen with their own stories of resilience, love and loss.

The festival, founded in 2021 in partnership with the Chicago Latin Film Festival, is the first of its kind in Iowa. It celebrates and honors the cultural diversity within the Des Moines community as individuals gather and celebrate with food, music, film, art, love and more.

All of the films presented over the weekend were Latino-made and not available in conventional theatres. One of the goals of the Des Moines Latino Film Festival is to "connect Iowans to aspects of Latino culture and social life not presented in mainstream media," according to the Latino Center of Iowa's website.

The festival's pride night portrayed the refreshing stories of exploring one's own intersectionality in search of belonging, particularly in terms of race and sexuality.

How three films told queer Latino stories

In, "The Pool of Nobodies" or, "Alberca de las Nadies," filmmakers focused on the lives of migrants entangled in a criminal underworld. It explores how far they are willing to go in order to survive and create a better life for themselves and their families

"The Butch and the Baby Daddy," or "La Marimacho y el Papá de Bebè," tells an inspiring story of a transgender, butch lesbian seeking motherhood. In this short film, the audience experiences struggles familiar to both the LGBTQ+ and Latino communities.

The final film at pride night was "Sublime," which explored the beautiful yet daunting journey of growing up while simultaneously exploring your sexuality and personhood.

The Latino Center of Iowa's website says that the Latino community is, "moving past common challenges, expanding the opportunities to break the cycle of isolation."

Films offer a chance to show the beauty, value of queer Latino lives

What better way to break cycles of isolation than shamelessly sharing your own hardships?

"I wanted to be able to be able to put my story out there, the full range of human feelings and emotions," said Karleen Pendleton Jimènez, creator of "The Butch and the Baby Daddy."

A big part of sharing her story for Jimènez, who has family in Iowa, was also sharing her culture and dreams. She said as a lesbian trying to get pregnant, you have to be very explicit about things, it's not something that just accidentally happens.

"Representation, right?" asked Jimènez, "If we don't see these stories, you don't even realize the hurt until you've seen one. And then you think, 'Oh god, why haven't we seen one like this?' and then you feel the loss of it."

Jimènez described a loss that is familiar to the queer community and Latinos alike.

"Queer Latino lives are devalued," Jimènez said, referring to the Pulse Night Club shooting at the gay bar in 2016, one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history.

Jimènez said not only in the film, but also in her own life, she wants to show that queer Latinos are valuable, and their lives are worthy.

She also addressed the backlash the queer and trans community is facing right now, both in terms of social norms and governmental laws and regulations.

"I think we need everything at our disposal to challenge that and show the beauty and value of our lives," Jimènez said.

Jimènez, like others who attended the festival, whether for pride night or simply to support the Latino community, said she doesn't want people to hate her and those like her, they deserved to be known as human beings.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines Latino Film Festival's pride night shows 'beauty and value'