Lourdes Portillo is a Mexican film director, producer, and writer.

Biography

Portillo got her first filmmaking experience at the age of twenty-one when a friend in Hollywood asked her to help out on a documentary. Her formal training began several years later. She has thus been making award-winning films about Latin American, Mexican, and Chicano/a experiences and social justice issues both as a director and screenwriter for about forty years. Since her first film in 1979, After the Earthquake/Despues del Terremoto, she has produced over 12 works that demonstrate her work as not only a director, but also an activist, artist, and journalist. While the majority of her work is in the documentary film genre, she has also created

video installation Video installation is a contemporary art form that combines video technology with installation art, making use of all aspects of the surrounding environment to affect the audience. Tracing its origins to the birth of video art in the 1970s, it has ...

s and screen writings. The political perspectives of her films have been described as "nuanced" and versed with a point of view balanced by her experience as a lesbian and Chicana woman. Her films have been widely studied and analyzed, particularly by scholars in the field of Chicano studies.

Personal life

Born in 1943 in Chihuahua, Mexico, Portillo immigrated with her parents and four siblings to Los Angeles when she was thirteen years old. Her father, being an administrator of a newspaper in Mexico and working on printing projects in the U.S, is one of the things that initiated Portillo's fond interest in stories. By the time she was in her twenties, she had gotten a job working for an educational film company in Los Angeles, exposing her to her future career in documentary filmmaking. Wanting to work in a more livelier art film community, Portillo decided to move to San Francisco in the early 1970s. She became a participating member of a collective called Cine Manifest, a Marxist collective that created documentaries and was slowly beginning to make feature-length films. She began working as Stephen Lighthill's assistant in the collective's feature, ''Over-Under, Sideways-Down'' (1972). After working with Cine Manifest for several years, she apprenticed with the National Association of Broadcast Engineers and Technicians in San Francisco, and graduated with an MFA from the

San Francisco Art Institute San Francisco Art Institute (SFAI) was a private college of contemporary art in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1871, SFAI was one of the oldest art schools in the United States and the oldest west of the Mississippi River. Approximately ...

in 1985 with special emphasis on vanguard and experimental filmmaking. Afterward, she began her career as a producer and director of films. In 1976, she established her own independent film company Xochitl Productions. She has been involved in multiple film communities and panels, working to encourage more Third World filmmakers into entering the film industry. In her early time in San Francisco, she became very close to La Galería de la Raza, a community-based exhibit space that opened in 1970 and served as a Chicano and Latino art gallery in San Francisco's Mission District. She was part of the CARA Exhibit hicano Art: Resistance and Affirmation in UCLAas an advisor, and was part of the board of the Film Arts Foundation and IVF (Association of Independent Video and Film).

Career

Portillo's films generally focus on Latin America and the experience of Latin American-born immigrants in the United States. During her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute, she made her film debut ''Después del Terremoto'' in 1979 alongside codirector

Nina Serrano Nina Serrano (born 1934) is an American poet, writer, storyteller, and independent media producer who lives in Vallejo, California. She is the author of ''Heart Songs: The Collected Poems of Nina Serrano'' (1980) and ''Pass it on!: How to sta ...

, focusing on the experience of a Nicaraguan refugee of the 1972 Managua earthquake in San Francisco. It was followed by '' The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo'', a 1986 co-production with the Argentine director Susana Blaustein Muñoz who she met during her studies at the San Francisco Art Institute. The film documents the actions of

Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo The Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo is an Argentine human rights association formed in response to the National Reorganization Process, the military dictatorship by Jorge Rafael Videla, with the goal of finding the '' desaparecidos'', initially, a ...

, a group of Argentine women who gather weekly at the

Plaza de Mayo The Plaza de Mayo (; en, May Square) is a city square and main foundational site of Buenos Aires, Argentina. It was formed in 1884 after the demolition of the Recova building, unifying the city's Plaza Mayor and Plaza de Armas, by that time kn ...

in Buenos Aires to remember their children that were murdered or "

disappeared An enforced disappearance (or forced disappearance) is the secret abduction or imprisonment of a person by a state or political organization, or by a third party with the authorization, support, or acquiescence of a state or political organi ...

" by the military regime. A turning point in Portillo's filmmaking career, the film won twenty international awards as well as receiving an Academy Award nomination in 1987 for Best Documentary. Portillo's film audience greatly expanded beyond the U.S and played a major role in publicizing internationally the plight of the mothers and missing children. In her third film, ''La Ofrenda: The Days of the Dead'' (1988), Portillo focuses on the Mexican cultural practice

Day Of The Dead The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...

and its revival and recovery by Chicanas and Chicanos in the US. According to Portillo, the film was originally supposed to be made alongside Susana Blaustein Muñoz, and together put in an application to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to make ''La Ofrenda''. After shooting the film however, both filmmakers realized they could not continue working together and ended their filmmaking partnership. Portillo was left to finish the film. In 1992, she collaborated with the

Chicano Chicano or Chicana is a chosen identity for many Mexican Americans in the United States. The label ''Chicano'' is sometimes used interchangeably with ''Mexican American'', although the terms have different meanings. While Mexican-American ident ...

comedy troupe

Culture Clash Cultural conflict is a type of conflict that occurs when different cultural values and beliefs clash. Broad and narrow definitions exist for the concept, both of which have been used to explain violence (including war) and crime, on either a mic ...

to produce the experimental video ''Columbus On Trial'' for the international commemoration of Columbus' voyage to the Americas. Portillo humorously mixes political satire and experimental video techniques, putting the figure Columbus in a modern day courtroom and being charged for his atrocities against Native Americans. They collaborated again for the film ''Culture Clash: Mission Magic Mystery Tour'' in 2001. Alongside Culture Clash, she has also collaborated with the

San Francisco Mime Troupe The San Francisco Mime Troupe is a theatre of political satire which performs free shows in various parks in the San Francisco Bay Area and around California. The Troupe does not, however, perform silent mime, but each year creates an original ...

. One of her most critically acclaimed films '' The Devil Never Sleeps'' (1994), perfectly encapsulates Portillo's experimental filmmaking style as well as her interest and connection to her Mexican roots. Covering the mystery surrounding the death of her favorite uncle Oscar Ruiz Almeida, Portillo explores the countless dramas and rumors shared by her family members surrounding her uncle's life and death. Breaking away from conventional documentary styles, Portillo directly interacts with the film, questioning everything told by her family members and capturing her thought process as she uncovers more hidden secrets about her uncle and family. From scenes paired with clips of a TV screen playing Mexican telenovelas, to the recreations of family stories with toy props, ''The Devil Never Sleeps'' captures the uniqueness of Portillo's experimental filmmaking style. Covering a variety of topics such as family dynamics in Mexican culture, queerness, gender roles, and the distinction between private and public family affairs, Portillo's documentary is not just the story of her uncle Oscar's life and death, but also an analysis of power relations in Mexican society and culture. Recently in 2020, ''The Devil Never Sleeps'' was included in the

National Film Registry The National Film Registry (NFR) is the United States National Film Preservation Board's (NFPB) collection of films selected for preservation, each selected for its historical, cultural and aesthetic contributions since the NFPB’s inception i ...

for preservation. Fast-forwarding to her film ''Corpus: A Home Movie for Selena'' (1999), Portillo weaves the story of Selena's life with the significance around fans, the body, and patriarchy. The inspiration for the film came after watching

Gregory Nava Gregory James Nava (born April 10, 1949) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Personal life Nava was born in San Diego, of Mexican and Basque heritage. Nava graduated from St. Augustine High School (San Diego), St. Augustine ...

's film ''

Selena Selena Quintanilla Pérez (; April 16, 1971 – March 31, 1995), known mononymously as Selena, was an American Tejano singer. Called the " Queen of Tejano music", her contributions to music and fashion made her one of the most celebrated Mex ...

'' (1997). Disappointed with the film's focus on Selena's relationship with men in her life rather than her life as a singer, Portillo decided on creating a documentary focusing on Selena's fans and sordid details of her life. She was able to gain

Abraham Quintanilla Abraham Isaac Quintanilla Jr. (born February 20, 1939)Patoski page 2 is an American singer, songwriter, and producer. He is the father of Tejano singer Selena and was her manager throughout her life. Quintanilla was born to a Mexican-American fa ...

's support for her documentary and gained access to Selena's music and Beta video copies of performances and footage unavailable to the general public under the condition that Portillo were to follow some of Abraham's film demands and eliminate certain parts he disliked. After abiding to most of the film edits, the following year, after viewing the final version shortly before the film's broadcast on public television's

Point Of View Point of view or Points of View may refer to: Concept and technique * Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or thinks of something * Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the prono ...

, he demanded even more edits to which Portillo refused, agreeing to only one of his demands even after threatening to sue her for libel and even attempting to block the national broadcast. Even with the film's struggles to get interviews, media, and its small film budget (around $130,000 dollars), Portillo's film won a Golden Spire at the

San Francisco International Film Festival The San Francisco International Film Festival (abbreviated as SFIFF), organized by the San Francisco Film Society, is held each spring for two weeks, presenting around 200 films from over 50 countries. The festival highlights current trends in i ...

in 1999. Her film ''Señorita Extraviada'' (2001), was inspired after a conversation she had with filmmaker Renee Tajima-Peña in Los Angeles in 1997. Portillo states that she showed her an article stating the discovery of about thirty women found dead under similar circumstances in the city of Juarez, Mexico. Many young women were disappearing in mysterious circumstances and there were no leads on the issue. Concerned with the lack of coverage, Portillo decided on creating a documentary dedicated to these young women disappearing in Juarez, interviewing family members and exploring the many branches of power behind the lack of coverage surrounding these cases. Since her first film in 1979, Portillo has produced and directed nearly a dozen others representing her creative filmmaking style as a visual artist. Her work covers stories across the U.S Mexico border and highlights the complexity and diversity of Latin American experiences both inside and outside the U.S. Her work as a Latina filmmaker embraces stories centering women's experiences and analyses the effects of social, economic and political systems working for and against these identities. Influenced by radical cinema, Portillo's work focuses on the combination of art and politics, expressing the uniqueness of hybrid identities like hers and the importance of denouncing injustice for Latino identities.

Awards

Portillo and her films have won numerous awards, mostly from regional film festivals. Selected awards: * ''After the Earthquake/Despues del terremoto (1979)'' :– Diploma of Honor, Cracow Shorts Film Festival, 1979, Cracow, Poland * '' The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo'' (1986) :– Emmy Nomination, New and Documentary, 1986, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences :– Academy Award Nomination, Best Documentary, 1986, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences :– Special Jury Prize, Sundance Film Festival, 1986, Park City, UT :– Gran Prix Ex-Aquo, Certamen Internacional de Cine Documental y Corto Metrage, 1986, Bilbao, Spain :– Coral Prize, Feature Documentary, Festival Internacional de Cine Latinoamericano, 1986, Havana, Cuba :– Blue Ribbon, American Film and Video Festival, 1986 New York, NY :– Second Place for Documentary, Sydney Film Festival, 1986, Sydney, Australia :– Prix du Public and Prix du Presse, Women's Film Festival, 1986, Creteil, France :– Best Film, Global Village Documentary Film Festival, 1986, New York City :– First Prize, International Catholic Organization for Cinema and Audio-visuals, 1995, Havana, Cuba :– Among Six Best Films, International Documentary Association, 1986, Los Angeles, CA :– Caracol Prize from Union of Writers and Artists, International Film Festival, 1985, Havana Cuba :– Best of Northern California, National Education Film Festival, 1986, Oakland, CA :– Best Film, Sinking Creek Film Festival, 1986, Greeneville, TN :– Women Journalists' Association Prize, Women's International Film Festival, 1986, Creteil, Paris :– Golden Gate Award, San Francisco International Film Festival, San Francisco, CA * ''La Ofrenda: The Days of the Dead'' (1988) :– Honors, International Documentary Association, 1989, Los Angeles, CA :– Best Feature Documentary, Athens Film Festival, 1989, Athens, OH :– Director's Choice Selection, Black Maria Film and Video Festival, 1989, West Orange, NJ :– Blue Ribbon, American Film and Video Festival, 1990, San Francisco, CA :– Special Jury Prize, Sinking Creek Film Festival, 1990, Greeneville, TN :– Best Exploration of Belief Prize, VISTAS, A Film Festival of Contemporary Folklife and Popular Culture, 1990, Los Angeles, CA :– Outstanding Cinematic Achievement, Best of Category, Documentary Film, National Latino Film and Video Festival, 1991, New York NY * ''Vida'' (1989) :– Cine Golden Eagle, 1990 :– Special Mention, San Antonio CineFestival, 1990, San Antonio, TX * '' Columbus on Trial'' (1992) :– Best Video, second place, Visual Artist Third Annual film and Video Festival, 1993, San Jose, CA :– Honorable Mention in Native American Studies, American Film and Video Association, Illinois :– The 1993 Whitney Museum Biennial, New York, New York *''Mirrors of the Heart'' (1993) :– Silver Hugo, Chicago Film Festival, 1994, Chicago, IL :– Silver Apple, National Educational Film and Video Festival, 1994, Berkeley, CA * '' The Devil Never Sleeps'' (1994) :– Best Five Documentaries of the Year, Independent Documentary Association, 1996, Hollywood, CA :– Golden Gate Award, San Francisco International Film Festival, 1995, San Francisco, CA :– Best Feature-Length Documentary, San Juan Cinemafest, 1995, San Juan, Puerto Rico :– Best Documentary, San Antonio CineFestival, 1995, San Antonio, TX :– Best Documentary, Mostra International de Filmes de Dones, 1995, Barcelona, Spain :– New Directors / New Films, The Film Society of Lincoln Center and the Museum of Modern Art, New York, 1995, New York City :– Most Promising Latino Film, The Independent Feature Project, 1994, New York City :– Inclusion in the

, 2020 * ''Corpus: A Home Movie for Selena'' (1999) :– Golden Spire, San Francisco International Film Festival, 1999, San Francisco, CA * Recipient of CalArts/Herb Alpert Award in the Arts, 1999 * ''Señorita Extraviada'' (2001) :– Special Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival :– Best Documentary at the Havana International Film Festival, the Nestor Almendros Award at the Human Rights Watch Film Festival :– The Ariel, the Mexican Academy of Film Award :– Best Documentary, Cinequest San Jose Film Festival, 2002 :– Audience Award for Best Documentary, Créteil International Women's Film Festival, 2002 :– IDA Award for Feature Documentaries, International Documentary Association, 2002 :– FIPRESCI Prize for International Competition, Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival, 2002 * Recipient of United States Artists (USA) Fellowship, 2008 * Anonymous Was A Woman Award, 2016

Filmography

*'' After the Earthquake''/''Despues del Terremoto'' (1979) *'' The Mothers of Plaza de Mayo'' (1986) *''La Ofrenda: The Days of the Dead'' (1988) *''Vida'' (1989) *'' Columbus on Trial'' (1992) *''Mirrors of the Heart'' (1993) *'' The Devil Never Sleeps/El Diablo Nunca Duerme'' (1994) *''Sometimes My Feet Go Numb'' (1995) *''This is Your Day/Hoy es tu Día'' (1995) *''13 Days'' (1997) *'' Corpus: A Home Movie About Selena'' (1999) *''Conversations With Academics About Selena'' (1999) *''Culture Clash: Mission Magic Mystery Tour'' (2001) *''Señorita Extraviada/Missing Young Woman'' (2001) *''My McQueen'' (2003) *''Al Más Allá'' (2008) *''Chime for Change: Girls of Ciudad Juárez'' (2013) *''State of Grace'' (2020)

References

External links

Official siteLourdes Portillo
in the

Video Data Bank Video Data Bank (VDB) is an international video art distribution organization and resource in the United States for videos by and about contemporary artists. Located in Chicago, Illinois, VDB was founded at the School of the Art Institute of Chic ...

*
Lourdes Portillo
in th
Women Make Movies catalogLourdes Portilloretrospective
at th
Museum of Modern Art
in New York City, June 22–30.
Lourdes Portillo archive
housed at Stanford University Libraries
Guide to the Papers of Lourdes Portillo
at the Online Archive of California {{DEFAULTSORT:Portillo, Lourdes 1944 births Living people American film directors American film producers American screenwriters American women film directors American women film producers American women screenwriters American lesbian artists LGBT film directors LGBT producers American LGBT screenwriters American film directors of Mexican descent Mexican emigrants to the United States San Francisco Art Institute alumni 21st-century American women artists Chicana feminism Chicano art Mexican film directors Mexican activists Mexican screenwriters Mexican film producers Mexican LGBT screenwriters