“That’s why I’m here. To tell you about mi gente, our parents dream keepers, childhood arrivals, the undocumented”
José Eduardo Aguilar “El Deportee”
TRAILER
This 2D “animentary” features three personal stories about immigrant youth to highlight the complexities and challenges they face today. Voiced by the actual children and their families, the stories are woven together by spoken word poet José Eduardo Aguilar, also known as Lalo “El Deportee,” the film’s host and MC whose vibrant “Spanglish” breaks codes, switches standards, and pushes the viewer to decipher his poems.
THE STORIES
Each story has its own unique visual animation style drawn by three different teams. The animation allows us to truly see and feel these characters' worst nightmares, alongside their colorful hopes and dreams for a better future.
CHAPTER 1: Jasmine’s Pursuit of Happiness
Jasmine is a 13-year-old US citizen living with her Mexican parents, both undocumented. She lives with the reality that she could be separated from her parents at any moment. Instead of living in fear, she becomes an activist who defends her and her family’s rights and goes on to speak at the White House.
CHAPTER 2: A Tale of Two Sisters
Sisters Evelyn and Elizabeth love each other very much and are best friends, but Evelyn carries the weight of responsibility of being the only documented US citizen in her family and it causes confusion and pain, especially in her relationship with Elizabeth.
CHAPTER 3: Between Dos Mundos
José Eduardo Aguilar “El Deportee” was brought to the US by his parents when he was eight-years-old and was raised in Utah like any other American kid. When he was 23, he was randomly arrested, and ultimately deported to Mexico. In his new life in Mexico, José Eduardo began to express himself through spoken word poetry, giving voice to a generation of deported Mexicans who are separated from their families in the US.
“We’re sons, we’re daughters, the one between dos mundos, lives suspended on the shelves, where home is always somewhere else”.
José Eduardo Aguilar “El Deportee”