LOS ANGELES — As Edwin Gomez walked into a movie theater in downtown Los Angeles, he couldn't hide his excitement.
That’s because Gomez was entering the premiere of his own movie, a short film called “Joyride.”
"I’ve been in a lot of other festivals, but they were all streaming and digital," he said. "This is actually the first time I’m going to see 'Joyride,' like, full-blown in a theater, so I’m super excited. This is one of the biggest festivals we’ve been in."
Gomez describes himself as a queer Nicaraguan filmmaker, the son of immigrants who grew up in Baldwin Park. His father was a plumber, and his mother hand-rolled cigars, eventually opening her own cigar shop.
Gomez noted that it's "definitely the backyard of Hollywood, but even though I’m closer, doesn’t mean it was easy to get here, especially with no connections to the industry and my parents not being filmmakers themselves."
Gomez is one of 20 up-and-coming filmmakers who are part of Hola Mexico's "Tomorrow’s Filmmakers Today" program. On the opening night of the festival, the group walked the red carpet together.
“Making art is always such an individual solitary thing, and this is when we celebrate it,” said Gomez.
Along with celebrating, the participants also learned from industry experts. For example, there is a workshop where they discuss marketing their movies and themselves. Program director Diana Luna noted that the program was started out of the need to increase Latino involvementin film.
"It is an incredible support that we are able to provide them as they find opportunities that they wouldn’t have otherwise," she said.
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It’s an opportunity that Gomez doesn’t take for granted. As he sat next to his family and friends while the lights turned down, he not only shared his latest film, but also a story that honors his mother.
“It’s a love letter to her and my grandmother and strong Nicaraguan women,” he said.
Gomez's film is a movie that encourages people to share their past trauma and learn to heal. Gomez added that being able to see and hear people’s reactions during the movie was amazing.
"I thought it was a beautiful experience after all of us being at home watching the film separately," he said. "I had a lot of friends and family come, so it meant a lot to me."