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Photos courtesy of XYZ FIlms/ Newmarket Films By Sofía Aguilar March 14, 2025 – 15:04 Latinas are often underrepresented in various industries including publishing , STEM , and entertainment especially behind the camera in Hollywood. A 2025 UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report found that only 2 out of 10 theatrical film directors are people of color and only 1.5 out of 10 theatrical film directors are women and only 4.3 percent of directors were are Latinx. But despite this lack of real progress, it hasn’t stopped Latina directors from making films and there have been so many movies made by Latinas that have been released in the past few years. From Real Women Have Curves directed by Colombian filmmaker Patricia Cardoso to Jenni by Gigi Saul Guerrero to Huesera directed by Michelle Garza Cervera, these are just a few of the must-see films made by Latina filmmakers. Read on to learn more about 17 films directed by Latinas that you need to watch this Women’s History Month and all year round. You Were My First Boyfriend (2023) Directed by Puerto Rican filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo, You Were My First Boyfriend is a hybrid documentary that acts as an autobiography as she explores and revisits some of her most formative – yet cringeworthy – childhood experiences. At the same time, she attempts to track down her old crushes and re-enact these painful memories of humiliation and desire on camera. Ultimately, this is a difficult but relatable story about tortured teen years, reconciliation, and self-acceptance. When it premiered in 2023 at the SXSW Film Festival, it was nominated for a SXSW Grand Jury Award for Documentary Feature. Stay connected! Subscribe now and get the latest on culture, empowerment, and more. SIGN ME UP! Este sitio está protegido por reCAPTCHA y Google Política de privacidad y Se aplican las Condiciones de servicio . Thank You! You are already subscribed to our newsletter You Were My First Boyfriend is available to watch on Max. Fever Dream (2021) Fever Dream is a psychological thriller film directed by Peruvian filmmaker Claudia Llosa that follows a sick woman named Amanda who is far away from the home she knows in a quiet rural town in Argentina, where she’s on vacation with her daughter Nina. Next to the house they’ve been renting, they meet a woman named Carola and her son David. Though Amanda and Carola grow close, Amanda soon realizes that nothing she has seen so far is what is appears to be. Later, Amanda lays dying and David is the only person beside her. Together, they use Amanda’s remaining time on earth to help her untangle a painful, complicated story of jealousy, danger, motherhood, family, and love. Fever Dream is available to watch on Max. Birds of Passage (2018) Directed by Colombian director Cristina Gallego, Birds of Passage follows an Indigenous Wayuu family as they become entangled in the Colombian drug trade of the 1970s. At the forefront is marijuana, which is being sold for American youth and creating a booming business. As greed, passion, and honor collide, so too does conflict, leading to war that puts puts their culture, traditions, ancestral knowledge, and even their lives at risk — all in the name of money and power. Upon its release, it won multiple awards including Best Art Direction and Best Cinematography at the Chicago International Film Festival in 2018, as well as Best Latin American Film at the Ariel Awards in 2019. Birds of Passage is available to watch on Prime Video. Jenni (2024) Jenni, directed by Gigi Saul Guerrero, tells the story of Jenni Rivera, a Mexican American musician, actress, and activist who was one of the top-selling female artists in banda, mariachi, and norteño. Beginning her profesisonal career in 1992, she went on to gain mainstream popularity in Mexico and the U.S., receiving multiple Billboard awards and multiple Latin Grammy nominations. Directed by Gigi Saul Guerrero, the film covers Rivera’s life, from her childhood to rise in the music industry, from her personal family and marriage struggles to her tragic death in 2012 in a plane crash. Mexican American actress Annie Gonzalez (Flamin’ Hot, Gentefied) stars in the lead role as Rivera. Jenni is available to watch on Roku. What We Leave Behind (2022) What We Leave Behind is a documentary film directed by Mexican American filmmaker Iliana Sosa, which follows a man named Julián Moreno. For decades, he’s ridden back and forth on 17-hour bus rides between Primo de Verdad Mexico and the U.S. to visit his children and family once every month in El Paso, Texas. When he turns 89, he finally decides to build a house for himself in his home country. Sosa, his granddaughter, uses the film as a documentation of his final days, work, and his homeland. Upon its premiere at the SXSW Film Festival, it won the Louis Black Lone Star Award and the Fandor New Voices Award. What We Leave Behind is available to watch on Netflix. Zola (2020) Directed by Panamanian American filmmaker Janicza Bravo, Zola follows the titular character in her hometown of Detroit where she works as a waitress and part-time stripper. One day, she meets Stefani, a stripper, while serving her at the restaurant, who invites her on a road trip to Tampa, Florida for the weekend where they’ll be able to make some fast cash stripping. However, nothing in the following 48 hours goes according to plan, thanks to Stefani’s antics, her roommate and pimp, and boyfriend. Soon, she realizes that she’s way in over her head and needs a plan B to get out of this mess. Colman Domingo, who is of Belizean and Guatemalan descent, stars as Stefani’s roommate X. For his performance, he was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at multiple award ceremonies. The film also made history as the first to be based on a viral Twitter thread, a 148-tweet thread written by A’Ziah “Zola” King in 2015, which detailed a wild weekend adventure. Zola is available to watch on Prime Video. Zama (2018) Zama , directed by Argentine filmmaker Lucrecia Martel, follows the titular character, a South American-born officer for the Spanish Crown, who is waiting for a letter from the Spanish King to grant him a transfer to a different, hopefully better town. In order to ensure it goes through, he is determined not to make trouble in fear that his transfer will be prevented, forced to fulfill every tedious task assigned to him by all the governors who cycle through the post. As the years past, Zama is forced to accept that the King’s letter will never arrive and everything is lost. Desperate to change his circumstances, he decides to instead join a party of soldiers to go after and capture a dangerous criminal. In 2022, four years after its release, it was recognized as the 19th greatest film of Argentine cinema. Zama is available to watch on Prime Video. In Her Place (2024) Directed by Chilean filmmaker Maite Alberdi, In Her Place tells the story of María Carolina Geel, a famous writer who kills her lover in 1955 and is put on trial for her murder. As the court case opens up, revealing more treachery and secrets, Mercedes, who serves as the paralegal for the trial judge, is determined to learn more about Geel’s life and her case. Over time, she begins to realize that nothing about the case – or a women’s place and role in society – is as clear-cut as it seems. In 2024, it won the José María Forqué Award for Best Latin American Picture. In Her Place is available to watch on Netflix. Song Without a Name (2019) Song Without a Name is a film directed by Peruvian film director Melina León. The film follows Georgina Condori, a pregnant Andean peasant who lives in a wooden shack in a coastal town near Lima, the capital of the country. When she hears a commercial on the radio advertising free medical assistance, she’s anxious to better her circumstances and take advantage of the opportunity while she’s so close to the end of her pregnancy. She travels to the downtown clinic, where she gives birth to her baby girl. After the staff take the newborn away to perform routine checks, they reassure Georgina she’ll be returned to her. What she doesn’t know, however, is that she may never see her daughter again. When the film premiered at Cannes Director’s Fortnight 2019, it became the first film by a Peruvian female filmmaker to be invited to the festival. Song Without a Name is available to watch on Kanopy. Queen & Slim (2019) Directed by Melina Matsoukas, who is of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Jamaican descent , Queen & Slim follows Queen, a criminal defense lawyer, and Slim, a retail employee, who are pulled over for a minor traffic violation after a forgettable first date. Quickly, the situation escalates and Slim ends up killing the police officer in self-defense. Terrified and knowing the police force will soon be on their tails, they are forced to go on the run. Unfortunately, the entire altercation was captured on video, which is uploaded online and ends up going viral. As they become a symbol of trauma, terror, grief, and pain in the eyes of the country, they become criminal fugitives who soon discover the truth about themselves and each other, about violence and racism, forging a deep love in the unlikeliest of circumstances. For her work, Matsoukas won the Best Directorial Debut by the National Board of Review. Queen & Slim is available to watch on Netflix. The Echo (2023) (dir. Tatiana Huezo) The Echo , directed by Salvadoran and Mexican filmmaker Tatiana Huezo, takes place in the remote Mexican village of El Echo, located in the highlands of Puebla, where conditions change drastically each season and children take care of the sheep and elders. As they deal with extreme weather conditions like frost and drought, the children learn to understand death, illness, warmth, and love from both the spoken words and silence of their parents. Ultimately, it’s a story of rebellion and growing up. The Echo is available to watch on Apple TV. Everybody Loves Somebody (2017) Everybody Loves Somebody is a rom-com directed by Mexican filmmaker Catalina Aguilar Mastretta, which follows Clara Barron (Karla Souza), a young and beautiful Mexican ob-gyn who she seems to have it all. Everything except her love life seems figured out, which is poor timing given how much she’s being pressured to go to a wedding in Mexico. Desperate, she asks a co-worker to pretend to be her boyfriend for the weekend, which goes well until her ex also shows up at the ceremony. Now, Clara is forced to choose between her former love and the possibility of something new and exciting. Everybody Loves Somebody is available to watch on Prime Video. The Cow Who Sang A Song Into The Future (2023) The Cow Who Sang A Song Into The Future is a film directed by Chilean filmmaker Francisca Alegria that follows Magdalena, a young woman who emerges from the depths of a river poisoned by water pollution, human activity, and dead and dying fish. The problem? Magdalena was left for dead on the side of the river years ago. When she returns to her family’s dairy farm, she causes her husband Enrique to suffer a heart attack, forcing his daughter to Cecilia to return home with her children to help him recover. Believing Magdalena to be dead, everyone in her life reacts differently as she struggles to figure out why she returns. The Cow Who Sang A Song Into The Future is available to watch on Prime Video. Trenque Lauquen (2023) Directed by Argentine filmmaker Laura Citarella , Trenque Lauquen follows a woman who mysteriously disappears. When two men go out to go look for her, it becomes clear as they wonder why she left, that they both love her. Though both men have their assumptions and beliefs about the truth of her disappearance, they keep their thoughts hidden from each other. Told through short, heart-wrenching vignettes, the story braids together the story of another lost woman and her heart, the secret of a small countryside town, a supernatural incident that few perceive, and the shadows that invade and impact the world after twilight. Trenque Lauquen is available to watch on Apple TV. Northern Skies Over Empty Space (2022) Northern Skies Over Empty Space , directed by Mexican filmmaker Alejandra Marquez Abella, follows Don Reynaldo, a renowned hunter on the brink of losing his inheritance and his father’s legacy. Soon his entire life is turned upside down and he’s forced to do everything it takes to get some kind of stability back. The film was inspired by the true story of Don Alejo Garza, a Mexican cowboy and hunter who defended his ranch from organized crime and the mob who wanted to take it from him in 2010. Upon its premiere at the 20th Morelia International Film Festival, it won the Best Mexican Feature Film, Best Screenplay and Best Actor awards. Northern Skies Over Empty Space is available to watch on Prime Video. Huesera: The Bone Woman (2023) Huesera: The Bone Woman, directed by Mexican filmmaker Michelle Garza Cervera, stars Mexican actress Natalia Solián as Valeria, a woman who becomes pregnant with her and her husband’s first child and begins seeing supernatural entities and disturbing visions. From a woman who falls to her death to a spirit who stalks her in the night and breaks her bones in bed, Valeria quickly becomes undone by the horrors she sees, turning her entire family against her except her single, childless aunt—who may also be the only person who can save her. When it premiered at the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival, it won multiple awards and accolades, including Best New Narrative Director and Nora Ephron awards. Huesera: The Bone Woman is available to watch on Prime Video. Real Women Have Curves (2002) Real Women Have Curves , directed by Colombian American filmmaker Patricia Cardoso, is a film adaptation of the original play by Josefina López, stars Honduran American actress America Ferrera in her feature film debut. The story follows 18-year-old Ana García (Ferrera) who attends high school in Beverly Hills. As a smart, ambitious girl, she dreams of going to college despite her Mexican immigrant family’s financial struggles and reluctance to have her leave home. She also deals with the critique of her weight and her complicated relationship with her mom who hopes that she’ll join her at the textile factory where she works. Acclaimed for its message of body positivity and self-love and authentic depiction of Latinas and Mexican American families, the film is now considered one of the most influential movies of the 2000s. In 2019, it was inducted into the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress, the first Latina-directed film to receive the honor. Real Women Have Curves is available to watch on Hulu and Max. In this Article Featured film gigi saul guerrero Huesera Jenni Rivera latina latina directors latina films latinx film patricia cardoso Real Women Have Curves More on this topic News and Entertainment Lin-Manuel Miranda Cancels ‘Hamilton’ Shows at Kennedy Center Due to Trump Affiliation March 10, 2025 – 16:00 News and Entertainment ICE Arrests Mexican Migrant During School Drop-Off in Chicago March 07, 2025 – 12:26 News and Entertainment Barbie Honors Afro-Latina Gymnast Jordan Chiles for International Women’s Day March 06, 2025 – 11:00 News and Entertainment Zoe Saldaña and ‘I’m Still Here’ Make History at 2025 Oscars March 03, 2025 – 12:00
