Vista Latina: Actor helps further heritage

CALEXICO — Imperial resident Bob Diaz, 58, said that when he was younger, he often saw non-Hispanic people playing Hispanic characters in movies and on television.

“It never really rang true,” he said. “Edward James Olmos represents an actor that really broke through the mold of people that were not Hispanic playing Hispanic roles. … What ended up happening is it gave more credibility to the Hispanic community and gave it a greater presence in movies and television shows on a regular basis.”

Diaz explained that seeing the actor play roles with substance has been a lifelong source of pride in his heritage.

“That’s one of the reasons why I’ve created the roles that I’ve created,” Olmos said. “I think it was really good for people to see El Pachuco in ‘Zoot Suit,’ to see Selena’s father, to see ‘Selena,’ to see the ‘Ballad of Gregorio Cortez,’ to see ‘Stand and Deliver’ with Jaime Escalante. It’s really important for people to see that.”

Olmos was in the Imperial Valley two days earlier this week while filming for the upcoming film “Go For Sisters,” scheduled to be released in 2013.

Olmos underscored that Latinos need to support films such as “Go For Sisters,” filmed partly in the Imperial Valley, and “Filly Brown” coming out Jan. 11. Olmos co-stars and executive produces “Filly Brown,” a portrait of a Latina street poet. The film showed at the Sundance Film Festival this year.

Olmos said that by creating his own roles, he’s never been type-casted.

“Type-casting is really a form of stereotyping, and in each kind of stereotype and/or type-casting, there is a truth. The problem is it’s the only truth we ever see and that’s why we come to stereotypes,” Olmos said.

Latinos are more than 16 percent of the U.S. population yet are in less than 2 percent of the images seen onscreen, in theater and on television, Olmos said.

“There’s no arguing that we are gardeners, that we are housekeepers, that we are part of the helping staff of this country, that we help pick the crops. There’s no arguing that. But the argument is that that’s all we ever see us in representation. That’s bad,” Olmos said.

“We don’t see our astronauts, we don’t see our best ball players, we’ve never had one of our Medal of Honor winners ever portrayed on the big screen in the history of film. Ever.”

Latinos account for more than half of the country’s box-office sales on opening weekends for major motion pictures, Olmos said.

“We support the film industry more than any other culture in this country, and they do not think that there’s a need to make Latino-themed films,” he said. “What has to happen is when pieces of work come out featuring Latino stories and artists, we must attend opening weekends of those pictures like we attend ‘The Fast and the Furious,’ and ‘Batman’ and ‘Spider-Man.’”

Diaz, who is the manager of Sears in El Centro, said he believes in the significance of filming a movie with Hispanic characters in an overwhelmingly Hispanic community.

“It should be important to all people of Hispanic background to understand that they’re going to do a really true background of where we live and what we do on a daily basis,” he said. “It hit home and was very significant that they would do a film in Imperial Valley and do it in a border location in real life. I’m very proud of that.”

Olmos also said film uniquely affects people’s subconscious thinking.

“No art form that the human species has ever created in the history of the planet affects the subconscious mind more than the audio-visual event when it’s projected on the big screen,” Olmos said. “No live performance, no book, no painting, no live theater attacks the subconscious more.”

His performance in “Zoot Suit” particularly affected Calexico resident, educator and City Councilman John Moreno, who had the opportunity to meet Olmos and have him autograph his copy of the play this week.

“He’s portrayed Mexican-Americans in positive and in more in-depth roles,” Moreno said. “In his movies and stage productions we’ve come to look at the Mexican-American as not a cardboard cutout but as a human being with complex emotions.”

Calexico police Lt. Gonzalo Gerardo was also one of the lucky Valley residents to spend time with the actor during his visit. He said he was impressed with the time Olmos took to spend with residents, his graciousness in posing for photos or signing autographs and for even putting up with the strong summer heat.

“It shows he really cares. He’s an important figure for the Hispanic community,” Gerardo said. “From what I’ve seen he’s tried to get more Latinos in the industry.”

While he had passed through before, this week was the first time Olmos had stopped in the Imperial Valley.

His impression?

“Beautiful. Here in Calexico it’s been absolutely beautiful: the people, the hospitality, the food, everything. I’ve just really enjoyed it,” he said.

Many Valley residents said Olmos was the first Mexican-American actor they could recall seeing on the big screen.

“That’s a real sadness. I’ll tell you, that’s not healthy,” he said. “It’s the best time for us to get into this business. We’re at the lowest point. All we can do is go up.”

He advised aspiring actors to study and read as much as possible, adding that “there’s room in front of the camera and behind the camera more than ever. Study it like you would study to be a doctor or a lawyer or an engineer or an architect.

“The same kind of discipline it takes to be a great brain surgeon it takes to be a great director. But we need you, badly. We need kids today, Latino kids to be doing nothing but studying in any profession, but especially in this one.”

Staff Writer Chelcey Adami can be reached at 760-337-3452 or cadami@ivpressonline.com

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