25th Urbanworld Film Festival
September 29 - October 3

The 25th Anniversary of Urbanworld Film Festival will take place between Wednesday, September 29 and Sunday, October 3 in a hybrid format. The slate of over 88 official selections, panels and conversations will be seen online at urbanworld.org with select events being shown in-person at Cinepolis Luxury Cinemas, Chelsea located at 260 West 23rd Street in New York.

7TH & UNION
A film by Anthony Nardolillo
(USA, 2021, 93 min. In English. New York Premiere)
Raymundo, a Mexican ex-fighter forms an unlikely bond with a disgruntled African-American man, whose life and relationship with his daughter are unraveling. The two men join forces to win a fight that could very well save Raymundo, his wife and their child.

BRIDGES
A film by Maria Corina Ramirez
(USA, 2021, 72 min. In English. New York Premiere)
Venezuelan-born, Miami-raised high school valedictorian, Maria Cecilia, grapples with her fate and her identity as graduation day approaches. Meanwhile, her mother, Violeta, veers too close to a ghost from the past, and Gaby, her younger sister, swears she's found the answer to it all: winning the lottery.

WOMEN IS LOSERS
A film by Lissette Feliciano
(USA, 2021, 85 min. In English. New York Premiere)
In 1960's San Francisco, bright and talented Catholic school girl Celina Guerrera (Lorenza Izzo) survives a difficult home life by following the rules. That is until an indiscretion creates a series of devastating consequences. As Celina faces the compounded obstacles of being young and alone, she sets out to rise above the oppression of poverty and invest in a future that sets new precedents for the time. Inspired by real women and the Janis Joplin song of the same title

BANTÚ MAMA
A film by Iván Herrera
(Dominican Republic, 2021, 77 min. In Spanish and French with English Subtitles. New York Premiere)
After being arrested in the Dominican Republic, an Afropean woman escapes and is sheltered by 3 minors, in a dangerous district of Santo Domingo. By becoming their protégée and maternal figure, she will see her destiny change inexorably.

SONS OF THE SEA
A film by John Gutierrez
(South Africa, 2021, 82 min. In English. East Coast Premiere)
Gabriel, a gifted but reclusive teenager from an impoverished South African fishing community, is pressured by his older brother to steal two bags of ocean treasure - abalone - from a dead man. Tracked by a corrupt government official, the boys' mission to sell the goods takes them through mountainous region of the fabled Cape of Good Hope, and into a fight for their own survival.

SON OF MONARCHS / HIJO DE MONARCAS
A film by Alexis Gambis
(USA/Mexico, 2021, 97 min. In English and Spanish with English subtitles. New York Premiere)
After his grandmother’s death, a Mexican biologist living in New York returns to his hometown, nestled in the majestic monarch butterfly forests of Michoacán. The journey forces him to confront past traumas and reflect on his hybrid identity, sparking a personal and spiritual metamorphosis.

THE CITY OF WILD BEASTS / LA CIUDAD DE LAS FIERAS
A film by Henry E. Rincón
(Colombia, 2021, 96 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. New York Premiere)
Tato is an orphan with no direction, a young rap lover. Together with his friends Pitu and La Crespa, he seeks to resist and find a different alternative to death and crime through the art of hip hop and street rap battles. Tato must flee his neighborhood. His only option is to leave the city, and live with Octavio, a grandfather, a flower farmer, whom he does not know and who wishes to inherit his farming tradition from the countryside. Two generations, two ways of life and a continuous sense of loss, death, and loneliness mark Tato's life.

DOM SALVADOR AND ABOLITION
A film by Lilka Hara and Artur Kummer
(USA, 2021, 90 min. U.S. Premiere)
An immersive musical journey, Dom Salvador and Abolition is the untold story of Dom Salvador, an Afro-Brazilian musician who found a home in New York. Departing from Brazil at the height of its military dictatorship, Salvador left behind an enormous shadow. As the godfather of Brazilian soul, he helped create Bossa Nova while announcing the arrival of Blackness through his band Abolition. A veteran musician whose consistency and humble resilience is revealed in captivating moments; rifling through vinyl at a record shop, performing at Carnegie Hall, clasping his ailing wife’s hand and a permanent gig at the scenic River Cafe.

THE LAST ELECTIONS AND OTHER LOVE STORIES
A film by Miguel Silveira
(USA, 2021, 72 min. In English. New York Premiere)
Where were you the last election? Amateur podcasters, Khadim Diop and Xisko Monroe, create a podcast/audio ethnography about election day 2020 titled "The Last Election". They record interviews and observations from the streets of Times Square from sunrise November 3, 2020, to sunrise November 4, 2020. Their podcast centers on three primary questions they ask every interviewee. Conflict arises between the podcasters when Xisko’s sister shows up to help and Khadim’s personal political choices are challenged.

VICENTA
A film by by Dario Doria
(Argentina, 2020, 69 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. U.S. Premiere)
Vicenta lives with Laura, her 19-year-old daughter, who suffers from a developmental delay. Laura is pregnant, the product of rape by a family member. She is legally allowed to have an abortion, but the system will put all kinds of obstacles to make sure this doesn't happen.

WE STILL HERE / NOS TENEMOS
A film by Eli Jacobs-Fantauzzi
(Puerto Rico, 2021, 54 min. World Premiere)
We Still Here introduces the incredible youth of Comerío, Puerto Rico navigating the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, a disaster that brought an unprecedented level of devastation to an island already in economic and political crisis. In the lush mountains in the center of Puerto Rico, 24-year-old Mariangelie Ortiz leads a group of young residents who never thought they would become the leaders of their community, nonetheless find themselves traveling to Washington D.C. to protest in the halls of Congress. Follow them on their journey as they find their power and begin creating a sustainable future for themselves and their community.