Hispanic Heritage Month Film Festival kicks off on campus

By Theresa Pratt, Staff Writer

Towson University is hosting a Hispanic Heritage Month Film Festival in recognition of Hispanic culture and history.

The festival is a collaborative effort between the College of Liberal Arts, the Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, and the Center for Student Diversity. 

Pragda and SPAIN Arts and Culture, which are Hispanic arts databases, are also supporting the festival. 

Diego del Pozo, an associate professor of Spanish at Towson and the organizer of the film festival, said that the event is a good way for different aspects of Latin American culture to be shown. 

“I also want to expose them to a different way of filming,” del Pozo said. “I hope they get a different sensibility, pace or rhythm, and develop a new way of looking at the world.”

Teaching professor Emma Cervone, who is also involved with planning the festival, said she helped select films through Pragda’s film catalogue. 

“It is always very exciting for me to think about sharing knowledge with the general public, but, especially, with the students,” Cervone said. “The most exciting part is collectively getting to decide on a topic that can be interesting to our students, and then selecting a film that can better engage our student audience.”

A 100-minute film titled “Zafari,” which will kick off the festival on Sept. 18, will include a post-screening Q&A with director Mariana Rondón.

In addition, Jonathan Montalvo Roman, the coordinator for the Center for Student Diversity, is co-sponsoring one of the films that will be shown in the festival. He said that highlighting Hispanic heritage is important. 

“It’s important because we are part of the United States of America. We are part of the society we live in, and have been part of it for a long time,” Montalvo said. “I feel that we need to highlight the diversity that makes this country beautiful.”