by Marisa Treviño of Latina Lista

Throw in a bit of Latino culture and it’s a recipe for a festival that is engaging, entertaining and, most of all, never boring!

If the “eyes are the window to the soul,” then films are definitely the glasses to better see the souls of other cultures.

The word-play on the popular proverb rings true especially during ethnic film festivals. Luckily, Dallas is home to a couple of outstanding such festivals. One of the most notable is the Latino film festival known as Vistas Film Festival which kicks off Thursday, Sept. 17.

Started in 1996 by local Latino civil rights pioneer and lawyer, Frank P. Hernandez, Vistas Film Festival has always attempted to promote Latino culture through its selection of films that are created by and about Latinos.

This year’s theme of “Old Traditions. New Stories” conveys Vistas’ mission of creating a sense of pride for the local Latino community by highlighting cinema that celebrates the changing Latino life experience.

At the same time, the festival has always acted as a bridge to the greater community by expanding the audience of awesome, high-quality Latino-inspired films and providing the opportunity to personally interact with the creative people behind them.

This year’s four-day festival features films from both experienced and emerging filmmakers from the United States, Mexico, Ecuador, Puerto Rico, Japan, France, Brazil, Bolivia, Uruguay, Argentina, and Germany.

The award-winning documentaries, comedies and dramas showcased at this year’s festival cover the full-range of the Latino experience and underscore the rich variety of traditions and customs, along with daily challenges that exist within the greater Latino experience.

However, anyone hoping to see the latest gang-banger film or any other Latino stereotype will be disappointed, since all the films go far beyond what Hollywood has traditionally considered “Latino.”

The film showings are at Angelika at Mockingbird Station. Taking full advantage of technology, the festival’s web site features the festival’s film schedule and the opportunity to add the film of your choice to your calendar so you don’t forget when it’s showing.

But that’s the only thing high-tech about this festival. The stories all reflect the basics of human relationships. Throw in a bit of Latino culture and it’s a recipe for a festival that is engaging, entertaining and, most of all, never boring!

What do you think?