Gregory Nava on the Importance of EL NORTE – Special 35th Anniversary Event this Sunday!

This Sunday, September 15, the acclaimed and influential film EL NORTE celebrates its 35th anniversary. This restored version will be played in more than 200 movie theaters nationwide, featuring an exclusive introduction by writer-director Gregory Nava (“Selena,” “Mi Familia”), and a brand-new behind-the-scenes featurette, both in English and Spanish.

Desde Hollywood had the pleasure of speaking with Nava about his seminal movie, today’s sociopolitical landscape, and much more.

For tickets, visit www.fathomevents.com/events/el-norte-35th-anniversary.

As an immigrant myself, I find it extremely moving and valuable to see these stories reflected on the big screen. Can you talk about what motivated you to embark on this cinematic journey?

It was very hard to make this film, to get this story done. People didn’t want to make it, because a movie about Mayan refugees is not a high concept. But I was passionate about it, because I was raised on the border and I have seen people coming to the United States my whole life. They are escaping violence, poverty, and seeking a better life. More than that, President Hoover blamed the Great Depression on the Mexican people. He deported about 2 million people of Mexican ancestry, many of them U.S. citizens, which it was illegal and unconstitutional. One of the people that were deported was my grandfather, and my grandmother had to raise seven children alone, and one of them died. I know the pain of having a family broken apart. I saw that happening when I made “El Norte,” and I am seeing it today. It’s horrible! I wanted to make a movie that would give heart and soul to the immigrants, and that would stop the hatred, the discrimination, opening the door to compassion.

How did you feel when the amnesty for undocumented people passed under the Reagan administration, a couple of years after the film’s release?

It was incredible to see the tremendous impact that such a small film had at that time. It made me feel wonderful! Now the Trump administration has rescinded all protected status. All of the things surrounding this new release are beautiful, but bittersweet because of the current policies. The message of this film is more needed and important than when we made it, 35 years ago.

It is clear in the film that you didn’t want this to be a “whites vs non-whites” story…

I didn’t want to do that. I didn’t even want to make a political film. The great film critic, Roger Ebert, told me at that time “Greg, you made the most political film, but making it not political.” [Laughs] The protagonists don’t know about politics, they just want to save their lives! They didn’t create the situation that resulted in their village being massacred by the army. They have the right to seek a better life. When someone sees “El Norte” they are forced to walk in Rosa and Enrique’s shoes, and they say “I would have done the same thing.” We need to open our doors and our hearts to the kind of people that has built America, those fleeing oppression. Those kids, being trapped in cages in the border, they are the future of this country.

The film goes from tragic and thrilling moments, to lighter, even comedic situations. Can you talk about that variety of tones?

Everything that you see, is based on something that has happened to someone in real life. I did a lot of investigation and worked very closely with the Mayan refugee community in Los Angeles. They told me “Your film has to have a sense of humor, because we can’t survive without humor.” I think that that’s a characteristic of most of the people that is oppressed. I wanted to reflect the roller coaster ride that this journey is for migrants. Also, it is true that if you can make the audience laugh, you can also make them cry.

Do you think that, in dark times like these, Latino artists have a responsibility to speak up or create art that reflects this situation?

It is not a question about being a responsibility. I want to do it! We want to tell our stories, and we want to tell our stories. We are in crisis, but crisis is also a call to action and greatness. Latino filmmakers have to rise to the occasion so that people in this nation can see our hearts. But also, journalists like yourselves, school teachers, politicians, and everybody in every field must rise to the occasion and tell our story, so what is happening on the border, and the massacre at El Paso, never happen again. When Trump says “They are all criminals!” that’s what people are seeing on movies and shows about crime and narcos, but that’s a lie. We are one of the most law-abiding communities in this country. Yet we are targeted and called “an infestation,” and “criminals.” We need to get the truth out so people can see it, and send a clear message to Hollywood, and Washington: “We want compassion, not cruelty!”

The EL NORTE Special 35th Anniversary Event will take place this Sunday, September 15.

Celebrate the 35th anniversary of this Oscar® nominated* classic from director Gregory Nava (Selena) with an exquisite restoration by the Academy Film Archive, supported in part by the Getty Foundation. After their family is killed in a government massacre, brother and sister Enrique and Rosa flee Guatemala and embark on a perilous journey to “El Norte”: the United States. This timeless, visually epic story of Enrique and Rosa’s courageous struggle to make a better life in the U.S. as undocumented immigrants resonates today with remarkable force and remains an unforgettable portrait of the power of the human spirit.