“Three generations of female Salvadoran poets are the subjects of Sara Aguilar’s short doc “Palabras Sin Fronteras,” which through interviews gives an inspirational glimpse at how violence-torn El Salvador spurred a trio of women, now living in Los Angeles, to take up not only direct political activism but also the artful and sometimes more vivid mode of verse to effect social change.”
Palabras Sin Fronteras
Words Without Borders [2002]
Sara Aguilar's first short documentary depicts three generations of Salvadoran women who were forced to leave El Salvador as a result of the Civil War, which lasted from 1980-1992. Poetry plays a pivotal role in each of their lives as a tool to raise consciousness, to heal, and to directly attack systems of oppression. Their experiences mark our collective struggles as a transnational community living in Los Angeles to create alternative spaces that support our political awareness, education, and healthcare.
Palabras Sin Fronteras TRT: 21 mins
Con Tanta Luz en la Voz TRT: 26 mins
Con Tanta Luz en la Voz
With So Much Light in the Voice [2014]
Con Tanta Luz en la Voz chronicals the recording and CD release of the EntreMujeres: Women Making Music Across Borders (2012) project. Entre Mujeres is a translocal music composition project between Chicanas/Latinas in the U.S. and Jarochas/Mexican female musicians in Mexico. Through interviews and live performance footage of participants, this doc reveals how music and women intersect to make considerable social change. Directed and edited by Sara Aguilar and produced by Grammy-award winning musician Martha Gonzalez.
Pseudónimo [título de trabajo]
Pseudonym [Working Title]
Pseudónimo is an intimate portrait of Rossana Perez, a poet and community activist. The documentary tells the story of Rossana's forced migration to the United States as a result of the Civil War in El Salvador. As a refugee fleeing persecution, Rossana lived under the assumed name of Sara Martinez for nearly 10 years. Despite continual threat from the regime she fled, Rossana remained committed to improving the lives of Salvadoran refugees and establishing their place in Los Angeles and the rest of the country. Directed by Rossana's daughter Sara Aguilar and Pete Galindo.
Image courtesy of Rossana Perez (pictured) taken at Olvera Street, Los Angeles 1983