CineFest Latino Boston kicks off September 27, 2023 and BUFF is pleased to co-present three exceptional films in this year’s lineup:

Thursday, September 28 – Emerson Paramount Theatre @ 7:00 PM

YOU WERE MY FIRST BOYFRIEND | Get Tickets
Directed by Cecilia Aldarondo, Sarah Enid Hagey
Documentary, 97 mins, USA, 2023

What if you could rewrite your adolescence? In this high school reunion movie turned inside out, filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo embarks on a fantastical quest to reconcile her tortured teen years. She ‘goes back’ in more ways than one, tracking down old foes and friends alike, and re-staging her most primal humiliations while casting herself as a teenager. ​ In a cathartic, time-bending process of letting go, Cecilia is forced to confront the flawed memories she’s held onto for years. Oscillating between present and past, hallucination and reality, You were my First Boyfriend is a hybrid documentary that explores the power of adolescent fantasy, the subtle violence of cultural assimilation, and the funhouse mirror of time’s passage. Perhaps we will all learn something about growing older and making peace with the things that haunt us.

Saturday, September 30 – Emerson Paramount Theatre @ 12:30 PM

DIÓGENES | Get Tickets
Directed by Leonardo Barbuy La Torre
Narrative, 76 mins, Peru, 2023
Quechua with English subtitles

In the Peruvian Andes, two siblings are raised in isolation by their father, a Tablas de Sarhua painter who exchanges his art in the village for supplies, while his children wait for him, cared for by their dogs. One morning, Diogenes does not wake up. Sabina and Santiago live for three days with the corpse of their father, longing for him to wake up. After recognizing his death, they will go in search of their past.

Sunday, October 1 – Emerson Paramount Theatre @ 5:30 PM

UNSEEN | Get Tickets
Directed by Set Hernandez
Documentary, 88 mins, USA, 2023
Spanish with English subtitles

Most people dream of a better future. Pedro, an aspiring social worker, is no different. But as a blind, undocumented immigrant, Pedro faces political restrictions to obtain his college degree, secure a job in his field, and support his family. As he finally graduates, uncertainty looms over Pedro. What starts as a journey to provide mental health care for his community ultimately transforms into Pedro’s path towards his own healing. Through experimental cinematography and sound, “unseen” reimagines the accessibility of cinema, while exploring the intersections of immigration, disability, and mental health.