Filmmaker Statement

My first notion of Mexican class distinctions was manifested through the clothes my classmates wore to school. In the late nineties, the United States was a paternal bastion of all that was good and strong and wearing American brands was the ultimate symbol of social status. On weekends, the wealthiest of families would travel to places like San Antonio for shopping trips disguised as tourism. When I made it to the US to study in New York, I got to know this American culture for what it was, not what I dreamed it to be. This film is a seminal memory in Daniel’s life of growing up and losing an ideal for the first time. The red of his new shoes might begin to look garish, the little plastic lights might dim, and the pain in wearing them might overtake the pride in what they represent. Perhaps our malinchismo was a consequence of historical wounds and of larger, looming political and economic powers. I think it was something I needed to lose, something I needed to uncover for myself.