San Diego Latino Film Festival poster contest prizes a past winner

The poster designed by Naandeye García (left) was awarded as the contest winner

Organizers plan for a return to an in-person event this year

By Tania NavarroCommunity Opinion Editor

Jan. 14, 2022 4:06 PM PT

CHULA VISTA —

A graphic designer from Mexico City has for the third time created the winning poster to promote the San Diego Latino Film Festival.

Naandeye García previously won in 2018 and 2021. The poster contest, in its 29th year, is organized by Media Arts Center San Diego. This year’s winner was announced Wednesday night during an unveiling event at Las Tres Catrinas Restaurant in Chula Vista.

For the past two editions because of COVID restrictions, the film festival had been held virtually. But this year the plan is to return to an in-person event from March 10 to 20, said Moisés Esparza, exhibitions manager for the festival. The festival also announced a venue change. Traditionally, it was held at the Fashion Valley Mall. This year it will be at the AMC Mission Valley 20 in the Westfield Mission Valley Mall, Esparza said.

He said the festival will present more than 150 narratives, documentaries, short and feature films. Organizers also are planning to host outdoor events around the mall and serve food and beverages and present live music and receptions with actors and filmmakers.

“We are responding to the times, and planning on not having only inside events beyond the films screenings, we are really going to activate the mall space to create a festival feel, while also practicing social distancing and any other mandates required by the city to have a successful event,” Esparza said.

For the poster contest, Esparza said, organizers received more than 160 entries from over 15 countries. The yearly challenge asks graphic designers and artists to create an iconic “face” for the film festival. García, this year’s winner, received $1,000. Her work will appear on the festival’s program, shirts, social media ads,and other promotional material.

The poster was selected among 10 finalists that were exhibited at the unveiling event. A panel of jurors, including graphic designers, professors, festival staff and local personalities chose the finalists and the winner, Esparza said.

For this year, “we were really looking primarily for a piece of art that demonstrated the joy that comes from watching films and that could spread this message that says, ‘It’s okay to return back to cinema,’ ... and I think that the winner does this in subtle ways,” he said.

Ethan van Thillo unveils the poster design contest winner

During the poster unveiling event, Ethan van Thillo, founder and executive director of the Media Arts Center San Diego and the film festival, said that the past two years have been a test for the value of the nonprofit organization.

“To this day, Hollywood continues to deny Latino filmmakers and Latino actors the opportunities to really present their stories. We see a lot of mainstream movies going directly to Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, but we know that a lot of independent films are out there with stories that need to be told, and film festivals like this are very important to make it that happen,” he said.

Van Thillo announced that the Media Arts Center San Diego’s movie theater, the Digital Gym, will open a new location by the end of this month. The new location, in partnership with UCSD, is on Park Boulevard and Market Street. It will have a soft-opening with a selection of movie screenings from the 2022 Sundance Film Festival from Jan. 28 to 30. For more information, click here.