“Truly Texas Mexican” New Documentary Film About the Native American Food of Texas

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“Truly Texas Mexican”

 a documentary feature film


The Native American roots of Texas Mexican food serve up
tacos, feminism and cultural resistance

Premieres in March on
Amazon; Apple TV; Google TV and on Select PBS TV Stations

SYNOPSIS
Over time and during conquest, Texas Mexican food (not tex-mex) sustained Native American memory and identity. Cooking foods like nopalitos, deer, mesquite and tortillas, indigenous women led the cultural resistance against colonization.

It’s the “comida casera,” (home cooking) of contemporary Texas Mexican American families. Comida casera was made famous in the late 1800s by indigenous businesswomen, chefs, who operated outdoor diners in downtown San Antonio. Later dubbed “Chili Queens,” the chefs were harassed and forced out of business, victims of racism.

But other women followed in their footsteps and now tell their story. The road movie weaves through Texas cities, naming the racism that erased Native American history and celebrating the food that kept alive the community’s living memory and heritage. Chefs, artists and community leaders open up about intimate food experiences that shape who they are today.

Food narrates who we are and constructs new ways of understanding what it means to be “American.”  Texas Mexican food offers a new type of cultural encounter. One of understanding, building a table where ALL ARE WELCOME.

Running time: 90 Minutes
A Production of: JM Media, LLC
For release in March, 2021 on Amazon, Apple TV, Google TV and on local PBS stations
Film Website: https://trulytexasmexican.com/
Contact: adan@jmcommunications.com

PRODUCTION TEAM:
An international Texas-Latin America collaboration:
Chef and Author, Adán Medrano, his work has been featured in The New York Times , The Washington Post and The Houston Chronicle.

Film Producer Virginia Díaz, her list of Feature Film and Television credits include: “Selena,” “The Chase,” “Rushmore,” and others.

Film Director, Anibal Capoano, his documentary films involve communities in the making, his most recent, the award-winning, “Caballitos De Lata”

Cinematographer, Gabriel Bendahan , his work in documentary and feature film-making has won awards and praise at festivals worldwide

Funding Provided by Major Donors:

  • Christine Ortega
  • Dr. Richard Jiménez
  • David Laughlin and Virginia Diaz-Laughlin

And by:
The National Association of Latino Arts and Cultures (NALAC), the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the Surdna Foundation through a grant from the NALAC Fund for the Arts Grant Program

The Idea Fund, Houston, a re-granting program administered by DiverseWorks, Aurora Picture Show, and Project Row Houses and funded by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts