Amazon Studios today announced Amazon Studios VOICES/VOCES: An Entertainment Celebration for Hispanic Heritage Month, a one-day virtual event celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month and highlighting the many contributions to entertainment from the Latiné community. The event will take place on September 30, 2021 and will include multiple group panels and a set from Puerto Rican comedian Gina Brillion celebrating the richness, diversity and beauty of Latiné communities, and conversations that will dive deep into Latiné representation in film and media over time, as well as celebrate the changing narratives and what is to come. The event will be available to stream on Amazon Live and Amazon Studios DEI Twitch.
Participants include:
- John Leguizamo, Actor, Writer, Producer
- Gloria Calderón-Kellett (Showrunner, Executive Producer & Writer, With Love)
- Yolanda Guillen (Sr. Executive of Casting, Amazon Studios)
- Laz Alonso (Actor, The Boys)
- Clayton Davis (Film Awards Editor, Variety)
- Congressman Joaquin Castro, Congressional Hispanic Caucus
- Gina Brillon, Comedian (The Floor is Lava and finalist on America’s Got Talent)
- Malu Miranda, Producer & Head of Originals Brazil, at Amazon Studios
- Javiera Balmaceda, Head of Local Originals, Spanish Speaking Latin America at Amazon Studios
- Lorenza Muñoz, Sr. Global Awards Executive at Amazon Studios
This event is a celebration and further discovery of the diverse and powerfully rich culture of 60M+ people living in the United States. Together they represent more than 22 countries that have been labeled as “Hispanic” by the US Census. Yet there is a lot of complexity in trying to fit this diverse, non-monolithic group under any one label. Many refer to themselves as Latino, others feel more comfortable being referred to as Latinx or Latiné. And many identify themselves through their country of origin i.e., “mexicana”, “puertorriqueño”, “colombiano” or through their indigenous communities including, Bene Xhon’s, Yucatan Mayans, etc.
“The Latiné community is comprised of many rich and dynamic cultures with multilayered stories to tell. To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month, we’re thrilled to present a Voices/Voces event with an esteemed group of creators, performers and community members from the pan-Latin diaspora,” said Latasha Gillespie, Global Head of DEI for Amazon Studios and IMDb. “Our Voices/Voces event aims to entertain, initiate honest dialog, and drive industry change. We think everyone who tunes in will have a great time and be part of some very important and enlightening conversations.”
Amazon Studios’ Voices is about diving deep into entertainment industry data, having honest conversations, and aligning on actions to amplify and cultivate stories from historically excluded story-tellers and creators of races, ethnicities, genders, sexual orientations, ages, and religious backgrounds. Each external Voices event dives deep into a community (and their intersections), and highlight data, conversation, and community. Past Amazon Voices events are available here:
SOURCE: Amazon Studios via AEM