AFUERA short film

2016

When an undocumented woman is forced to resort to the sex trade to support herself, her boyfriend gives her an ultimatum with unintended consequences. 

I worked with Jennifer, an undocumented transgender pageant queen, to tell a fictionalized version of her story. I met Jennifer while documenting community organizations, the TransLatina Coalition and Familia TQLM, and their work fighting violence against trans women. Through acting workshops, we developed a story that subverts the conventions of the crime drama, dignifying our trans heroine as she navigates her immigration status in her search for gender-affirming medicine. Upon the film’s release, I partnered with The Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, APAIT, and The Wall Las Memorias on an impact and awareness campaign. In 2019 Jennifer earned asylum status.

AVAILABLE ON
Kanopy | Frameline | VimeoVOD | Amazon

OFFICIAL SELECTION
LA Film Festival (World Premiere)
Palm Springs ShortFest
Outfest
Frameline
Woodstock Film Festival
NBC ShortFest

CAST & CREW
Directed by
Steven Liang / Written by Steven Canals / Cinematography by Ante Cheng / Starring Jennifer London, Santiago Malkuth, Ximena McDowell, Johanna Padilla, Ozzie Rodriguez, Andrew Dits / Produced by Joshua Clark, Thientam Nguyen, Catie Skipp, Carlos Ciurlizza / Edited by Cecilia Albertini / Music by Phil Chapavich / Production Design by Andrea Arce Duval

SELECT PRESS
Vibe Magazine / Remezcla / Medium / Los Angeles Times

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