Disrupted Borders

El Paso is part of a border intersecting three states and two countries. It is considered the “Ellis Island of the South” with over 81% Hispanic population. This is a coming-of-age story about two best friends living on the US-Mexico border in a scarred landscape of racist attacks, family wounds, and lack of opportunities. The girls must traverse geopolitical boundaries and overcome personal thresholds in order to reinvent cultural, gender, and ability norms. The result is two extraordinary journeys, both parallel and divergent, in 3D tech innovation and artist creativity to heal themselves, their families, and their community.

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Alejandra Aragón, Director
is a multidisciplinary artist whose work explores the identities of border regions and how territories determine one’s experience. Her documentary film “Invisible Nights” was part of the “Coordenadas” program of the Ambulante Film Festival in 2018. In 2019 she was awarded the Mexican Fine Arts Grant (FONCA) and a film production grant from the Tribeca Film Institute If/Then Program. She was a member of the 2020 Joop Swart Masterclass of World Press Photo and recently received the Border Narrative Change Grant from NALAC.

Cathy Chen, Co-Producer
is the co-founder and director of Fab Lab, a digital design and fabrication learning hub. She
advocates for socialization and democratization of technology through grassroots initiatives in education, creative economies, and social innovation. She holds a Bachelors in Literature and Critical Theory from Duke University, Masters in Media Design from Keio University, and a CORE Certification from Harvard Business School. She received the 2019 Innovation Award from The Hub of Human Innovation and 2016 Chevron Educator Award. Cathy serves on the Public Arts Committee for the City of El Paso and on the advisory board for El Paso Museum of Art and review panelist for Texas Commission on the Arts.

Ramón Villa-Hernández, Co-Producer
has produced/directed short films for web-series; Only in El Paso, part of PBS Digital Studios
and local PBS affiliate KCOS-13. His films explore topics such as identity, cultura, and the
paranormal. In 2016, he started teaching digital media production at the University of Texas at El Paso. The City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department has awarded Ramón funds to offer filmmaking workshops in low-income housing communities.