Paloma Martinez has made the (Latinx) list…
During the NALIP Media Summit, members of NALIP, The Black List and The Untitled Latinx Project to announced the 10 original television pilots selected as part of the inaugural Latinx TV List, with the Latina filmmaker’s The Edge aka El Borde earning a spot.
Martinez’s pilot centers on a teenage girl US/Mexico border who must prove there’s an unnerving new life form evolving and threatening human existence after a destructive storm triggers the largest sewage spill in the history of North America.
The Black List teamed with the Latin Tracking Board, NALIP, Remezcla and The Untitled Latinx Project for the list. Here were the requirements:
- Writers should be Latinos residing currently in the US – any country of origin or other status is fine
- Any kind of story is eligible and will be considered
- All scripts must have one Latinx character in a prominent, lead role
- Scripts can be bilingual as long as they are written primarily in English
- Half-hours and one-hours considered. No webseries.
- All levels of experience considered for submitting writers
- Scripts submitted should be as free from attachments as possible
- Writers must be at least 18 years of age upon submission
The writers on the Latinx TV List will have their pilots shared with Hulu, which plans to offer a WGAminimum blind pilot script deal to two of the writers or writing teams, in addition to meeting with all 10 writers selected. Writers selected by Hulu may decide whether or not to accept any deal offered by Hulu — the final decision remains entirely in the hands of the writer.
“NALIP is thrilled to have partnered once again with the Black List for the Latinx TV List,” said Ben Lopez. “We have always aimed to be a platform for underrepresented communities and the winners now have a chance to tell their incredible stories. We also applaud Hulu in their commitment to the Latinx community. In collaboration with our partners, The Black List, Untitled Latinx Project, Latin Tracking Board, and Remezcla, we would like to sincerely congratulate this year’s Latinx TV List!”
Here are the 10 selected scripts for the Latinx TV List in alphabetical order:
CUBA LIBRE by Niko Gutierrez-Kovner
CUBA LIBRE tells the story of Fidel Castro’s revolution through the eyes of a couple who become crucial to its success, risking their marriage, their livelihoods, and their lives for a movement that ultimately loses sight of the people in one man’s blind pursuit of power.
THE EDGE/EL BORDE by Paloma Martinez
After a destructive storm triggers the largest sewage spill in the history of North America at the US/Mexico border, a local teenage girl must prove there is an unnerving new life form evolving and threatening human existence.
HOME by AJ Mendez
A dark comedy about a young Latina who struggles to re-enter the world after surviving a suicide attempt, but uses her comatose Mormon roommate’s seemingly perfect identity to start fresh.
INSIDE CUNT by Anna Salinas
A brash 28-year-old Nuyorican is pulled into a dangerous world of international espionage when her vagina suddenly starts intercepting Russian spy signals.
KOOKY, THE POST-APOCALYPTIC COCKROACH by Dax de la Monta
Miggy, a perpetually upbeat and slightly naive loser, must survive a road trip across a nuclear wasteland with the help of his misfit coworker, old school abuelo, and a wisecracking chatterbox who happens to be a giant, mutated cockroach.
MACHO LIBRE by Marcelina Chavira
After his fathers pass away, a mature and woke AF 11 year-old boy is forced to move in with his estranged, old school, super macho, ex-luchador grandfather above the aging man’s eccentric wrestling academy.
NOVIA by Giovanni J. Maldonado Chinea & Myles Clifford Hawthorne
In 1929, a young girl escapes her abusive life in Mexico City for Los Angeles and the promise of stardom in a Spanish-language version of the Universal classic, DRACULA — only to find that the monsters of one’s past don’t simply vanish, but follow. Based on the true story of Lupita Tovar.
PAPI by Dominic Colón
PAPI, is a half hour dramedy that explores the life of Kilo Rodriguez, a closeted bisexual barber from the Bronx, who on his 21st birthday, unexpectedly gets custody of his foul-mouthed six-year old daughter. As Kilo tries to navigate becoming an adult, while avoiding the temptations of the streets, and understanding his fluid sexuality, he embarks on a transformative journey discovering what it takes to be a good “Papi.”
SUNPATCH ALLEY by Juan Carlos Fernandez
The times, they are a-changin’ in this dark, comedic drama set in 1970’s New York. GRACIE FUENTES, the creative director of a popular kids’ show, finds her noble pursuits of inclusion continually steamrolled by the show’s sexist and alcoholic star, LOUIE BARNETT. But when the station is taken over by the crime family Louie is indebted to, Gracie seizes the opportunity to take matters into her own hands. “Sesame’s mean streets.”
USERNAME by Barbara Soares
After joining an A.I. talent agency where she impersonates a CGI Instagram celebrity, a hacker finds herself at the center of a high-stakes conspiracy when that same celebrity begins enlisting her followers to commit suicide.