LALIFF Sets Border Town Dramedy ‘Valentina’ for Opening Night, ‘Baby Reindeer’ Star Nava Mau to Head Features Jury for 25th Edition (EXCLUSIVE)

By Angelique Jackson

Angelique Jackson

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The Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival will open with the timely dramedy “Valentina,” from emerging filmmaker Tatti Ribeiro, starring Keyla Monterroso Mejia and executive produced by Jessica Alba and Tracey Nyberg.

Set against the backdrop of the busiest U.S.-Mexico border crossing, the film follows Valentina (Mejia, a breakout performer from “One of Them Days,” “The Studio” and “Abbott Elementary”) as she navigates parking tickets, odd jobs and the instability of gig work. Ribeiro’s feature directorial debut is a blend of comedy and documentary, a synopsis of the project explains, with the Independent Spirit Award-winning filmmaker incorporating “real-life news footage and political interviews alongside a cinéma vérité approach to capture the complexities of coming of age in a border town.” The project is executive produced by Alba and Nyberg for their Lady Metalmark banner (“Trigger Warning,” “The Mark”).

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