On May 24, 2022, I, like many others, was horrified by the tragic events that unfolded at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers lost their lives to an unfathomable act of violence. As the days turned into weeks and more details emerged, my focus shifted from the tragedy itself to the community that bore the brunt of this loss. I immediately felt as if I knew these people because of films I’ve made in similar communities and areas of the country. My work is often inspired by a desire to intimately explore the human experiences behind the headlines, to understand a situation from the perspective of individuals. We tell a fuller picture of the American story when we share the lives of ordinary individuals including the working poor, from small towns and from rural America. I wanted to explore who Uvalde was through the thoughts, feelings, and emotions of its people, document how their lives had been impacted and how they were never going to be the same. As a Latina filmmaker, I gravitate toward telling stories of Latine communities in vulnerable and challenging situations with the aim to expose the bravery, determination, and resilience that lie within our culture and communities—and so I set out to find these in Uvalde. My journey began with an earnest desire to understand the complexities surrounding this event, leading me to reach out to those impacted. It was through social media that I connected with Angeli Rose Gomez, the remarkable mother who defied the odds on that fateful day. Her brave actions—risking her life to rescue her children while nearly 400 law enforcement officers stood by—captured the nation’s attention, both online and through news outlets. Yet, when I met Angeli in August 2022, I learned that her heroism came with a heavy price. During our first meeting, she shared her harrowing experience of being arrested for trying to save her children, followed by the relentless harassment she faced from authorities for speaking out. Angeli’s vulnerability was heightened by her past history with the criminal justice system. Yet, she continued to speak up, embodying the spirit of a community that was demanding answers and refusing to be silenced by those in power. At that point, I knew I had to tell her story – her full story. And that of a town that was similarly demanding to be heard.
