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Bichota season continues. Karol G will share her inspiring story in a Netflix documentary next year.

The Colombian superstar announced the news with an Instagram post. “A story born from dreams that seemed impossible, fueled by unwavering faith,” Karol G wrote in the caption. “My life, my work, my truth, and the powerful connection I share with you all,” she continued, referring to her fans. She went on the call the documentary a “dream come true.”

While there is no title yet, Netflix described the documentary in a statement as...

This piece was originally posted in 2022. We have updated the “Where to Watch” section for each film.

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Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. To celebrate, we got to thinking about some of our favorite Indies from the Hispanic world. These stories are narrative and documentary, drama and comedy, and are both harrowing and heartfelt. A little of everything, and plenty to add to your watchlist.

Prayers For The Stolen (2021)

Writer/Director: Tatiana Huezo

Producers: Nicolás Celis, Jim Stark

Starring: Guillermo Villegas, Mayra Batalla, Eileen Yañez, Alejandra Camacho

Synopsis: In a solitary town nestled in the Mexican mountains, the girls wear boyish haircuts and have hiding places underground. Ana and her two best friends take over the houses of those who have fled,...

The legendary Ivy Queen - often referred to as the Queen of Reggaetón or La Caballota - once said in an interview, "In the life of every woman, there's a point when you blossom and when you flourish." And for Ivy Queen, after decades of cementing her place as a pioneer of the genre, that time is now.

Born Martha Ivelisse Pesante Rodríguez, Ivy Queen first became recognized in the reggaetón scene back in the '90s, when the genre was still considered underground. She was the first female member of the all-male rap collective formed at the studios of The Noise, in San Juan, Puerto Rico. And her first live performance - where she rapped "Somos Raperos Pero no Delincuentes" ("We Are Rappers Not Delinquents"), wearing what would then become her signature style of oversized jeans, a T-shirt, braids, and long acrylic nails - launched her on a legendary career.

HBO Max will release Menudo: Forever Young, a new documentary about the Latin American boy band from filmmakers Angel Manuel Soto (Charm City Kings) and Kristofer Ríos (Havana Skate Days), on June 23. The premiere will follow the project’s debut at the 2022 Tribeca Festival on June 11.

Menudo was formed by producer Edgardo Diaz in 1977 with 5 original members: Ricky Melendez, brothers Carlos and Oscar Meléndez, and the Sallaberry brothers, Fernando and Nefty. The group changed members often mostly after the pre-teen and early teenage boys aged out around age 15 or 16. Two of its most famous members include Ricky Martin and Draco Rosa (as Robbi Rosa).

Diaz, who served as the band’s manager, was accused of sexual abuse by multiple members beginning in 1991. He denied the allegations that same year on El Show De Cristina, a popular talk show at the time hosted by Cristina Saralegui.

Menudo disbanded in 2009 though reunion...

The legacy of beloved Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado lives on. Following Mercado's spotlight in Netflix's "Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado" in 2020, the Latinx and LGBTQ+ icon will be honored with his own scripted and unscripted TV series produced by Eugenio Derbez's 3Pas Studios and A Really Good Home Pictures, according to The Hollywood Reporter. "I have always deeply admired Walter and am personally thrilled to have the opportunity to honor his legacy of love, hope and positivity," Derbez said in a statement.

Mercado died in 2019 at age 87 due to kidney failure. The legendary psychic had a powerful cultural influence on the Latinx and LGBTQ+ communities, consistently encouraging viewers of his segment on "El Show de las 12" to be their authentic selves. Mercado would always sign off his televised readings with the phrase, "Reciban de mi siempre mucho paz, pero sobre todo mucho mucho mucho amor,...

Nominations for the 36th annual Imagen Awards were announced, and the nominees include last year's Oscar snub La Llorona, the Walter Mercado Netflix documentary, Selena: The Series, Mayans M.C., and many others. Actors in the running include Jay Hernandez, Rita Moreno, Demian Bichir, Eiza Gonzales, Alicia Braga, Salma Hayek, Anya Taylor Johnson, and Pose's Mj Rodriguez. The award show honors the best in Latino talent in film, television, and streaming.

This review of “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It” was first published at the film’s premiere at the 2021 Sundance Film Festival

For Puerto Rican goddess Rita Moreno, one of the greatest performers — Latina or otherwise — ever to devour our screens with her scintillating talent, the measure of that greatness rests in her career longevity running parallel with integrity. The pedestal of hard-earned success from which she now gazes at Hollywood and its perfidious antics was, at least in the early years, built on perseverance amidst dissatisfaction.

Director Mariem Pérez Riera’s definitive documentary on everything that has colored Moreno’s worldview in nearly nine decades, “Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go for It,” opens with the dazzling, and often deceiving, glory of her trophies and accolades as she prepares for a Cuban-themed birthday party. As soon as the beloved Egot winner enters the frame,...

The Romanian film “Collective” has been named the best nonfiction film of 2020 at the 13th annual Cinema Eye Honors, a New York-based awards show devoted to all facets of documentary filmmaking.

Kirsten Johnson took the directing prize for “Dick Johnson Is Dead,” while the award for outstanding debut went to Garrett Bradley for “Time,” which also won for its editing.

“Boys State” won the Audience Award, the only Cinema Eye Honor category in which the public was invited to cast ballots.

The Spotlight Award, which was designed to put attention on a film that deserves wider exposure, went to “The Earth is Blue as an Orange,” directed by Iryna Tsilyk. The Heterodox Award, given to a film that combines nonfictional and fictional techniques, was won by Bill and Turner Ross’ “Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets.”

“The Truffle Hunters” won for cinematography, while “Feels Good Man” won in the graphic design or...

WME has signed documentary filmmaker Kareem Tabsch, best known for co-directing the Netflix documentary, Mucho Mucho Amor, about the life of Walter Mercado.

The docu, which premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival, tells the story of the beloved cultural icon and astrologer who delivered daily horoscopes on television to avid fans in his native Puerto Rico, throughout Latin America, and other parts of the globe.

Tabsch, an LGBTQ filmmaker of Cuban-American and Middle Eastern descent, made his directing debut with Cherry Pop: The Story of the World’s Fanciest Cat, which was named Best Documentary Short at Birmingham’s Sidewalk Film Festival. He followed up with Dolphin Lover, a short film that had its premiere at the Slamdance Film Festival, where it earned Honorable Mention and won the Best Short Documentary Prize at the LA Film Fest. His 2018 documentary The Last Resort won Audience Favorite Documentary at the Miami Jewish...

In a year of pandemic, social unrest and political polarization, one Oscar-contending documentary arrived to lift people’s spirits, not just in the U.S. but around the world.

Mucho Mucho Amor tells the story of a beloved cultural icon, Walter Mercado, an astrologer who delivered daily horoscopes on television to avid fans in his native Puerto Rico, throughout Latin America, and other parts of the globe.

“Walter was huge,” says Cristina Costantini, who directed the Netflix documentary with Kareem Tabsch. “One hundred twenty million people a day would tune in to watch Walter, which is like a Super Bowl audience every single day. Part of the reason that we wanted to make this movie is just to honor this incredible legacy.”

From his debut in 1969, what set Mercado apart was his arresting appearance: He blurred gender lines, adorned in elaborate capes and jewelry, his hair blow-dried into a nimbus of cotton candy.

Bad Bunny has always looked ahead. When his sophomore effort Yhlqmdlg dropped last February, the Puerto Rican rapper already had his mind on his next project. On Yhlqmdlg‘s final track, “<3,” he announced that he’d be back in nine months with a follow-up release that would likely be his last. He was true to at least part of his word: Bad Bunny shared recently that he doesn’t actually plan to retire any time soon but his third album, El Último Tour Del Mundo, or The Last Tour Of The World,...

Exclusive: Sundance Institute has named the talented group of filmmakers that have been selected for the third class of Momentum Fellows.

The full-year program is a new collaboration with NBCUniversal that gives customized creative and professional support for mid-career writers and directors from underrepresented communities who are poised to take the next step in their careers in fiction and documentary filmmaking. This year’s fellows include Cristina Costantini, Natalie Erika James, Shalini Kantayya, Loira Limbal, Ekwa Msangi, Edson Oda, Jacqueline Olive and Angel Kristi Williams.

The fellowship includes unrestricted grant funding, industry mentorship, professional coaching offered by Renee Freedman & Company supported by The Harnisch Foundation, writing workshops and industry meetings in Spring 2021, and bespoke year-round support from Sundance Institute staff.

Additionally, the FilmTwo Fellowship has merged into the Momentum Fellowship, and NBCUniversal will provide an opportunity for select Momentum fellows working on fiction projects to participate in the Universal Directors Initiative.

The National Association of Latino Independent Producers has announced the winners of this year’s Latino Media Fest Awards.

Winners will be announced at a virtual ceremony on Friday afternoon.

“Pose” was named best Latinx TV show. Co-creator, writer, producer and director Steven Canals will accept the honor on the series’ behalf.

Netflix’s Walter Mercado documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor” picked up the trophy for best Latinx Film. The doc’s co-directors Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabash will offer remarks along with their producer Alex Fumero.

Best Latinx director was awarded to Flavio Alves for “The Garden Left Behind.”

The jury award went to the short “By the River” from filmmaker Sofia Camargo.

Longtime journalist and president of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association Claudia Puig is the recipient of the excellence in entertainment journalism award.

Comedian and writer Al Madrigal will host the awards ceremony, starting at 2 p.m.

Exclusive: Xtr, the non-fiction studio behind films including wrestling doc You Cannot Kill David Arquette and the upcoming Magic Johnson feature doc, has secured a multi-million dollar investment from former Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh.

The company, which was set up by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker and Ryot co-founder Bryn Mooser, has secured $17.5M and will allocate money for its own production slate, as a finishing fund to complete titles from doc filmmakers and for its upcoming documentary streaming service Documentary Plus.

Hsieh spent 21 years at the Amazon-owned shoe company as retired as CEO in August 2020. He previously co-founded Internet advertising network LinkExchange, which he sold to Microsoft in 1998 for $265M.

Xtr scored deals for a number of its documentaries this summer including the Walter Mercado-led film Mucho Mucho Amor with Netflix, Sundance Award-Winner Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets at Utopia, ACLU drama The Fight with Magnolia, You Cannot Kill David...

Famed Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado, the subject of Netflix's Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado, lived a life in the spotlight as one of the most famous faces on TV, first in his home country and eventually all over the world. The iconic seer of the stars was known for his warm positivity, his unwillingness to conform, and his fabulously outlandish outfits - specifically his capes. Though his life had its ups and downs, nothing could take away his legend status, especially with his biggest fans in the Latinx community. If you haven't watched Mucho Mucho Amor yet and need an introduction to Mercado, take a look at the 25 pictures ahead, which will introduce you to the legendary astrologer. Then go check out the documentary and see exactly why he's so beloved.

Related: 25 Uplifting Documentaries on Netflix to Deep-Cleanse Your Soul...

Walter Mercado gave almost half the world their daily horoscopes, drawing 120 million Latinx viewers to their televisions every evening. Each of the astrologer’s fans got a personal reading which resonated with them, even though they shared their sign’s message with millions of others. Walter didn’t even have to consult his ephemeris. Mucho Mucho Amor, which can be streamed on Netflix, is named after Walter’s signature closing. Co-directed by Cristina Costantini (Science Fair) and Kareem Tabsch (The Last Resort), and produced by Alex Fumero (I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson), it is a loving look at the beloved and revolutionary performer.

Walter was one of the first mainstream androgynous Latin American figures and has become an LGBT icon, the Liberace of astrologers. He was also one of the first astrologers since Jeane Dixon to bring the ancient art to modern audiences. Before Marianne Williamson became...

Puerto Rican astrologist Walter Mercado, who died last year on Nov. 2, is one of the most recognizable figures in Latinx culture — for his horoscope breakdowns, his bedazzled capes, and above all, his unwavering positivity.

The beloved astrologer dazzled his audience from his early days on Primer Impacto — a Spanish-language news program on Univision — to his inevitable global reach, entertaining millions of viewers with his insight into the stars as well as their lives. However, after decades of fame and adoring attention from fans, Mercado's boisterous persona suddenly vanished in 2010.

That disappearance, as well as answers ...

Puerto Rican astrologist Walter Mercado, who died last year on Nov. 2, is one of the most recognizable figures in Latinx culture — for his horoscope breakdowns, his bedazzled capes, and above all, his unwavering positivity.

The beloved astrologer dazzled his audience from his early days on Primer Impacto — a Spanish-language news program on Univision — to his inevitable global reach, entertaining millions of viewers with his insight into the stars as well as their lives. However, after decades of fame and adoring attention from fans, Mercado's boisterous persona suddenly vanished in 2010.

That disappearance, as well as answers ...

We’ve got questions, and you’ve (maybe) got answers! With another week of TV gone by, we’re lobbing queries left and right about shows including The Baby-Sitters Club, Yellowstone, Blindspot and The Bold Type!

1 | Did The Baby-Sitters Club‘s super chic, 12-year-old Claudia make you feel like you need to step up your fashion and makeup game?

More from TVLineQuotes of the Week: I May Destroy You, Greenleaf, Yellowstone and MorePerformer of the Week: Yvonne StrahovskiThe Bold Type Recap: The Big Fight

2 | In Unsolved Mysteries‘ fourth episode, “No Ride Home,” why did producers only interview Alonzo Brooks’ core...

With a seemingly endless amount of streaming options—not only the titles at our disposal, but services themselves–each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit platforms. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.

The Beach House (Jeffrey A. Brown)

There’s a lot to like about Jeffrey A. Brown’s feature directorial debut The Beach House, from its gorgeous production design to its ruminations on mankind’s fragility when compared with Mother Nature’s hardier offerings (despite our penchant for believing we hold dominion over Her). It’s therefore easy to appreciate the reason Emily (Liana Liberato), Randall (Noah Le Gros), Mitch (Jake Weber), and Jane (Maryanne Nagel) have arrived at a site that may end up being their tomb because we’re quick to ignore the baked-in irony too. This was supposed to be an escape from life’s struggles—a...

Walter Mercado knew how to make an entrance.

Just ask the filmmakers behind the new Netflix documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” about meeting the iconic television astrologer for the first time at his home just outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico.

“We go into his office and meet his secretary and his nieces and they take us upstairs to one of his sitting rooms,” co-director Kareem Tabsch tells Variety. “It’s a sunken and about three steps down. It’s jammed full of books, religious iconography, pictures of James Dean, Rita Hayworth and Oscar Wilde and La Virgen de la Caridad. We’re probably kept waiting for about 40 or 45 minutes when all of a sudden, Walter just appears hovering. You know, he’s dressed like Christina, Alex, he’s dressed head to toe and white linen with his mane of hair and these gold Yves Saint Laurent glasses.

Walter Mercado signed off every one of his wildly popular televised astrology readings with a vital and uplifting message, one which resonates just as much today: “Reciban de mi siempre mucho paz, pero sobre todo mucho mucho mucho amor.” May you receive from me always, peace, lots of peace, but above all, lots and lots of love.

The late Puerto Rican actor and dancer was the first and most widely televised astrologer in the world, gracing TV screens and radio stations in every Spanish-speaking market for nearly four decades beginning in the 1970s. He disappeared from public view amidst an arduous legal battle over the rights to his name and previous work, retreating to a fortress-like villa in San Juan. His outsized personality, dazzling capes, and uplifting message of love earned him the arduous devotion of millions of fans the world over. Mercado passed away in 2019, but his spirit endures,...

“Through Walter Mercado’s existence we have greater acceptance for people around us.” – Lin-Manuel Miranda

Querido Walter,

Although you’re gone from the physical realm where once we co-existed, I’m writing to thank you for leaving us behind so much of your knowledge, beauty, and grace in Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado, and for allowing directors Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch to distill your message of love and acceptance into a documentary that’s so entertaining, intimate, and enlightening.

I grew up one block away from the Church of Los Dolores in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, a baroque structure completed in the 18th century. As a little boy, I often accompanied my great-grandmother to mass, and remember being fascinated by the opulence. Saints with pale faces and broken-hearted expressions who were always decked in extravagant robes and capes, with crystal and gold-leaf finishes. I was always drawn to the central altar,...

The co-directors and producer of a new Netflix documentary about the life of iconic television astrologer Walter Mercado are hoping to adapt the film into a scripted biopic.

Cristina Costantini, who directed “Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” with Kareem Tabsch, tells Variety that they asked Mercado who he wanted to play him. “I suggested Gael García Bernal and he said, ‘Too old,’” Costantini said. “So we said, ‘Well, who would you have play you?’ And he said, ‘Who is that boy from “Call Me by Your Name?”’ And we said, ‘Timothée Chalamet?’ And he said, ‘Yes, this would be a good opportunity for him.’ I just love that he picked this child.”

Producer Alex Fumero said, laughing, “There might be some representation issues but Walter will always choose youth and beauty over anything else, including Latino representation.”

Mercado’s career began in 1969 when he began reading horoscopes...

Premiering at Sundance back in the pre-pandemic festival days Mucho Mucho Amor is a much-needed uplift in these trying times. Co-directed and produced by Cristina Costantini (Science Fair) and Kareem Tabsch (The Last Resort), and produced by Alex Fumero (I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson), the doc, which hits Netflix today, is a fascinating odyssey into the beautifully eccentric world of Walter Mercado. Combining the fashion sense of Liberace with the relentless positivity of Tammy Faye Bakker, the Puerto Rican astrologer, psychic and defiantly nonbinary pioneer spent decades spreading his mantra of “mucho mucho amor” to an audience […]...

Premiering at Sundance back in the pre-pandemic festival days Mucho Mucho Amor is a much-needed uplift in these trying times. Co-directed and produced by Cristina Costantini (Science Fair) and Kareem Tabsch (The Last Resort), and produced by Alex Fumero (I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson), the doc, which hits Netflix today, is a fascinating odyssey into the beautifully eccentric world of Walter Mercado. Combining the fashion sense of Liberace with the relentless positivity of Tammy Faye Bakker, the Puerto Rican astrologer, psychic and defiantly nonbinary pioneer spent decades spreading his mantra of “mucho mucho amor” to an audience […]...

Documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor,” from Latinx filmmakers Cristina Costantini (“Science Fair”) and Kareem Tabsch (“The Last Resort”), focuses on the legacy of Walter Mercado, the iconic gender-nonconforming Hispanic astrologer who disappeared from the public eye, choosing to live off the grid in Puerto Rico, before resurfacing to prepare for the opening of a late-in-life exhibition at the HistoryMiami Museum.

Cinematographer Peter Alton had worked with Costantini on “Science Fair” and was her first choice to capture Mercado’s intimate moments for the doc, now streaming on Netflix, as the octogenarian grapples with aging and how he wants to be remembered during what prove to be the final two years of his life.

What was your awareness of who Mercado was? It was pretty minimal. I think I had seen him on TV in the ’90s. Sort of like on the Psychic Network.

What was the challenge in filming him so intimately?...

Last weeks episode of Ru Paul’s Drag Race All-Stars: Season 5 saw the elimination of the meme queen herself Mayhem Miller who did appear to be struggling to match the creativity, uniqueness, nerve and talent of the other competitors but it was still a shame to see her leave. This started a discussion between the queens about whether or not a queen should vote for their own elimination. While I understand that voting for yourself does appear to be giving up, at the same time if you know you are the worst-performing queen in the line up then surely it’s within your power to admit that by voting yourself to go home. Also due to Mayhem’s elimination, it means we are now into the top six queens of All-Stars fifth season which means the audience are beginning to see the finale approach, which really helps to amp up...

Finally! The queens are making the most of the All Stars format on RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 5 Episode 5. They're using strategy and campaigning to get ahead.

No more of these easy and uneventful eliminations. If someone wants to stay or compete, they should play the game.

"Snatch Game of Love" is the second time with the new rules where the elimination was completely up in the air. (And I loved it!)

If there's anything you can say about India Ferrah, it's that she fights for her opportunities.

Sure, she had the worst track record out of the remaining queens, but she wasn't going to simply be eliminated. Using whatever little information she had was a smart and powerful strategic move. Those are the types of moves that change everything on reality TV.

India flipped the game on its head and made this an exciting elimination round.

Would you...

City on Lock

The new YouTube docuseries follows rap-duo City Girls as they work towards their second LP, City on Lock. Not only do they have to manage the pressures that come with high-profile fame, but Jt serves her prison sentence for credit card fraud while Yung Miami hides her pregnancy from the public out of her fear that people will “limit” her. Despite the group challenges, the teaser highlights Jt’s release and plenty of love from their fans – including one who praises the group for their “bad bitch anthem.

The highly anticipated Snatch Game of Love finally arrived on Friday’s Drag Race All Stars, even if there wasn’t much love to be felt in the workroom. From some shady predictions to a possible conspiracy, the real challenge was being played behind the scenes.

It all began with the dramatic Ru-veal that everyone voted for Mayhem Miller to be sent home — including Mayhem. “You never give up on your dreams!” Shea Coulee fumed. Miz Cracker then shifted the conversation to a discussion about the season’s top three, asking her fellow queens to weigh in with any clear frontrunners.

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” continued the 5th installment of its “All Stars” spin off on June 26 with the queens showing off their most dramatic improv skills. In that fourth episode, Miz Cracker was declared the overall winner of the week, outperforming her scene partners Jujubee and Blair St. Clair in the process. After her lip sync against secret assassin Morgan McMichaels ended in a tie, there was an opportunity for two queens to go home but both Cracker and the jury of losers selected Mayhem Miller to sashay away so we only said goodbye to one.

This season, RuPaul Charles has changed the All Stars rules once again. Instead of two of queens performing lip syncs for their legacies, the week’s challenge winner will go up against a non-competing queen deemed a “lip sync assassin.” If the season 5 all-star wins, she gets a $10,000 tip and gets to decide who to boot.

A beloved astrologer’s spiritual and sexual influence is lovingly recounted in Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado.

“Love is the essence of everything,” we read in the first Mucho Mucho Amor trailer, and the new Netflix Original Documentary has nothing but love for the iconic astrologer Walter Mercado. Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado will hit the streamer globally on July 8.

The documentary was directed by Cristina Costantini (Science Fair) and Kareem Tabsch (The Last Resort), and produced by Alex Fumero (I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson). They got “unprecedented access to Walter during his post-fame seclusion” and were invited into “his home and interior world,” according to the press release. The documentary captures the psychic entertainer’s final two years, “when the pioneering icon grappled with aging and his legacy, as he prepared for one last star-studded spectacle.”

During his long career,...

The English-speaking world had Miss Cleo, and the Spanish-speaking world had Walter Mercado. While one turned out to be a con artist, the other disappeared from public eye without so much as a characteristically dramatic flourish. The legendary Puerto Rican psychic and astrologer captivated the Latin world with his glamorous style, gender-nonconforming persona, and warmhearted cosmic readings. Now, he is poised to reach a new level of fandom with a lovingly crafted documentary about his life and career, directed by Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch. “Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” premiered at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival in January, and will hit screens worldwide on Netflix next week.

Here’s the official synopsis: “Every day for decades, extravagant Puerto Rican astrologer, psychic, and gender nonconforming legend Walter Mercado charmed the world with his televised horoscopes. Equal parts Oprah, Liberace, and Mr. Rogers, Walter reached over 120 million viewers at his peak,...

Even though you may not have heard of Walter Mercado, millions tuned in to his televised horoscopes around the world. With the flashiness of Liberace and the charm of Mr. Rogers, Walter Mercado raked in over 120 million viewers. And then suddenly he disappeared, but not in a dark, mysterious true crime fashion. A new […]

The post ‘Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado’ Trailer: Meet the Most Famous, Flamboyant Psychic Ever appeared first on /Film.

"Love is the essence of everything." Netflix has unveiled the official trailer for a documentary feature titled Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado, the latest project by doc filmmakers Cristina Costantini & Kareem Tabsch. This premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year, and it will be streaming on Netflix in July. Sundance explains: "Extravagant Puerto Rican astrologer, psychic, and gender nonconforming legend Walter Mercado charmed the world for over 30 years with televised horoscopes. Equal parts Oprah, Liberace, and Mr. Rogers, Walter was a celebrated daily part of Latin culture—until one day in 2007 he mysteriously disappeared. Over a decade later, the filmmakers find Walter and invite us into his home and interior world as he prepares to restore his legacy in the public eye." It examines his "complex story from the rural sugarcane fields of Puerto Rico to international astrology superstardom, rising above homophobia and the heteronormative...

Netflix has released the official trailer for its upcoming documentary on the storied Puerto Rican astrologer, Walter Mercado, Mucho Mucho Amor, set to premiere July 8th.

For decades, Mercado was one of the most celebrated figures on Spanish-language television — an extravagant, endlessly positive, gender non-conforming sage who dispensed horoscopes, fortunes and the wisdom of the stars to over 120 million viewers at his peak. “From the moment I was born, I knew that I was not like everybody,” Mercado says in an interview in the trailer. “Everything about me was different.

The late Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado wishes you lots of love from the great beyond in the first trailer for his documentary film “Mucho Mucho Amor,” which examines the fascinating legacy and legend of one of the Spanish-speaking TV world’s brightest stars.

“Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” is a Netflix documentary about the extravagant Mercado, who every day for decades charmed the world with televised horoscopes and psychic predictions until he one day mysteriously disappeared. Mercado wore sequined capes, opulent jewelry and gave horoscopes of love and hope to his viewers, reaching over 120 million viewers in the Latin world at the peak of his career.

And he became iconic for his gender nonconforming look and persona that’s equal parts Oprah, Liberace and Mr. Rogers. The documentary from directors Christina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch captures Mercado’s final two years of his life after he...

Walter Mercado is a legendary figure in the world of astrology and television. But if you are a primarily English-speaking person, you might not have ever heard of him. You see, Mercado is perhaps the biggest astrology superstar in the world, reaching more than 120 million viewers, but his reach was mainly in the Latin community. But even if you’ve never heard of Mercado before, the upcoming documentary, “Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado” seems like it will be a must-see in July.

Continue reading ‘Mucho Mucho Amor’ Trailer: Legendary Psychic Walter Mercado’s Life Is Given The Spotlight In New Doc at The Playlist.

Above: The Metamorphosis of BirdsWhile attending True/False Film Fest in Columbia, Mo came the news that South by Southwest later this month would be canceled due to concerns over the spread of the coronavirus. Along with the additional looming possibility that the Cannes Film Festival in May might similarly be disrupted or postponed, this prompts the question of what such cancellations mean for film, which can only be answered by asking what purposes such festivals serve. For SXSW, a public festival, this means a sudden evaporation of dozens of opportunities for audiences to see new film work. Due to the festival's size, it also serves as a launch pad for movies that will then tour festivals that are either smaller or have less cultural visibility. During or at the end of this tour, a film may either be bought for distribution in cinemas or on digital platforms (or both...

Before the opening night screening of Mucho Mucho Amor at this year’s True/False festival, co-director Kareem Tabsch discussed the impact that the film’s subject, the late famed Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado, had on his life growing up, and in helping him come out as gay to his parents. “If they loved Walter, they could […]

The post ‘Mucho Mucho Amor’ Review: A Love Letter to the Man Who Helped Fans Love Themselves [True/False 2020] appeared first on /Film.

I’m going to start this piece out by quoting the Roger Ebert quote that everyone quotes: “Bad movies are always too long, good movies are always too short just or right.” That’s a pretty good estimation of the day, even if nothing ever crossed over to the line into being outright bad.

The day started out with Steve James’ new series (as in 255 minutes over 4 episodes), City So Real, another towering documentary from the director of Hoop Dreams. Here, James and collaborators focus their cameras on Chicago’s last mayoral race, a race that ended in the election of one Lori Lightfoot. What results is a political thriller of mundane intensity and a rich mood piece on the state of modern Chicago. For its staggering runtime, City So Real is so well-paced that it felt like it went by in about an hour. The mounting intensity of the race,...

The 37th edition of Miami Dade College's Miami Film Festival returns to downtown Miami with more than 125 feature films, documentaries, and short films from 30 countries, screening March 6-15. This year's edition opens with The Burnt Orange Heresy (pictured), directed by Giuseppe Capotondi and starring Mick Jagger, Donald Sutherland, Elizabeth Debicki, and Claes Bang. It's the fifth screen adaptation of the late Miami noir novelist Charles Willeford; the festival will also screen a 35mm print of another Willeford adaptation, George Armitage's Miami Blues, starring Alec Baldwin and Jennifer Jason Leigh, to mark the film's 30th anniversary. The festival closes with Cristina Constantini and Kareem Tabsch's documentary Mucho Mucho Amor, about the late Puerto Rican astrologer Walter Mercado, a flamboyant figure who charmed many with his televised horoscopes....

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

As Netflix reportedly nears a mid-to-high seven-figure deal for “The 40-Year-Old-Version” after its Sundance Film Festival premiere, the talks mark a realization of the streamer’s strongest needs. Netflix, whose business model hinges on viewers always coming back for more, sees potential in the film’s writer-director-producer-star Radha Blank: The acquisition is less about this one film and more about establishing a lasting relationship with a fresh new voice.

Loosely based on Blank’s experiences as a New York playwright, the film won the Sundance Directing Award Saturday. She’s unknown by a mass audience, but Netflix is betting that its 61 million Us subscribers will also respond to her — and potentially create a brand name that it can add to its lineup of exclusive deals like Ryan Murphy, David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, and Shonda Rhimes. (Netflix declined comment on the impending deal.)

Festival acquisitions have become increasingly rare for Netflix,...

The 2020 Sundance Film Festival has come and gone, and the marketplace for sales recovered from a slow start to produce a healthy stream of acquisitions — including a record-breaking sale for Andy Samberg’s “Palm Springs” and a lot of activity in the documentary genre. “The headline for this festival is that the documentary moment has arrived,” said Bryn Mooser, founder and CEO of Xtr, which produced both “Mucho Mucho Amor” and “The Fight” that sold at the fest. “Where you saw the most momentum, where you saw the most excitement, where you saw people having the most conversations, was really all documentary this year. And I think you’re seeing that reflected in sales.” Indeed, many insiders pointed to how well the documentaries fared at this year’s Sundance. In the past, Sundance has always been a prime launch pad for docs, but the insiders said this year’s interest...

The Miami Film Festival will open on March 6 with “The Burnt Orange Heresy,” starring Mick Jagger, Donald Sutherland, Elizabeth Debicki and Claes Bang.

Miami Dade College’s festival, now in its 37th edition and running March 6-15, will screen more than 125 narrative features, documentaries and shorts from 30 countries.

“Charles Willeford’s classic 1971 art world noir thriller ‘The Burnt Orange Heresy’ has been updated by director Giuseppe Capotondi and Academy Award-nominated screenwriter Scott Smith into a biting satire of the world of contemporary high art and the attendant, controversial role of art criticism that swirls around it – an apt examination for Miami’s current major destination status on the international art market,” said festival director Jaie Laplante. “The film is swanky, steamy and sexy, with Willeford’s jet-black, cruelly ironic humor firmly intact.”

A 30th anniversary screening of “Miami Blues,” also adapted from a Willeford story,

will screen during the festival,...

Anyone familiar with Dusty Childers and Shane O’Neill, two dynamic New York performers known for their sharp wits and bold fashion, won’t be surprised to hear that their animated counterparts are just as adorable and magnetic as their real larger-than-life personas. Hilariously upbeat and colorfully drawn, “The Shawl” follows an illustrated Dusty and Shane as they take turns narrating a transporting experience at a fateful Stevie Nicks concert. Enlivening every frame with their entertaining storytelling and jaunty hand-drawn visages, these characters have no trouble filling a six-minute film. “The Shawl,” which recently premiered at Sundance, will definitely leave you wanting more.

For director Sara Kiener, who dreamt up the project with concept illustrator Brianne Farley, Shane and Dusty were dream muses. “I’m a born collaborator and a born connector, so when it came to directing, my role was really to create parameters and create a sandbox, and then...

While the Sundance 2020 market started slow, sales started to pick up late Sunday night with “The Night House” and “Herself,” followed by “Ironbark” and “Uncle Frank” on Monday morning. Since then a handful of documentaries have sold, and Andy Sambert’s “Palm Springs” set a new festival sales record at $17.5 million.

A lot of films selected as part of the festival program also already had distribution in place. Others pre-sold before the festival even began: “The Father,” the documentary “Mucho Mucho Amor” and the midnight thriller “His House” have already found homes. We’ll be updating this list with any additional sales as they come in.

Also Read: 16 Buzziest Sundance Movies for Sale in 2020, From Julianne Moore's 'The Glorias' to Michael Keaton's 'Worth' (Photos)

Sundance Institute

“Boys State”

Apple and A24 bought the global rights to political documentary “Boys State” on Monday, which is playing in the U.

There’s so much that scares me as a parent of a teenager, much of it coming from the knowledge that this generation of teens is unlike any other. Really, it’s uncharted ground in parenting. In his feature film debut, “Beast Beast,” writer-director Danny Madden captures Gen Z in a compelling, raw form; watching as a parent is both insightful and terrifying.

Though I have some reservations about a choice made towards the end of the film, everything else — from the cast to the documentary-style filmmaking to the varying perspectives of different characters from diverse backgrounds — is ambitious and intriguing.

The film opens with a group of kids in a drama class doing a warm-up exercise. “Beast Beast, ready to act,” they chant as they clap and jump, growing louder and louder by the second. Quickly we’re introduced to Krista (Shirley Chen), an aspiring young actress; Nito (Jose...

In the 1976 Oscar-winning classic Network, Faye Dunaway’s character refashions television news into entertainment, and one of the features she inaugurates is a segment called “Sybil the Soothsayer,” which spews out nightly doses of prophecies for the masses. That was meant to be an outlandish satirical fantasy of what television might become, but, in fact, there was already a real-life counterpart to Sybil on television, and his name was Walter Mercado, a Puerto Rican-born, gender-fluid astrologer who offered advice to viewers who wanted a peek into their futures.

Now, filmmakers Cristina Constantini (Science Fair) and Kareem Tabsch (The ...