A new era in Mexican-American film-making has arrived and possibly just in time to help shed light on difficult border issues so often caught in the crosshairs of political debate.

Affectionately dubbed the “New Mexican Revolution,” the Mexican-American films of today are shedding the stereotypes of yesteryear's Westerns in favor of modern situations and universal relationships. Many independent filmmakers are moving away from classic Hollywood happy films to delve into film art, depicting real issues and real lives.

One filmmaker, Ben Odell of Panamax films was in Tucson recently as part of the U.S.-Mexico Border States Conference to discuss his film, Sangre de mi sangre/Blood of My Blood, also known by the title Padre nuestro.

Tucsonans were treated to a premier screening of the award-winning film at the historic Fox Tucson Theatre on March 27. The 110 minute drama/thriller is scheduled for a theatrical release date of May 16, 2008.

Sangre de mi sangre is centered on the lives of two illegal immigrants transported across the U.S.-Mexico border in the back of a semi-truck bound for New York City. Juan is a career criminal and Pedro is looking for his estranged father. The two befriend one another on the journey and the story follows the perils of both in the unfamiliar city.

Sangre de mi sangre is not for the fainthearted. It is gritty, raw, and unforgiving, yet it has the ability to reach deep and pull your heart out with the bare emotion of human relationships. Sangre de mi sangre has been described as a dark, noir-like film, and while that may be true, it also has a certain charm, embodied in the relationships among the characters, that helps to light the way through a tough and very real topic.

Written and directed by Christopher Zalla and produced by Benjamin Odell and Per Melita, the film stars Jesus Ochoa, Armando Hernandez, Paola Mendoza, and Eugenio Derbez. It was filmed on location in New York City and Tijuana, Mexico. Sangre de mi sangre won the Grand Jury Dramatic Prize at the 2007 Sundance Festival, was nominated for the 2008 Goya Award for the Best Spanish Language Foreign Film and has screened at festivals and cities worldwide, including Cannes (France), Thessaloniki (Greece International Film Festival) and the Miami International Film Festival.

See Trailer:
http://www.film.com/movies/mediaplayback/sangre-de-mi-sangre/20218114