Cynthia López from New York Women in Film & Television, John Leguizamo, producer and director Ben DeJesus, and Luis Ortiz from Latino Public Broadcasting
Actor, writer, comedian, and producer John Leguizamo from NGL Studios/Mitu discussed his recent project, the documentary series American Historia, which will debut on PBS stations in the U.S. next Friday, the 27th, at 9 p.m.
Leguizamo was joined by Ben DeJesus, director and producer of the series, and Luis Ortiz from Latino Public Broadcasting. Cynthia López from New York Women in Film & Television moderated the discussion.
“This series tells the story of Latinos from the Aztec, Inca, and Maya empires, the Taíno people, the conquest, and then everything we’ve contributed to the U.S. and to the world. We talk about all the struggles we faced in this country and everything we’ve invented and done to reach this point of success in the U.S. The importance of this show is that nothing like this exists anywhere else, only on PBS,” Leguizamo explained to PRODU.
Leguizamo mentioned that it all started when he began researching Latino history and discovered “a plethora of impressive Latino contributions to the U.S. and the world. I couldn’t believe how much we have contributed to the world.”
During his presentation, Leguizamo highlighted the significant gap between budgets, stories, and Latino executives compared to the general market, despite the community being one of the largest with a rich cultural legacy. “We represent less than 4%, this has to change,” he said.
The panelists agreed on the importance of allocating more money for series like American Historia, to ensure proper reporting of Latino contributions in this country.”
Leguizamo’s next project is a U.S. drama set on Block Island, which will debut next Fall, along with season two of Leguizamo Does America on Peacock.
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