La Estrella
About the Film
La Estrella is a tender portrait of a tight-knit Mexican-American family grappling with the entrance of fentanyl into their community. Set across two timelines, the story follows José, a gentle, but withdrawn teenager struggling to gain his momentum, and his older brother Diego, a charismatic and ambitious college student struggling with the stress of family expectations.
Director: Gabriela Díaz Arp
Producer: Anna Jimenez Lyle
United States // 2025 // Drama // Los Shorts
22 minutes
About the Filmmaker
Gabriela Díaz Arp is an Atlanta-based independent director passionate about the ways visual language can deepen human understanding and connection. She has directed and produced a number of independent films, exhibits and interactive experiences for groups like the New York Times, CNN International, Univision, Emory University and the United Nations.
She is currently working on her first feature film in her motherland of Puerto Rico. The documentary film, Matininó, tells the story of a multi-generational family of women transforming their experience with violence into a fantasy film. Her last film, Meeting a Monster, which explores the memories and motivations of former white supremacist Angela King through a virtual reality experience, premiered at the 2018 Tribeca Film Festival and was shown at festivals around the world including Cannes NEXT, Sheffield Doc Fest, Atlanta Film Festival and New Orleans Film Festival.
Her work has been supported by Sundance, Film Independent, Doc Society, BAVC, Ford Foundation, Chicken & Egg, Working Films and the Puerto Rican and Dominican Republic Film Commissions.
