Latino Leaders Magazine | Oct/Nov 2014

www.latinoleaders.com October / November 2014 Vol. 15 No. 6 Display until 12 /10/2014

CONTENTS October / November 2014

CONTENTS July / August 2014

30

COVER STORY: Dascha Polanco:

A recurring character on the Netflix hit series, Orange is the New Black, Polanco is a force to be reckoned with. Polanco, a proud Dominican, says the era of the Latina is now and opens up about fans, red carpets and her now iconic prison garb.

CONTENTS October / November 2014

42 26 Moctesuma Esparza: The CEO of Maya Cinemas pens an op-ed for Latino Leaders Magazine about the dearth of Latinos in today’s films and television series. A prolific filmmaker in his own right, Esparza gives his opinion on the future of the Latino actor.

70 Cristela Alonzo:

44 Edward Allen: The COO of Pantelion talks about

16 52 60 72 78

the trial and error of tapping into the Latino market and the future of Spanish language films. After transitioning from the finance industry to film, Allen has found his footing as a respected and humble leader at Pantelion.

62 Juliet Garcia:

Now serving as the executive director of the newly founded UT Institute of the Americas, Garcia talks about the invaluable asset of America’s bilingual student population and the responsibility educators have to mentor and nourish the next generation.

The first Latina to create and star in her own primetime comedy, Alonzo shares about growing up poor and her irregular journey into the spotlight. Flourishing in her ABC series Cristela, loosely based on her life, this funny girl is stealing the show.

Events Coverage

Latina Vanguard CTCA health panel Goodyear, Ariz.

New York Life McAllen New York Life New York Los Angeles Maestro

In Every Edition 06 08 10 12 22 82

From the editor’s desk Conversation with the publisher Lexus Luminaries Southwest Landing Northwestern Mutual Cellar

Letter from the editor IN THE SPOTLIGHT

Connecting Leaders, Inspiring the Future

Publisher Jorge Ferraez

Despite the fact that Latinos are growing at a rapid rate in population and influence throughout the country, there is a noticeable disconnect with Latino representation in the media. With this arts & entertainment edition, our goal is to bring to your attention those who are making a difference on screen and off. These talented Latinos throughout the country talk about breaking through in a new medium, producing innovative material or representing a new generation of Latinos. The leaders that fill these pages all strive for one goal: bringing excellence and diversity to our society.

This month, we also recognize Juliet V. Garcia, who is championing for higher education on an international level as the executive director for the UT Institute for the Americas. Recognizing the work she does to encourage both foreign-born and national Latinos, we are excited about the achievements she is making for a new generation of educated Latinos.

President and CEO Raul Ferraez

Editor-in-Chief: Esther Perez eperez@latinoleaders.com Director of Journalism: Mariana Gutierrez mariana@latinoleaders.com National Director of Events: Yol-Itzma Aguirre yaguirre@latinoleaders.com National Sales Director: Gil Castro gcastro@latinoleaders.com Administrative Director: Cathy Marie Lopez clopez@latinoleaders.com Circulation Manager and Editorial Assistant: Carlos Anchondo canchondo@latinoleaders.com Washington, D.C. Sales Associate and Representative Deyanira Ferraez dferraez@latinoleaders.com Art Director: Fernando Izquierdo ferdiseno@latinoleaders.com Editorial Art & Design: Rodrigo Valderrama Carlos Cuevas Luis Enrique González Human Resources Manager: Susana Sanchez Administration and Bookkeeping: Claudia García Bejarano Executive Assistant to the Publishers: Liliana Morales Circulation System Manager: Andrea Luna

Twitter to the editor As a publication, we are always excited to hear your thoughts, questions and concerns about how we are doing.

Every first Monday of the month, we will encourage our Twitter to the Editor, but feel free to respond on any day because your feedback will help us to better connect leaders and inspire the future.

Esther Marie Perez Editor In Chief

Corrections and clarifications: Margaret Moran was incorrectly identified in the July/August edition for serving as a senator from 1996-2000 and as executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs from 2005-08.

6 • October / November 2014

For advertising inquiries, please call 214-206-4966 x 225.

Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino (ISSN 15293998) is published seven times annually by Ferraez Publications of America Corp., 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA, October / November 2014.

Subscription rates: In U.S. and possessions, one year $15.00. Checks payable to Ferraez Publications of America, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Latino Leaders, 15443 Knoll Trail, Suite 210, 75248 Dallas, TX, USA.© 2001 by Ferraez Publications of America Corporation. All rights reserved.

No part of this periodical may be reproduced without the consent of Latino Leaders: The National Magazine of the Successful American Latino. The periodical’s name and logo, and the various titles and headings therein, are trademarks of Ferraez Publications of America Corp.

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a conversation with the publisher

Proven leadership at the USHCC

I Left to right: Jorge Ferraez, Marc Rodriguez, Javier Palomarez and Nina Vaca

8 • October / November 2014

I have always said that one of my passions is to know the stories of leadership. Learning from these tells you a lot of the times in which you’re living.

I have witnessed some of the big changes in leadership at the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC), and I have to admit that its current leadership is one that I would love to follow.

A great organization, the USHCC is one of the most influential organizations in the Hispanic community, founded in 1979. I remember one of its conventions in the early 2000s that impressed me because of the amount of people it gathered. Through the years, presidents and high-profile leaders have spoken at the USHCC’s events. The organization has also gone through certain economic troubles and leadership crisis. Recently, having lunch with David Lizarraga - a fantastic business leader from Los Angeles who was the USHCC chairman three or four years ago - he taught me a lesson: “Organizations need leaders, but the leaders need to understand, realize the stage and the specific needs of the organization at any given time; if the organization is not prepared to take certain directions, it will be confusion and weak leadership,” he told me when I asked him about his time as chairman, compared with today’s USHCC. “I understood that I needed to bring back some local chambers, convince them that we wanted them back, solve some serious debt issues and start building the foundations for a new leadership.”

That is when Nina Vaca and Javier Palomarez came onto the scene. The rest is history. The leadership of this dynamic powerhouse duo in the years that followed was well-oriented, focused and energized by this pair of leaders who had a clear goal on their minds. They have elevated the USHCC to the next level.

I recently interviewed Javier Palomarez for our July/August edition, and he told me a great story of a man who was born “on the wrong side of the tracks, but was able to get on the train,” as he describes his own life. And Nina Vaca, perhaps one of the best things that have ever happened to the chamber, is a brilliant woman, with an incredible internal force and energy, whose own personal story is also full of lessons.

I recently had the opportunity to watch closely their leadership performances at their impressive 2014 Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, where Marc Rodriguez was departing as chairman to give way to the newly elected Ignacio Veloz of Puerto Rico as the incoming national chairman of the USHCC. It is good to see what happens when leaders team up and pursue a common goal. The organization is getting bigger and stronger. Speaking on behalf of the 3.2 million Latino businesses of this country, it has a powerful voice and commitment. It’s going to be fun and enriching to see where these leaders are going to take it from here.

LANDING

DAVID VEGA ART GALLERY OWNER

STORY BY: Emilia Gaston Portrait by Francisco Cortes; Gallery photo contributed

G

ravelmouth art gallery owner David Vega got his nickname at an early age as a teenage graffiti artist hanging in the south side of San Antonio, but now international art collectors to residents of different U.S. states to San Antonio locals simply know him as “Shek.”

“The name was kind of a play on words. In this environment, back in the early 90s, you didn’t think you’d live to be a certain age, so it was a way for me to identify myself and maybe make a name for myself when I didn’t know if I’d be able to,” Vega explains.

For him, it was a way of having an identity and representing himself among his peers. But often times now, when he tries to introduce himself as David Vega, people kindly remark, “no, we know who you are.”

Vega grew up in San Antonio with two working-class Mexican parents who instilled lifelong values in him at an early age. His father worked as a route driver for a magazine distribution company and eventually worked himself up the ladder to a vice president position.

As a teen running around skateboarding and doing graffiti, Vega came to terms with the respect he had for his father.

“My dad was always working … but I slowly came to understand what he was doing and how much I respected it and the work ethic that he always tried to push during that time really started to sink in.

And I still carry that work ethic now, and it’s taken me a long way.”

Before his adult success, Vega was a teenager attracted to the world of graffiti by its fresh, new and dangerous aspects and he was able to express his creativity publically. He explained that graffiti could be totally spontaneous, completely planned or reckless.

“I’ve always loved art, its uniqueness, its being different and the expression that’s in it. It has always connected with me in some way or

another, and there’s an energy there that I’ve always felt.”

After fighting to get graffiti recognized as an art form, Vega often saw a negative response when introducing himself as a graffiti artist.

With $20 in his pocket and a group of friends, Vega and his crew gained permission to paint an open lot in San Antonio. They took the little money they had and made flyers for what was to be the first graffiti festival in San Antonio in the late 1990s.

Two hundred people showed up.

“It was just amazing to us, and it was something we felt needed to happen, and now 10 or 12 years later, the event is still going on,” Vega explained.

The event was one of the first of its kind in Texas and has inspired similar events after growing significantly with sponsorship and recognition but the arts community was still very “scared” of the idea of graffiti.

These same grass-roots ideas are what led Vega to open his gallery, Gravelmouth, in a small studio space in 2011.

“What was supposed to be just a working studio made me feel an obligation to showcase work from artists just like me that were in transition from the graffiti world into the arts community.”

Vega explains that these artists were also storing their work at home instead of showing it, hesitant that people may not appreciate the art form.

Vega decided to build his space as a part of the San Antonio art walk as a space for these artists to show their work and in his words, “people didn’t know what they were missing.”

The studio expanded because of the demand for graffiti art that Vega moved several doors down to what is now the largest studio in the building. The space has drawn in art enthusiasts from all walks of life and has consecutively been named in San Antonio’s top three art galleries since opening. The studio now showcases work from emerging artists to internationally known artists from around the world.

Now, Vega prioritizes work, running the gallery and sleep, in that order. With so many ideas buzzing through his head, Vega has to manage his time as a creative while sharing it with the gallery.

As the community grows with more and more support among artists and citizens, Vega is looking to the future in what he calls “one of the richest art communities in the country.”

Adios, Wright Amendment! Hello, America!

BY: Ron Ricks executive vice president and chief legal and regulatory officer

S

outhwest Airlines has been proud to call Dallas home throughout our entire 43-year history. While we started as a fledgling intrastate carrier serving just three Texas cities (Dallas, Houston, San Antonio), we have grown to carry more passengers today than any other airline in the United States. But we haven’t always had the freedom to spread our wings out of our hometown airport of Dallas Love Field.

The passage of a law known as the Wright Amendment in 1979 made our home airport of

Dallas Love Field the first and only airport in the United States to be restricted to a small service area—flights out of the airport would be limited to destinations in Texas and its neighboring states (later expanded to include Mississippi, Alabama, Kansas, and Missouri). Ten years ago, we set out to repeal this restriction, leading a successful effort to overturn the Wright Amendment, which officially expired on October 13, 2014.

This is good news for Southwest and anyone who travels to and from Dallas. And we didn’t waste any time exploring our newfound freedom.

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On October 13, we installed new non-stop service to seven cities from Dallas Love Field (Baltimore/Washington; Denver; Las Vegas; Orlando; Chicago Midway; Los Angeles; Reagan National). Another wave of new service will follow that in November with an additional eight nonstop destinations—from New York and California, and several points in between. And, we’re just getting started.

Fittingly, our brand new Dallas flights will be provided from a new, revitalized airport facility at Love Field with over 20 new concessions and a brand new infrastructure that will rival the nicest airports in the world.

As we planned for the sunset of the Wright

Amendment, we set out to breathe new life into our hometown airport with the Love Field Modernization Program (LFMP). The artwork in the airport is modern but keeps a splash of the history, for which, Love Field is known. The new Love Field is a showpiece for the city of Dallas, and its convenient, close-to-downtown location provides even more benefits for our customers.

The Wright Amendment repeal allows us finally to carry people where they want to go from our hometown airport, giving customers access to our vast network and making Dallas more accessible for the rest of the country. The city now joins eight other

major metro areas in the United States that have more than one airport providing longhaul domestic service. This means more flights, more destinations, more choices, and lower fares to and from North Texas.

So, if you live in the North Texas area or if your travels take you to or from Dallas, I hope you’ll share in our excitement over the final departure of the Wright Amendment. It only took 34 years, an act of Congress and a hard fought battle waged by our employees to overturn the restrictive legislation. But we prevailed, and we’re now free to move about the country from our home, Dallas Love Field.

Story by Mariana Gutierrez Contributed photos

MasterCard Diversity: MasterCard’s Chief Diversity Officer Donna Johnson

Leading on the “EDGE” of Innovation

For Donna Johnson, MasterCard’s Chief Diversity

Officer, it is the employees who lead the way forward at MasterCard. For many, the first thing that comes to mind when thinking about the payments company is the highly successful Priceless® advertising campaign, but that’s only part of the story. MasterCard is a technology company driving innovations that power greater convenience, simplicity and security for people making card payments every day. And MasterCard does that with fewer than 10,000 employees around the world. “We see diversity and inclusion as key to achieving the MasterCard vision of A World Beyond Cash”, shares Johnson. “Diversity of thought is the heart of innovation, the more varied the life experiences the better the ideas. We expect for the people who work here to draw from their skills and experience, and encourage them to explore unexplored trails. Sharing their diverse passions with one another, our employees work in collaborative and inspiring ways, making MasterCard an international force in technology and innovation.”

As Chief Human Resources Officer Ron Garrow notes, “The magic of our employees is more than just their skills and experience – it is their diversity of thought and ideas that make them our greatest asset.”

According to Johnson, one of the primary engines that drive innovation is MasterCard’s “Business Resource Groups” or BRGs. Eight BRGs – with over 4,000 members – have been established with chapters across the globe, comprised entirely of volunteers who are drawn together in common interests that are typically not in their job descriptions. BRG participation provides employees the opportunity to enhance cultural awareness, develop leadership skills and network with colleagues across business units at all levels, including senior leadership. And importantly, the BRGs contribute real insights, feedback and ideas to the business.

EDGE (Employees Driving the Global Enterprise) is one of the programs that originated from the BRGs’ desire to share the MasterCard story with individuals outside of the company, and it now sets the foundation for all payments and product education at MasterCard. It has also created

14 • October / November 2014

global ambassadors who are empowered to articulate and deliver MasterCard’s value message to friends, family and their communities. In the short time since its launch, it has connected MasterCard’s employees globally with a unified purpose – employees from all levels, from Singapore to Africa are using the EDGE community to socialize what they’ve learnt and have transformed into advocates for the company.

In addition, MasterCard employees regularly volunteer for the communities in which they live and work. Whether it’s an effort like girls4tech, the signature education program that showcases MasterCard’s payment technology, while inspiring more girls and young women to pursue careers in STEM fields. Or the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship, which MasterCard teams up with to teach young people in at-risk communities in the U.S. and Europe entrepreneurial skills they can take into adulthood. The goal, according to Johnson, is bigger than just reaching out and learning to understand overlooked communities so that MasterCard might realize new business opportunities: It is to make the world a better, kinder place where everybody feels a shared sense of belonging.

These among other efforts have established MasterCard as one of the top 10 diverse companies in the U.S. according to DiversityInc Magazine.

“Our inclusive culture is about more than simply having a diverse workforce,” concludes Tim Murphy, general counsel and chief franchise officer, “it’s about using diversity to drive real business impact.“

events

May 22, 2014 Cipriani Downtown Miami

Story by Lourdes Dominguez Photos by Raul Ospina

On Thursday, May 22, nine of Miami’s most influential female business leaders gathered for a discussion on topics relating to career, family, challenges and success.

Presented with the support from:

Latino Leaders Magazine hosted the Latina Vanguard Luncheon at Cipriani Miami to explore the Latin female community. With the help of Latino Leaders Magazine, the group of women shared their backgrounds and explained how they’ve become the leaders they are today. They discussed how to shape a better future for Latinas and how to crush stereotypes, not solely in south Florida, but all over the globe.

Successes ranged from politics to start-ups, and these women are proof that anything is possible no matter where you come from.

16 • October / November 2014

Sonia Maria Green Green’s career started in the domestic marketing industry with Avon cosmetics, where she eventually joined the company’s international division. She then found a job working for General Motors, but was one of the 100,000 employees who were soon laid off.

Eventually, Green started her own consultancy helping low-income women through pregnancy. “If you need help in any one area, ask for it. If you have a desire to explore, go for it! These are women that have done it, and this is how we touch the hearts of people.”

Diana Tobon Born in Bogota, Colombia and moved to the United States about 10 years ago. She traveled between the States and Europe, living in Madrid and Rome. Although she left most of her family in Bogota, she lives here permanently with her sister and son, who is 8 years old. About a year ago, she found the opportunity to work with Northwestern Mutual helping individuals like herself in making this country home.

Laura Fermin Born in the Dominican Republic, Fermin moved to New York with her father and brothers after her parents got divorced.

Eventually, she moved to Miami and has worked with families to provide financial stability for them as the director of development for Northwestern Mutual. She also has a passion for children and holds a toy and school supply drive every year within the community. “I love Miami and the opportunities it provides for people.

As a woman, you have a lot to prove.”

The nine women who gathered at Cipriani Miami all expressed the sentiment that nothing is beyond their reach.

These dynamic Latinas look to build on their successes and continue to give back to the Miami community.

Latina

vanguard 2014

Clara Pablo Starting as an intern, Pablo rose to booking some of the world’s biggest acts for Univision. And everything in between included traveling the world, being a publicist, and amassing over 29,000 Twitter followers. She owes her success to her love for TV production and she now works as the director of talent for Univision. “Any exposure that we [Latinas] get, is amazing. What I love about giving back, is that a young girl can read an article and say, ‘Wow, she did it.’”

18 • October / November 2014

Sylvia Franco Franco grew up in Miami, and her father instilled a strong passion for the country at a young age. Franco worked with the Terra Group, Telefonica, and finally entered politics at director of communications specifically for Latinos. After much travel she decided that politics weren’t a part of her future but the Latin community was where she belonged. Currently, Franco runs her own company involved in a variety of fields from children to sports. “In Miami, there’s no reason Latinas can’t accomplish what they want to accomplish. It’s communication that gets to the second generation.”

Natalia Osorio Osorio wanted to be in an attorney ever since she could remember and ventured into running her own business at the age of 18. However, she was given an opportunity in advertising and has loved it ever since. She and her sister were raised to be strong-willed women in Florida, New Jersey, and eventually Colombia where she learned Spanish as second language for a Latina leader like herself. She lends her success to her love of watching a brand or product grow. “If you want to grow, you have to grow towards it. Strong women have evolved and are getting stronger.”

Latina

vanguard 2014

Sandra Ortiz Ortiz bet a man she would sell a dozen pieces of women’s clothing—and she did just that. Since then, Ortiz has been a Latina entrepreneur. She has traveled the nation selling clothes after starting her own clothing company. When the clothing business began to falter, her website still received plenty of attention. Ortiz saw an opportunity to develop web sites from Colombia. About six years ago, she and Natalia Osorio decided to join Latin American clients for web design and brand development. “When one business partner is weak, the other helps them.”

20 • October / November 2014

Evelina Tejeda Tejeda was born in New York but finished school in the Dominican Republic. During college, she and her brother started their own business like their parents. Her family’s finances impacted Tejeda and she returned to the states to pursue a master’s in banking and finance, but she found herself in fashion school. Soon after, she met her mentor. After three years, she’s risen to field director for Northwestern Mutual. She now helps thousands of foreign families financially and strives to provide the guidance her family did not have.

Karol Jimenez Pagano Puerto Rican but raised in Connecticut, Jimenez Pagano worked as a Spanish interpreter where being bilingual has helped families break the language barrier after immigration. Later, Jimenez Pagano moved to Miami and joined Tejeda in the Northwestern Mutual family. Today, she still works with families to help build their financial portfolio and plan ahead.

“The things we put in place today will impact the next generation. Running a household is like running a business.”

Creating a

financial future

based on culture Story by Christine Hall Contributed photos

Listen to Sindy Canizales Walters explain how she likes to educate and provide service to her clients, and it is no wonder she enjoys her job.

A

s a Northwestern Mutual financial representative in Orlando, Florida, she admits there is emotion on both sides of the table: Hers lies in making sure her clients understand how financial planning works.

Walters was born in Venezuela. She grew up there and in Columbia. When she was 16 she made a life changing decision to move to America.

“It was both exciting and kind of terrifying, but it was the best decision I ever made,” she said. “I always wanted to make it on my own, be in another country, learn another language.”

Walters had a friend who lived in Orlando and connected her with an English program. She trans-

22 • October / November 2014

Sindy Canizales Walters believes that every individual can benefit from a financial planner and finds joy in helping others.

ferred to the University of Central Florida and obtained her degree in marketing and finance from the college of business.

It was through that experience she met her mentor, Kevin O’Connell, who worked at Northwestern Mutual and introduced her to a career in financial planning with the company.

Yet again, she found this stage of her life an “exciting experience” because she had often thought of herself an entrepreneur. Her mother had been an entrepreneur for 30 years. Walters grew up hearing stories of her mother’s experiences of wholesaler conventions and being the only woman in attendance.

Walters also found herself blazing a new trail as one of the first Hispanic women in her office. “I was the only one for a while, but we are working on growing our Hispanic group and presence in Orlando,” she said. “The need is there.”

And with her Northwestern Mutual group growing to five advisors, more people are teaching clients what is possible to obtain a secure financial future, she said.

When it comes to the Hispanic market in Orlando, Walters typically finds two types of clients. The first are Latinos who

“I was the only one for a while, but we are working on growing our Hispanic group and presence in Orlando. … The need is there.”

were born and raised in America and have some understanding when it comes to financial planning. The other are those who immigrated here as adults with less of an understanding of financial products.

Because this second group has had less exposure to financial planning, they require more education, which is what Walters loves to share.

“I tell everyone I meet about the process I use to put together a plan, based on each person’s unique circumstances,” Walters said. “As a culture, it is hard to think five or 10 years from now.

We go a lot by faith — maybe we think two or three years ahead, so I am always challenging my clients.”

Canizales Walters in her Orlando office.

24 • October / November 2014

“As a culture, it is hard to think five or 10 years from now. We go a lot by faith — maybe we think two or three years ahead, so I am always challenging my clients.”

It’s not all about education, though, but also about giving back. As a Hispanic, she said, when she knows something, she wants to share it. Therefore, a lot of her clients ask Walters to also work with their children.

Walters said she believes everyone needs a financial planner. “My husband and I, even though we are in the industry, have one,” she said. “A financial planner will challenge you, and it helps us to be accountable.”

She also hears fears from people who think that working with a financial planner will be expensive.

However, there is a plan for everyone, Walters said.

She has people paying $10 a month for term insurance, while she is encouraging other clients to save $50,000 a year.

Contributing even a small amount monthly to a life insurance policy is making a difference, even on a bigger scale with the community.

Overall, Walters recommends that Latinos seeking financial planning dedicate time to finding a representative who will encourage dialogue and help create a secure financial future based on trust and a clear understanding of the transition between short-term and long-term financial goals. The relationship that is then built not only creates a plan of action but also keeps the client accountable so the individual can achieve that plan.

“If you have someone pushing you, calling you, you are going to see how much will go toward the future,” Walters said. “You need a balance in what you see will happen in the future and what you want to do today.”

Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI and its subsidiaries.

About Northwestern Mutual Northwestern Mutual has been helping families and businesses achieve financial security for nearly 160 years. Our financial representatives build relationships with clients through a distinctive planning approach that integrates risk management with wealth accumulation, preservation and distribution. With more than $217 billion in assets, $26 billion in revenues and more than $1.5 trillion worth of life insurance protection in force, Northwestern Mutual delivers financial security to more than 4.2 million people who rely on us for insurance and investment solutions, including life, disability and long-term care insurance; annuities; trust services; mutual funds; and investment advisory products and services.

Northwestern Mutual is the marketing name for The Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company, Milwaukee, WI, and its subsidiaries. Northwestern Mutual and its subsidiaries offer a comprehensive approach to financial security solutions including: life insurance, long-term care insurance, disability income insurance, annuities, investment products, and advisory products and services.

Subsidiaries include Northwestern Mutual Investment Services, LLC, broker-dealer, registered investment adviser, member FINRA and SIPC; the Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Company, limited purpose federal savings bank; Northwestern Long Term Care Insurance Company; and Russell Investments.

More than just maids Op Ed by Moctesuma

I

Esparza Images contributed

would say that the Latino on-camera presence is stunningly low. As of 2013, Latinos comprised 17 percent of the U.S. population, over 20 percent of the key advertising demographic, and over 48 percent of the audience in major media markets like Los Angeles and Miami. Yet, Latinos were none of the leads in the top 10 television shows and films. Similarly, in the nation’s primetime news shows, there were no Latino executive producers or anchors.

Equally dramatic, per capita, we learned that Latino participation as leads in TV and movies has been higher in earlier periods, including in the 1940s, 1950s, and 1970s. So, while Latino participation has generally increased in absolute numbers in recent years, when measured as a proportion of the total population, it has mostly declined or remained stagnant.

We found that Latinos are still portrayed through the same stereotypes deployed in the late nineteenth century when cinema as a technology was born. These

26 • October / November 2014

As the Latino influence grows throughout the country, Moctesuma Esparza, CEO of Maya Cinemas and founder of Maya Entertainment, gives his thoughts on the perception, portrayal and politics of Latinos in the media.

include the lawbreaker (in various old and new guises such as blue-collar criminal, drug lord or undocumented immigrant); manual laborer; the comedic buffoon or sidekick and the “hot tamale.” But we also discovered a few twists.

There is one stereotype that has virtually disappeared: the Latin Lover. The irony of this loss is that although many Latino actors resented playing this role, it was one of the few character types that allowed Latino men to play leads. Not surprisingly, our study also found that since the 1990s, there has been a steep decline in the number of Latino men performing principal roles.

But if the Latin Lover has disappeared, there are two relatively new stereotypes: the Latino law enforcer and the maid. Although there are almost as many Latino criminals as law enforcers in the media, Latino police officers or members of the military actually appear three times more frequently than criminals on TV. Moreover, the maid role has decisively shifted to Latinas. If in the past, African-American actresses were primarily associated with this role, since 1996 Latina actresses and/or characters have played an impressive 69 percent of iconic maids in influential movies and shows as “Maid in Manhattan,” “Will and Grace” and, most recently, “Devious Maids.”

A related trend is that the range of roles played by Latinos has narrowed over time, most notably on television. So, whereas the Latino community has grown tremendously in numbers and diversity, 36.6 percent of Latino TV character appearances are

in law enforcement. Furthermore, a whopping 44.7 percent of Latino-coded television characters are either uncredited or unnamed. This means that nearly half of the time, the Latino character has no bearing on the story and is completely disposable.

Our study asked whether there was an explanation or interpretation of the situation to 27 media advocates and industry insiders, including quite a number of diversity executives. The responses varied, but there was a strong consensus around a number of arguments. The first was that decision-makers tend to hire mainly within their “comfort zone,” meaning people they know, are recommended by acquaintances, and/or share a similar background. Since the vast majority of top industry decision-makers are currently white and male, this results in hiring along the same racial and gender lines.

Similarly, there is a fear of displacement. As the industry is highly competitive, the opening up of opportunity to people who are “out of network” is often perceived as a threat to those already inside. In addition, these interpersonal dynamics are institutionally hard to change. Diversity executives rarely have the power to enforce diversity policies, and there is little will by top management to shift corporate culture to understand diversity as a fundamental ingredient of excellence rather than risk.

Lastly, there are broader cultural and political frames that make change difficult. In contrast to other racialized groups like African-Americans, Latinos are generally viewed as new arrivals and foreigners and, therefore, assumed to not have historically experienced discrimination nor greatly contributed to American culture, economy or politics.

As one interviewee put it, decision-makers consider that whatever the problem with Latinos in media is, “[they] didn’t do it.” Many Latinos in the industry also feel that they are seen as better suited for “unintellectual” labor like gardening rather than writing.

Inclusion of Latinos in media institutions is ultimately not perceived as a public good.

Mass media has an enormous effect on how people see themselves, relate to others and act in the world.

Specifically, people largely imagine themselves and their surroundings according to the stories that circulate in the public sphere; they also act according to the information provided through news outlets. So, if Latinos are not part of the story and the information available is limited and biased, this has at least two major consequences.

One, many Latinos will internalize that they are not valuable human beings, leading to diminished aspirations and possibilities. Two, many non-Latinos will incorporate these ideas and feel that they have a license to marginalize and even physically harm Latinos. Either way, we all lose.

We developed a number of recommendations aimed at industry leaders, media advocates, advertisers and consumers. Our basic assumption in crafting these is that deep change will only take place when we all work together.

On the industry level, we recommend that top leadership hire diverse executives with effective decisionmaking power; enable diversity executives to implement diversity policies; develop the existing, deep and underutilized Latino talent pool; and reward programming and movies that attract high ratings by featuring non-stereotypical Latino characters and story lines.

Since our report studied the role of media advocacy and the impact of consumer behavior, we also developed recommendations for advocates and viewers.

For instance, we recommend that advocates support research on new trends, identify game-changing challenges and increase the use of social media to engage a greater number of consumers.

We similarly advise that Latino consumers frequently communicate both critical and supportive perspectives on existing programs, movies and companies and provide alternative visions for Latino representation through online content production and consumer campaigns. Given the high rates of Latino online production and contributions to media innovation, we likewise suggest that companies invest in young talent as early as possible.

Ultimately, despite finding limited Latino participation across the industry, we also found room to be hopeful. Latinos consumer power, advocacy effectiveness and contributions to new media are on the rise. If this creativity is supported and consumer engagement expanded, the convergence may accelerate the current rate of change, at last closing the Latino media gap.

Johnnie Walker’s Next Steps: Story by

Laura Rivas

R

Photos contributed

espect and vision are key components of César Melgoza’s leadership philosophy. “Leadership needs to be earned. It begins with being well-respected. It starts there, and you need to have a vision. If you don’t have a vision, you’re probably a manager, not a leader. There’s a place for both.”

Founder and CEO of Miami-based Geoscape, Melgoza had a vision for his company that began to take shape during his graduate studies and solidified while he gained experience in the business world, as he identified information and a technical infrastructure that was lacking then made the decision to take his idea to fruition.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology from The University of California, Santa Barbara, Melgoza became interested in public policy which led to a master’s degree from The University of Texas at Austin’s LBJ School of Public Affairs. It was during this time that he served as a research associate for UT’s Center for Mexican American Studies and for one of the first Hispanic market research firms. “For my master’s thesis, I focused on the Latino market—even back then—called ‘Chicanos in the New Economy’ that focused on what was likely to happen in a situation like California, where you have an increase in population 28 • October / November 2014

but are lagging behind in areas like education and what could happen with that kind of mix,” he says.

After returning to California, Melgoza went to work for Apple, integrating databases with digital mapping technology, and then for Strategic Mapping where he led the company’s marketing and international business development. “I noticed a couple of things that were needed. One, especially coming from Apple, the technology was difficult to use, and I felt I could do something about that. Second, there were certain market segments that were not well served.” He noted the growth of cultural segments in the United States, but a lack of information about those consumers. Thus, Geoscape was created in 1995 to provide actionable business intelligence via unique data, technology and analytic services to help clients access high-growth opportunities in a culturally-diverse business environment. “Hispanics

César M. Melgoza Founder and CEO of Miami-based Geoscape

and Asians are the majority of the growth if you add them together,” he says. “We help people understand that so that they can put the right products on the right shelves, advertise in ways that are relevant and build products that serve these communities, ultimately accelerating the growth of their businesses.” Right now, Melgoza’s continued goal is to get the word out to companies, many of which are still putting their marketing dollars toward consumer segments that are not growing. With clients that include Time Warner Cable, Goya Foods, AARP and Verizon Wireless, Geoscape has built great momentum over the last 20 years. The addition of an Amsterdam office has made the company a global resource, offering its services to European clients facing multicultural and multinational challenges.

Outside of Geoscape, Melgoza is a strong advocate for Hispanic businesses and consumers. His expertise is often sought by media organizations such as the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and CNN, as well as by dozens of marketing, business and public service conferences. In 2012, he was appointed to the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce (USHCC), where he currently serves as audit committee chair and is also chairman of USHCC’s Region VI which covers the southeastern United States and Puerto Rico. With the continued focus on his thriving company and his endeavors to boost the

visibility of the Hispanic market, it is little wonder that time is Melgoza’s most precious commodity. “I’m a single father of two wonderful and beautiful little girls. I’m running my company, trying to stay healthy, but I still have a lot of fun.” Miami, he says, is a great place for someone with his love of music and the outdoors.

For entrepreneurs and those like him who work in the corporate arena but dream of their own businesses, Melgoza emphasizes the need for investment capital. “My investors came from Goldman Sachs,” he says. “I brought them in as financial partners in 2007 and learned quite a bit from that process, things that will help me going into the future.

I would start looking into venture capital, private equity, valuation questions, growth of capital—all those financial subjects are going to be very important if you decide to create your own business.” latinoleaders.com

Story: Julie

GARCIA Photos by: Jeremy Fraser of La Exposures

Dascha polanco Role model for a new wave Dascha Polanco knows that when her manager and agent get her on a three-way phone call, something big is happening.

30 • October / November 2014

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“When they have really good news, both of them get on the phone and try to surprise me,” Polanco said. “I get nervous because I’m thinking, ‘OK, so what is it?

Maybe it’s something bad.’ Then they give me the news.”

Polanco reads and writes in Spanish, which came in handy when she did press junkets in Mexico over the summer.

“I speak mostly Spanish at my house,” Polanco said. “My parents made sure that I maintained our culture, and I also make it my business to take it on and practice it.”

After the family moved to Miami when she Fortunately, it was good news. was in middle school, Polanco was entrenched in a different kind of Latin atmosphere.

“It was a culture change - Miami is very Latino,” she said. “When you get there, it’s a different kind of Latino.” he last time that occurred was before filming began for While in high school, Polanco became a thespian, participatthe third season of the wildly popular Netflix series, ing in dance class and drama productions. The young Latina “Orange is the New Black,” where Polanco plays the returned to New York after graduating high school to continue role of Dayanara “Daya” Diaz. her education. She first attended Kingsborough Community Polanco had officially been upgraded from a recurCollege in Brooklyn before transferring to Hunter College, a ring character to a series regular on “Orange,” which City University of New York school. Though she was on the was nominated for 12 Emmys this year and won three psychology path, Polanco continued her arts education with for Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series, Outstanding Cast for acting courses at Hunter. a Comedy Series and Outstanding Single-Camera Editing for a Comedy “Acting has always been what I wanted to do,” Polanco said.

Series.

“Ever since I could remember, I would imitate soap operas “It’s a big step in my career going from being a guest star to becomand try to play them out with me and my dolls - it was all about ing a series regular,” Polanco said. “You see me quite often (now). I do performing. … But [life experiences] led me to focus on other have that title now.” things, and I wasn’t ready for rejection,” she said. “I had to It’s hard to imagine the series, which details the lives of women in a take care of my family and go the safe route.” minimum-security prison in New York, without Polanco’s portrayal of The safe route turned into a comfortable job at a New York “Daya,” a young woman who finds herself in the same cell block as her hospital. But it didn’t feel right, Polanco said. estranged mother, Aleida. Polanco is one of seven Latinas who have recurring or main roles on the show, all of whom are working to break “To be honest, I felt out of place in the hospital setting. I typical Latina stereotypes that are often portrayed in American enterenjoyed working with the patients, but I wasn’t happy,” she tainment. said. “I would go home and think, ‘This isn’t the life I want.’”

“I just want to give Latinos a message that you shouldn’t feel like misfits, or you shouldn’t feel different,” Polanco said. “You should feel While still working full time, Polanco began taking acting unique and not worry about what you’re doing as long as you’re doing courses at the behest of her then-fiancé. She met her manager what you love. I’m proud to be a Latina. This is a new wave; this is our after one of the classes ended for the semester, and that’s moment; this is our time.” when things got interesting.

T

Maintaining culture

A little more than two years ago, Polanco wasn’t a recognizable face on the subway in the five boroughs of New York City. She was a mother of two young children with a bachelor’s degree in psychology who worked at an area hospital.

Born in the Dominican Republic, Polanco and her family moved to Brooklyn when she was two years old.

“I pretty much was raised here, so all I know is American culture,” she said. “My parents are Dominican, and they helped me know the culture well. My mom wanted to make sure I knew my Spanish language as well as my English. It was all about maintaining both our customs and keeping them alive.”

32 • October / November 2014

Life-changing opportunity

Polanco landed a minor role in “Gimme Shelter,” a 2013 film starring Vanessa Hutchins, Rosario Dawson and Brendan Frasier, which she said was her first taste of a new life, thinking “wait a second, I might be going in the right direction.”

Though feeling confident with the movie role and other bookings, Polanco still couldn’t see leaving the 9-to-5 work world to be a full-time actress.

“When you have responsibilities, you can’t push everything aside; you need a paycheck,” she said. “[Acting jobs] weren’t consistent. That’s when I decided to do nursing and stick to that plan – go up the ladder and do the hospital thing.”

L at ino Le a de r s

“You should feel unique and not worry about what you’re doing as long as you’re doing what you love. I’m proud to be a Latina.

This is a new wave; this is our moment; this is our time.”

latinoleaders.com

RED LIPS, GREEN JACKET Polanco sports a jacket, shirt and pants from Ports1961, shoes by Ivanka Trump and jewelry by Givenchy.

34 • October / November 2014

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L at ino Le a de r s

“It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s my responsibility as a Latina, as a curvy Dominican woman with two kids. It’s an honor that people look up to me.”

36 • October / November 2014

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Then, she landed the role on “Orange,” which premiered June 11, 2013.

Though not the first Netflix original series, the female-centric show has pioneered a new way for consumers to watch television in the Internet age. Even though she didn’t know whether the show would make it past a pilot episode, Polanco was happy to be a part of what would become one of the nation’s favorite guilty pleasures.

“I can actually say I’m an actress. I’m in the entertainment business. … I embrace it, and I’m very grateful for it,” Polanco said.

“I was able to book a recurring role, and I am a fan of ‘Weeds,’ so I was happy with (creator Jenji Kohan). I never focused on what it was going to be; I just focused on doing a good job and really fitting into the character and the writers’ energy.”

Perks of stardom

With the third season of “Orange” only months away, Polanco continues to acclimate to red carpets, selfies with fans and the constant eyes of critics.

“I don’t get tired of pictures or seeing people who get excited to see me and look up to me,” she said.

As a curvaceous Latina, Polanco has shot to stardom in a time of revolutionary beauty standards and is thankful

WHO IS sHE?

to portray a person of color with a thicker body type.

• Has over 103 “The audience has been amazing, thousand Twitter the fans are amazing, and I enjoy interfollowers acting with them,” she said. “I didn’t • Mother to Aryam and have (role models on TV) growing up.

Dasany I never thought, ‘Oh, I have her size, I look like her, and she eats potato chips • Met her then-fiance and loves to eat,’” Polanco said. at a Dominican Day parade “I want women to wear mini-dresses and feel sexy, and people have been so thankful for that. They have really connected with me.”

Since the Emmys earlier this year, Polanco has become a regular on red carpetedaward shows, including the Alma Awards in October and fashion shows. During Fashion Week 2014, she caused a stir when she was pictured with purple hair.

“People went crazy, but it was a wig,” Polanco said, laughing.

“Growing up, I always played with hair, and I wore wigs in high school and had my hair underneath. You have to take care of it.”

With 700,000 and counting followers on Instagram, the actress said she makes a point to connect with her fans through social media.

Dascha Polanco

latinoleaders.com

“I try to respond as best as I can,” Polanco said. “I try to because I know that your audience is very present, but they feel nonexistent.

“When they reach out to me and call me a role model, it’s scary and a big responsibility. At the same time, they’re looking up to me and see that I’m not perfect, and that’s OK.”

The work continues

“I don’t care if it’s in the hospital or in the public eye, I wanted to do something to help other individuals.”

38 • October / November 2014

A deeper look at the look Dasha Polanco’s team of Lucky Smyler (makeup), Cynthia Alvarez (hair), Styledbyrock (wardrobe) and Mr. Luis Nails (manicure) prepared this starlet for style with a flashy evening gown from Jovani Fashions, Jewelry by Daniel Espinosa and shoes by Carlo Pazolini.

In addition to her work on “Orange,” Polanco has a small role in an upcoming Adam Sandler film, “The Cobbler,” which will premier by the end of 2014.

She has also been playing different funny characters in Spanish language Old Navy commercials, she said.

“It’s fun. I get to play outside of prison,” she said, laughing.

For the foreseeable future, though, Polanco will focus on donning the trademark “Orange” garb of a khaki prison uniform, black shoes and minimal makeup. Lucky for her, “Orange” is filmed in New York so she is able to go home at night after a day of shooting to be with her family.

“New York is my community; it’s my home,” she said.

As a public figure, a mother and an American, Polanco said she continues to better herself.

“I’m working on myself to be a better person, have a healthier life because I do have influence on people,” she said. “It’s a lot of pressure, but it’s my responsibility as a Latina, as a curvy Dominican woman with two kids. It’s an honor that people look up to me.”

Polanco’s experience in the hospital industry has strengthened a natural desire to give.

“I don’t care if it’s in the hospital or in the public eye, I wanted to do something to help other individuals,” she said. “To me, that’s what we’re supposed to do.

It shouldn’t be a surprise; we shouldn’t get an award; it should be considered a normal practice to be ready to pick people up and not push them down. Every person I meet, every relationship, every part of this experience is contributing to me and how I’m living now. I love it, I enjoy it, and I’m going to use it to the best of my knowledge.”

Story by Carlos Anchondo Illustration by Andrei Dobrescu

Cristina Ibarra Currently working on a documentary entitled The Infiltrators, this Chicana director and producer has been making films for the past 14 years. The creator of the acclaimed 2014 film Las Marthas talks about food, the border and the place she calls home.

Favorite season along the border? Are there really any? Best childhood hangout? Durango, the small town my family is from. Favorite novel? One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Which film of yours are you most proud of? All of them, although the first was definitely hardest to figure out. Guilty pleasure? Chocolate ice cream. Something you never leave home without? My underwear. Living person you most admire? My dad. Favorite restaurant of all time? Olea in Brooklyn, New York. Sports team you cheer for? The US Olympic gymnasts. The talent you’d most like to have? To be in two places at once. Best part about the border? My family. Do you have to self-censor your films? No, the goal is always to

search for the truth and censorship would defeat that purpose. What has filmmaking taught you? Do not be afraid of being specific. People are very smart and will connect to something that feels real.

The more specific you are, the more real the film feels. What about the border do you most try to convey in your films? I feel that

the border is a third space.

The culture and the land feel like a different space to me, almost like its own country. It’s a boundary constructed by its own history. Thoughts on objectivity? I try to be as truthful as I can to the character, to the protagonists themselves. I don’t look for objectivity as much as I do for emotional truths. Why Las Marthas?

I’m always interested in different ways of looking at the border,

40 • October / November 2014

inside out. The national media often looks at the border in very cold terms, but for me, I’m looking at the people who live there. I found the debutantes of Las Marthas to be such a contradiction and I wanted to understand the legacy behind this celebration. Any preconceived notions going into Las Marthas? From the outside, it can look like an assimilation ritual. But when you really look at the layers of the celebration and start to peel them back, you realize they are celebrating their place in society as the elite, as debutantes that anywhere else in the United States would be Anglo. Las Marthas is a multiplicity of identities layered in this one background.

They are celebrating what it means to be an American, but in their own way. Thoughts on current status of Latinos in the United States? Sometimes, people

ask me if I only want to make films about Latinos or is that putting me in a box. I do not like that mentality because then you’re thinking of Latinos as being separate from Americans, away from the majority of the U.S. We need to change that mentality because we are a part of the system and we need to view a Latino film as an American film as well. Goal of your filmmaking? I hope to tilt the lens a little, when we think about what is a border film. We need to think of the border as not just one story but in a variety of different ways.

Latino Leaders Magazine pays tribute to Oscar de la Renta, the iconic Dominican fashion designer. A visionary, de la Renta will always be remembered for his great innovation and intuition, leaving a legacy that will endure for many years to come.

“WORK HARD. BELIEVE IN YOURSELF. IT’S NOT THE PUBLICITY THAT SELLS THE CLOTHES, IT’S THE WOMAN.” - Oscar de la Renta 1932 – 2014

PUTTING THE PIECES

TOGETHER O PANTELION COO EDWARD ALLEN’S STRATEGY FOR THE PUZZLING LATINO MARKET Story by Judi

Jordan

Photos by Ejen

Chuang

It looked so easy. Fifteen years ago, when the booming Latino film market was predicted, who could have imagined how challenging and capricious it would prove? Worse than trying to gather a dysfunctional family of vegans, veggies, carnivores and gluten/lactose-abstinent folks around a holiday table, it’s a cultural challenge spread up, down and across our many states, front-loaded with every possible regional nuance, religious and emotional response.

44 • October / November 2014

latinoleaders.com

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The Post-Colombian Path of Edward Allen

E

nduring hits like “Y Tu Mama Tambien,” “Selena,” “Mi Familia,” “La Bamba,” “Amores Perros,” “El Norte,” “Pan’s Labyrinth” and even “La Misma Luna” feel like distant landmarks – with too many films since aiming at the elusive target of the collective Latino soul only to miss the mark – until Pantelion’s release, “Instructions Not Included” blew up the box office.

Laughter, family values, dead-on casting and the avid fan base of Mexican superstar Eugenio Derbez were among the successful ingredients of the crowd-pleasing film, which Pantelion, in close collaboration with their partner Televisa, lucratively marketed to a worldwide gross of $100 million. Not bad for an initial investment of $5 million. ‘Instructions’ – a familywelcoming comedy with a modern family twist - proved the highest-grossing Spanish language film ever released in the US. The Televisa machine paid off with 24/7 Univision promotion and countering the possible effects of over saturation, they released “Instructions” with subtitles in the U.S. before its release in Mexico, with incredible results. After the initial smash opening it was a matter of pacing and intense, well-measured, roll-out marketing. This was the missing puzzle piece that Pantelion found to the tune of $100 million.

Until this astounding success, it seemed that avid Latino film audiences would rather 46 • October / November 2014

It’s been a colorful journey for Bogota-born Pantelion COO Edward Allen.

His father was in the Foreign Service when he met and married Allen’s mother. Allen grew up in La Paz, Bolivia and lived in Cartagena.

When the family came to the U.S., he attended Boston College, where he studied finance. Allen worked in the finance industry as an asset manager in New York for Citibank, Standard Asset Management and Rayner & Stonington. During that time, he was a regular consultant who expressed his opinions about the capital markets on CNBC, Fox News, Bloomberg TV and Yahoo Finance. Allen quickly ascertained that the constricted world of finance would not hold his interest and opted for the winding road of cinema. He worked in business development and content acquisitions for Celestial Tiger Entertainment, a Hong Kongbased media company owned

by Lions Gate. Before his career in entertainment, Allen’s work in China for LG confirmed his hunch that entertainment was his destiny. His Latin American roots were too deep to deny, and he looked for a way westward. In what is apparently characteristic thoroughness, Allen sent out 750 personalized query letters with resumes in search of the right gig. His timing was right.

Pantelion was receptive. Allen’s unique and cross culturally positive, subtle, hands-on management style was a good fit for the top-tier teamwork that lay ahead with the dynamic, brash, mercurial and self-admittedly ADD CEO Paul Presburger.

Presburger calls Allen “the glue” that holds the company together – high praise from wheeler-dealer Presburger, who relies heavily on Allen to steward the ship he’s continually expanding.

Without being self-effacing, Allen is low-key and accessible, focused and attentive without being anxious. He gets high marks from his staff, who say they feel supported by Allen’s open door policy. In the high stress world of developing, producing, distributing and marketing entertainment, he’s the ship’s anchor in the creative storm.

see predictable popcorn tent poles [big studio franchises] with Latino-cast-inclusive movies like “Fast and Furious 5” than the more personal Latino-American fare that was emerging from filmmakers locally and globally.

Escapist action films are pricey and demand A-list star power to get studios to sign off on big budgets. Yet many of those lose money, too, unless they are well marketed, and that takes another fortune. It’s a vicious cycle, and nobody knows this better than Pantelion COO Edward Allen.

Low-key, accessible and hands-on as a manager, Allen is a popular and admired leader in the energetic, pan-Latino team of Pantelion.

His team, a “united Latino nations” of energetic and talented film and TV professionals spontaneously sing his praises as a great listener, a supportive, considerate, goal-oriented and committed, Spanish-fluent boss.

But none of this emerges from Allen’s self-promotion. As his team is developing, producing and marketing, Allen is quietly slaving away— typing his emails and keeping the business running smoothly.

In contrast to many flamboyant Hollywood executives, Allen has a distinctly subtle and unpretentious personality. His Santa Monica office is modest by any exec standard, and aside from a nice view of the courtyard and fountain, it’s clearly a place where work gets done. There is no air of luxury here.

That’s Edward Allen — elegant simplicity, tackling the task at hand. He does not flaunt his Colombian roots, but he is clearly devoted to his family.

Though his father has passed on, he cherishes the time he spends with his mother and siblings, and he’s an anxious father to an active toddler and a newborn. Allen shares his ideas and thoughts gently, clearly and purposefully, without flourish.

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My style is to give people ownership.

When you assemble the right team, you have to let them do their thing.

Allow them to flourish, and it’s amazing what happens when you give people ownership and responsibility.

Latino Leaders: Why did you take this on?

It’s a nut that few have cracked.

Edward Allen: To build and give something to the Latino community – something that hasn’t been given to them before, something that they want. That and my roots. My mom’s Colombian. I was born in Bogota, and lived in Cartagena and La Paz. It’s a big part of why I took on the challenge. And the opportunity. When you look at the film industry, there are very few places of growth.

It’s a very nice time to be involved. It’s not a zero-sum proposition.

LL: What’s been the problem? Everyone seems to get stuck at some point.

EA: The film industry is not a cheap industry to be operating in, and I think we went into this understanding that we needed many ‘at bats,’ to use a baseball analogy. It really meant having to be diligent about our costs and taking measured risks, and it didn’t happen overnight. It didn’t take decades for us, but we learned from other people’s mistakes, and we learned from our own mistakes. But we were willing to try different things. We knew that we didn’t know the answers. We didn’t come into this with any idea of what was going to work.

We knew that the answer was somewhere when you did the math and you look at how many Latinos there are in this country who go to the movies and how many consume TV. It was sort of maddening going and giving them films and trying to provide them with movies you thought they would respond to, and they wouldn’t. And our audience isn’t going to go to a movie just because it’s a Latino movie. It doesn’t give you a free pass. Their $12.00 admission is the same cost to go see “Iron Man,” so we have to entertain them the way that any other film is going to entertain them.

LL: How does this differ from general marketing of films, and how are you dealing with it?

EA: There are more categories. In terms of the Latino experience, certain themes cross over that are pan Latin-American/ And we’re careful not to be too specific to any one country or region, and that is not an easy thing to do because if you make it too ambiguous it’s not good either. But to the extent that we can, we try to make the characters and the dialogue as accessible to as many as possible.

LL: What happened with your Cesar Chavez film? You marketed it like crazy. Diego Luna was on TV, radio, everywhere. You had a great cast with America Ferrera and Jacob Vargas. It was a really good film, but it didn’t soar.

EA: We left everything on the table with “Cesar.” We really believed in the film, but there was ambivalence to the Mexican experience of Cesar Chavez that the Puerto Ricans, Dominicans and Cubans didn’t care about. I would even go further in that in my opinion that the film is very specific to the Chicano experience. Even in Chicago and Houston and Dallas where there is a large Mexican audience, the film didn’t resonate in a way that we felt it would.

And that’s the difference between the Chicano experience of California that not everyone can appreciate and understand.

LL: But then along comes a $100 million dollar hit like “Instructions Not Included,” and the sun is shining again. What surprised you?

EA: The success of “Instructions” and the subsequent success of “Pulling Strings” – we did close to $6 million with that movie – all of a sudden, we saw potential for movies where we didn’t 48 • October / November 2014

think there was. Spanish language! We didn’t think there was such a big audience for heavily Spanish-language content. Now, we see it.

LL: So what is your style of leadership?

EA: My style is to give people ownership. When you assemble the right team, you have to let them do their thing. Allow them to flourish, and it’s amazing what happens when you give people ownership and responsibility. It can sometimes be a scary thing, but it’s amazing to see what happens when you have faith in people’s desire to want to grow into responsibility. And I also try to not make things very ‘solo-ed.’ I try to make people aware of everything that’s happening in and around the business. That’s important as well.

LL: What kind of risks are you willing to take and has your relation with Televisa helped or hindered?

EA: We’re very fortunate that we have the two parent companies that we have. On one hand, we’ve been very measured in the risks we’ve been taking because we knew that we had to figure out this puzzle. And it wasn’t going to happen with one or two movies. It was going to happen over the course of a few years, and both parent companies understood this. They’ve also given us a lot of opportunity because of their clout. We borrow a lot on the infrastructure and the relationships that the two companies have cultivated over the years. We’ve certainly benefitted from that.

There’s a good synergy between LG and Televisa.

We’re going to need to take risks going forward with the more acculturated Latino population. They are the growing audience. Fewer people are going to come to this country that are Spanish-language speakers. And the Latino population will continue to grow organically, and they will be predominately English-language speakers. And so they are very comfortable with English language content that they go out and consume all the big ‘tent pole’ movies.

So we’re going to have to take risks in that space; it’s going to be an interesting next chapter for us.

LL: Is there anything afoot with Netflix or Hulu?

EA: We have a relationship individually with them. They did a great job with our films. Netflix has been working with the filmmakers we work with. Knowing what’s going to drive your business is original content — the blockbusters have been commoditized. It comes down to original content that forces people to make the distinction between one channel and one platform. The whole “House of Cards” thing was a great bet, but an inevitable one. They have engaged premiere Latino filmmakers, there are some really good things happening there.

LL: How would you describe the overall vision for the kind of films and TV Pantelion plans to create and market?

EA: We want to provide aspirational programming. Our film audience doesn’t want to be reminded of the daily struggle. They want to see themselves as the heroes like any other audience does. So there may be certain shows in roles where there is a Cinderella aspect — Univision shows don’t focus on the mundane; they focus on the escape. Our audience wants to escape, and they want to aspire. They all came to this country for that very reason – for a better life. They want to see that we understand that, and a mistake that other Latino filmmakers have made is that its entertainment at the end of the day. And how do you measure up to tent poles? Giving them something nobody else can provide. It’s really hard for us to produce action or animated. We see the opportunities in comedies, family films and certain kinds of romantic comedies. Certain genres need characters that the audience can directly identify with, and a lot of that is cultural.

LL: Where are you developing production?

EA: We’re exploring different territories. It’s important to pick locations where we don’t compromise the creative aspect to the story, but certainly economics play a big role. If we can produce a movie somewhere with great tax benefits and crews of a certain standard, we’ll work there for sure. Mexico and the Dominican Republic are two countries where we have projects going.

LL: Is there a general Latino audience?

EA: There is no general Latino audience, but Televisa has understood that the audience wants to watch escapist shows, and that has been a very successful formula for them.

LL: Does your agreement with Televisa limit your budgets, and does this mean that you’re following the Televisa model? Is that limiting?

EA: We are open to working with creative people, and we can’t just rely on those that come through the Televisa network. We’re bound by the same guidelines. It doesn’t give you a free pass giving them something

that nobody else can provide – comedies, family films, genres where the story needs characters that the audience can connect to. We’re careful not to be too specific.

LL: How did you decide to switch from finance to film?

EA: My dad worked for the state department on the administration side, when we came back to the USA, I didn’t fit in. … It was difficult even though we were used to adapting. I studied standard finance because I thought it was the thing to do. Then, I went on a trip to Machu Pichu, and I could feel myself looking on this as an 80-year-old man asking myself, ‘Was that it?’ Self-awareness was an important exercise.

LL: How will you stay ahead of the curve as a Latino studio?

EA: By finding fresh, Latin talent to cultivate. A film is only as successful as the people involved.

LL: How did you get from finance to entertainment?

I know that you are essentially running the day-today at Pantelion. How did you make that transition?

EA: I sent out 750 personalized cover letters and résumés got my résumé to Paul Presburger. It’s a great collaboration. Paul’s very entrepreneurial; he saw the opportunity. We knew that we would have to figure out the puzzle and that it would take a few years. latinoleaders.com

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LEADERSHIP LANDING

L ATINO LEADERS

ISAIAH RODRIGUEZ MORTGAGE PLANNER, THE RODRIGUEZ GROUP

Born to Run: Esai for President

He’s a contender. Esai Morales steps into the ring to battle for the top job at the entertainment industry’s biggest union.

Story by Judi

54 • July / August 2013

Jordan

Photos by

Ejen Chuang

STORY BY: JOHNATHAN SILVER PHOTO BY: BETH COLLER

F

ind a dream home.

Find the right loan to finance it.

Figure out what escrow payment, fees and other terms mean.

Isaiah Rodriguez and his team make this all clear, whether you're looking to buy your first home or wanting to refinance.

Rodriguez, a Greater Los Angeles Area mortgage banker and planner, wants to make the home purchasing process as understandable and easy as possible for people in his community.

A banker for previous employers, Rodriguez enjoyed making a connection with clients and seeing them through the sometimes arduous path that is home buying. Before starting The Rodriguez Group, the California native wasn't satisfied with simply getting paperwork done and sending new homeowners on their way. He wanted conversations and a more proper interaction. Today, a first sit-down with Rodriguez might last hours.

What does he talk about: You. He wants to know all about you, your background, your intentions and especially your financial situation. It's always a good time to buy real estate, he says. But is it a good time for you, is the more important question, he adds.

Others simply might push a client to purchase a home so they can make a quick sale and sell off a mortgage to another entity.

After those 25 or 30 days, Rodriguez says, many planners are not involved with the new homeowner.

"That's it," he said. "They forget about the clients. They don't keep in touch."

Rodriguez wanted to be an exception to that custom. At The Rodriguez Group, the team's motto is "Your personal approach to mortgage planning."

And it is personal. He not only wants to know about the prospective home buyer. He wants to take in that knowledge and then dish out a lot of information about what the process entails in as clear a way as possible.

The group's operation is about cultivating an informed clientele that focuses on one of the largest debts they will have in life, and that's a mortgage, he explained.

That hands-on, personal approach is coupled with his team constantly needing to keep up with changes in the economy, loan market and other areas that affect their operations and clients.

"We have to be ahead of the game," said Rodriguez. "We have to be beyond the cutting edge and be able to present the various set of information to our clients in the most simplistic, layman's terms, without confusing them."

Rodriguez's sales career originated as a 15-year-old Foot Locker employee. He was born to Colombian parents, an aerospace engineer father and siblings each at least about 15 years his

senior. Also, he grew up in a rough neighborhood where gangs were predominant.

"I made it out alive with a tie."

With more than a decade of experience, Rodriguez makes it a point to meet with every client the group helps.

"Every client will be touched by me, no matter what," he said.

"They're going to hear from me. We're going to interact. The majority of my time is speaking with clients and having a lot of interaction with them."

He also takes pride in being forthcoming with clients, he added, explaining that clients are given a percentage of the commission back as a lender credit and are informed that the group makes much of its revenue by selling their loans to big banks. That isn't a common practice in the industry, he noted.

"This is something that a lot of brokers or loan officers do they won't disclose to their clients, and we disclose. We are very transparent."

That approach has garnered much positive feedback. And it's noted on the group's Facebook page. There, clients and other members of the community share success stories, expressions of gratitude and shout outs to Rodriguez and his team.

He hopes to take that positive energy and success to new locations: Austin and an East Coast presence in Florida for the moment.

In Austin already is a friend of The Rodriguez Group. Austin realtor Sarah Williams shares the same passion as Rodriguez when it comes to client satisfaction. The two connected via social media, and today she sends her usually first-time home buyers only to The Rodriguez Group for loan services.

"My clients in Austin, they can't believe it. It's so funny," Williams said. "They're like, 'We get more information from him than we do from someone that's five minutes away from us.'"

Williams added she is happy with Rodriguez's group because she believes them to provide top-notch service, and she has a comeback for any who question her using only one loan service provider.

"I actually had an agent tell me the other day, 'Well, you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket just working with one lender,'" she said. "But, I told her I'm so confident in their team, I don't worry about it."

Rodriguez notices the demographic changes in the country revealing an emerging Latino population in the country. This change also has manifested in a boon in Latinos purchasing homes, which will prove to make a large impact, because with the mortgage financing education that businesses like his promotes, the population will be better informed on how to manage such debt and build wealth with real estate, Rodriguez said.

"The more awareness we have, the more financial success we'll see in our community."

GETTING TO KNOW ISAIAH Favorite novelist or writer: Tom Clancy, Jim Rohn If you could have any other career it would be: Three alternatives - building, racing cars; something in the health industry; aerospace engineer You never leave home without: Pressed juice and Nike Fuelband I like to spend my free afternoons: Taking coastal drives, being out by the beach with family My worst habit: Not knowing when to disconnect (ex. responding to text messages from clients during dinner) The last movies I saw: "Skyfall" and "Fast and Furious 6" My favorite thing to wear is: Polos My favorite thing to eat: Cuban food (He still loves some Colombian food) One thing on my bucket list: Go on a weeks-long vacation and drive race car in the Spanish coastal village of Sa Calobra

latinoleaders.com

Experience the lives of our leaders digitally.

Latino Winemakers Amelia Morán Ceja

16 • July / August 2013

EVENTS

Property & Vineyards: 113 acres in the Carneros Region.

AVA(s): Carneros, Sonoma Coast First Vintage: 2001 Current Labels: 2009 Napa Carneros Chardonnay ($34), 2008 Vino de Casa Red Blend ($20), 2009 Sonoma Carneros Merlot ($34), 2010 Bella Flor - Dry Rosé of Syrah & Pinot Noir ($50), 2009 Sonoma Coast Syrah ($34), 2010 Sonoma Coast Sauvignon Blanc ($22), 2009 Carneros Pinot Noir ($40), 2007 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon ($50), 2008 Napa Valley Dulce Beso (Sweet Kiss) ($40).

Where to get it: By law, they only ship wine to adults 21 and older in the following states: AK, AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, HI, IA, ID, KS, LA, IL, MI, MN, MO, NC, ND, NE, NH, NV, NM, NY, OH, OR, SC, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA, WI, WV, WY. For shipping wine to other states please contact Ceja Vineyards. Adult signature is required upon delivery. Case production has increased from 750 cases to 10,000 cases per year, and Ceja wines are offered at some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the United States.

flavors and her experience with food that have shaped her life choices. Long before the California legislature recognized Amelia as “Woman of the Year” in 2005 for “breaking the glass ceiling in a very competitive business,” the first Mexican-American woman ever to be elected president of a winery was on the frontier of wine. The dynamo behind more than 140 video blogs since 2009 on preparing Mexican cuisine and pairing it with wine, Amelia has introduced thousands to exciting flavor combinations they never dreamed of.

Embracing both her Mexican heritage and American home, Amelia combines the best of what she finds in food and drink, tradition and innovation. “As a minority cellar, we are shaping the wine industry,” explains Amelia, who was honored as the “most outstanding female leader, innovator and visionary in the wine field in the North Bay” by North Bay Business Journal at its 2008 Women in Business gala.

“We’re embracing the best in both cultures and tossing away what doesn’t work,” says Amelia. “I don’t want to be homogeneous; my experience is enhancing my adopted country.

We’re making both of our cultures better. Why not share what is wonderful—and keep it?” Salud!

Brief Story of the Winery: Ceja Vineyards is an ultrapremium Latino family-owned winery in the Napa Valley. It was founded in 1999 by Amelia, Pedro, Armando and Martha Ceja – first generation Mexican-American immigrants. Their dedication to sustainable agriculture and the gentle handling of the grapes in the cellar can be tasted in every sip of their legendaryestate-grown wines.

Ceja Pinot & Chardonnay Tasting Notes: Everybody does Chardonnay and Pinot Noir these days and sometimes, it is really easy to get confused and not stand out with your wine. But this is certainly not the case with Ceja wines.

First and foremost, the Ceja family has one of the best-ever brand ambassadors that have ever existed: Amelia Morán Ceja.

A lady with a fascinating conversation, delectable hospitality and an incredible product to back her up. Her enthusiasm is highly contagious, and it is really hard to not fall for her wines after you know her.

Ceja Vineyards has received numerous awards including: The California Latino Legislative Caucus 2012 Latino Spirit Award. The Spirit Awards recognize those businesses/ individuals that exemplify the spirit of the Latino community and have contributed to the State of California. Inc. Magazine selected Ceja Vineyards “Entrepreneur of the Year 2004” (one of seven) in the January 2005 issue. In addition, Ceja Vineyards was named “Best New Winery” in 2002 by over 90 of the world’s most prestigious wine writers, case production has increased from 750 cases to 10,000 cases per year, and Ceja wines are offered at some of the most acclaimed restaurants in the United States including the French Laundry.

Ceja Vineyards, Napa Carneros Chardonnay 2009 ($34) I first tasted the Chardonnay as many of the Ceja Family friends gathered at a cookout dinner at their home with lemon and garlic grilled oysters. I will never forget it with the setting sun, the warm summer Napa afternoon and the great experience of trying the wine with them. This one is filled with tropical fruit, citrus, melon, kiwi and pear. Good body and acidity, balanced and still enough personality to be a distinguished wine. Nice oak, not overwhelming the fruit flavors, and a buttery and creamy finish.

Who is Amelia Ceja?

In 1967, Amelia Morán Ceja immigrated to the U.S. to join her father, a farm worker, who toiled for years in California’s vineyards. Today she’s crossing another border, turning upwardly mobile Latinos into wine aficionados with here subtle blend of viticulture, down-home cuisine and a Web-based marketing campaign.

A strong matriarchal tradition in her family fostered Amelia’s independent spirit, but more than anything, Amelia feels it is

Ceja Vineyards Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2008 ($50) This could be one of my favorite wines for lunch.

Low in tannins and acidity, flowery and spiced.

Perfect for a roast beef sandwich, a steak salad or even some pasta. I love the spiciness of the wine with light peppery and clove notes and violet and plum accents at the peak. It has a great finish, long and pleasant.

PHOTOS FOR LATINO LEADERS BY AJ KANE

VIcente J. Fernandez, Neredia Corona, and Cristal Garcia

June 6, 2013 Sheraton Chicago Hotel & Towers

CLUB LEADERS OF THE FUTURE

Ceja Vineyards President and Owner: Amelia Morán Ceja

THE LATINO LEADERS team invited a new batch of Club Leaders of the Future (CLF) to Chicago to network and be part of the conversation. They had a lively roundtable while chatting about personal experiences. Here’s what our new leaders had to say about the event and Club Leaders of the Future:

PRESENTED WITH THE SUPPORT FROM:

Victor Herrera and Joe Garcia

ATTENDEES: Anabel Galeana Abarca Congressional Aide 5th District, Illinois

Gabriel Chavez Program Manager Exelon Nuclear

Ramon Saucedo Relationship Manager Chase

Andres Baltazar Financial Representative// Field Director Northwestern Mutual

Jacqueline Gomez Director Office of Contract Compliance at Cook County

Ricardo A. Garcia Language & Cultural Ambassador Spanish Ministry of Education

Jesse Ruiz Securities Group DrinkerBiddle&Realth,LLP

Veronica Arreola Director Women in Science and Engineering Program: University of Illinois at Chicago

Benjamin Bernal Trustee Fox River Water Reclamation District Cristal Garcia Administrative Assistant ASPIRA Inc. of Illinois Edgar Delgado Contracting Officer General Services Administration

Joe Garcia Chief of Staff Office of Senator Martin A. Sandoval Leonore Sanchez Deputy Village Clerk Village of Maywood

Emmanuel N. Kinard Lending Manager TCF National Bank

Neredia Corona Associate Director Kraft Foods

Ennedy D. Rivera Esq. Special Prosecutor Wysocki & Smith

Noe Fragoso Broker Associate Northlake Realtors

“I’m still new to the CLF concept, but I believe that anything that helps upcoming and rising Latino leaders of Chicago come together is a great thing. So many of us want to work hard for our Latino communities and Chicago in general. I’m excited to work with everyone!.”

--- Veronica Arreola

Vicente J. Fernandez VP / Co-Founder SportsManias.com

The CLF: Chicago group.

Victor Herrera Executive Vice President National Society of Hispanic MBA’s

“I think the best part of the evening was when each of shared a bit of our background and what drives us to do what we do.

It was a special part of the evening, where each of us could draw some parallels but also see some fantastic differences.”

Rachel Gonzalez Economics & Communications University of Michigan

To read more quotes about this event and learn moreaboutotherevents,visitLatinoLeaders.com

--- Gabriel Chavez

Gabriel Chavez, Benjamin Berbal and Ennedy Rivera chat

62 • December 2012 / January 2013

Find them here

www.latinoleaders.com www.petroleoenergia.com

www.lideresmexicanos.com

Connecting Leaders, In spiring the Future

events September 18, 2014 Goodyear, AZ

Latino Thought Panels

CTCA at Western Regional Medical Center

A Growing Threat:

Preventing Cancer in Latinos

Miriam Trejo sits with Robert Wascher (second from right), Chief of Surgery, and Madappa Kundranda (left), Medical Oncologist

Latino Leaders, in partnership with CTCA, will bring cancer awareness with a new series to introduce and explain the process of Diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

52 • October / November 2014

M

iriam Trejo learned she had Stage III breast cancer exactly 20 days before her 30th birthday.

“I remember the numbness I felt when I heard the words, ‘it is cancer,’” Trejo said as she shared her story during a recent discussion at Cancer Treatment Centers of America (CTCA), where she entered treatment this year. “My heart slowly sank to the bottom of my stomach as I struggled to catch my breath and keep my tears inside.”

Trejo is part of a growing minority population within the United States that’s facing higher risk factors for cancer: Hispanics. The American Cancer Society estimates that one in every three Hispanic women was diagnosed with cancer in 2012. For men, that number increases to one in two.

Panel coverage by

On Sept. 18, 2014, Trejo joined a group of clinicians and experts from CTCA at Western Regional Medical Center (Western) in Goodyear, Ariz., to discuss this exact issue, as well as how the Hispanic population can address it.

Preventing Cancer: Genetics or Lifestyle?

According to the CTCA presentation, titled “The Role of Diet and Nutrition in Cancer Prevention and Treatment,” 50 to 60 percent of all cancer cases could potentially be preventable with lifestyle changes.

“As a population, we’re getting older; unfortunately, we’re getting heavier. And in this country, we’re getting more ethnically diverse,” said Robert Wascher, MD, FACS, chief of surgery at CTCA at Western. “For example,” Dr. Wascher continued, “one out of five cancer cases is linked to tobacco.

And at least 50 percent of all cancer cases are linked to other modifiable risk factors such as diet, obesity, alcohol consumption, UV radiation (including tanning beds), sedentary lifestyle and delaying or skipping having children.”

Only about 5 to 10 percent of cancer risk is genetic, said Madappa Kundranda, MD, PhD, medical oncologist at CTCA. The rest can be related to one’s lifestyle and environmental factors.

“This is particularly important in the Latino community and other ethnic communities in this country,” Dr. Wascher said.

“There are some significant social, cultural and health risk factors that play out in those communities.”

Trejo couldn’t agree more. “The first message I want to send to the Latino community is about cancer screening,” she said. “I am younger than most breast cancer patients … I have probably gotten more annual exams than my mom has, but that’s just something I took upon myself—to make sure that I got regular screenings.”

Shari Lopatin | Photos by: Tavit Daniels

Trejo — who is also part of a patient sup- This certainly applies to breast cancer, port team at CTCA known as the Cancer colorectal cancer and cervical cancer,” Dr. Fighters program — said when it comes to Kundranda said. “One of the barriers to taking control of one’s screening, at least in part, own health, she worries is a cultural issue.” there is a lack of urgency So what can be done to The date was in the Latino community. help change perceptions March 6, 2014; “You kind of have to and make a difference in have that extra initiative to Trejo—who recently the Hispanic community? keep going, to keep fightSharon Day, RD, CSO, married—hadn’t ing and seeking answers, CNSC, registered dietitian yet celebrated and sometimes, I feel like and national director her first wedding in the Hispanic commuof nutrition at CTCA, nity, we don’t,” she said. explained how leaders in anniversary.

Before coming to the Latino community can CTCA, Dr. Kundranda help in their day-to-day worked at the Mayo Clinic and conducted lives. They can increase their physical activa retrospective study on the incidence and ity, establish better work/life balance and survival rates of breast cancer within the eat more fruits and vegetables. In essence, Hispanic population. The study followed they can initiate change in their communiabout 500 patients at the largest county ties through leading by example. hospital within Maricopa County. He said “As leaders, I think what happens is we the results showed that more than 70 take on more and more responsibilities, percent of these cancer patients were not and oftentimes, leaders forget to take care screened for breast cancer. of themselves,” Day said. “What it means to “We know screening is a key tool in early be a leader is not just doing more, but it’s detection and prevention of a disease. also taking better care of yourself.”

Left to right: Miriam Trejo, Robert Wascher, Madappa Kundranda and Sharon Day

Latino Thought Panels

CTCA at Western Regional Medical Center

CTCA is the first cancer hospital in the country to provide its patients with on-site organic produce, raised on the 69-acre Hope Springs Organic Farm in Arizona. Certified organic produce is used in chef-prepared patient meals — a service the hospital considers “nutrition therapy,” which helps keep patients nourished while undergoing traditional treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation and surgery.

Trejo, a high school math teacher from El Paso, Texas, said since coming to CTCA for treatment, she’s learned how to eat better, how to cook better and how to make time to care for herself. She’s even considered opening a grocery store to teach people how to buy healthy food.

to treating each individual cancer as its own disease.

“The number one differentiator for me, for Cancer Treatment Centers of America, is the integration (of treatment),” Day said. “We’re not working in silos. (As an RD), I can’t cure anyone from their cancer, or I can’t even get them through their treatment, if I’m not communicating with the medical oncologist, and with naturopathic physicians, and with rehabilitation therapist, and with the nurses. So we

work together as a team for the benefit of the patient.”

Nutrition plays an important role in the treatment process, Day continued, as the medical literature states that 80 percent of cancer patients are at risk for malnutrition. This may contribute to a decrease in quality of life, or even an interruption in treatment. For this reason, Day said all patients at CTCA are assigned a registered dietician who meets with them every visit and collaborates with the rest of their medical team.

One particular message remained consistent from every CTCA expert and panelist: quality of life. Everything the CTCA medical professionals do—from approaching therapy in an integrative, holistic manner, to the hospital’s organic farm—is to improve the quality of life for the patient.

For Trejo, this approach has made a difference. “The quality of my life has gotten better (since coming to CTCA),” she said.

“It’s actually better than what it was before (I got cancer).”

Trejo added that coming to CTCA was the right choice for her. “They’re passionate about what they do and that transpires to the patients,” she said. “(Cancer) is no longer a death sentence. It doesn’t have to be the end of the story.”

Treating Cancer in America: How It’s Changed “Fifty years ago, when we heard the word cancer, it was synonymous to a death sentence,” Dr. Kundranda said.

Today, that’s not always the case. Medical professionals have new therapies to treat cancer. The current five-year survival rate for cancer is 68 percent, according to the American Cancer Society.

Dr. Wascher said the main difference in treatment boils down to the multi-disciplinary, multi-specialty methods used at hospitals like CTCA. Cancer treatment has evolved from a one-size-fits-all approach, For more of the discussion, visit: 54 • October / November 2014

www.latinoleaders.com

Congratulations Southwest Airlines!

“Southwest Airlines is not only a great partner of the Hispanic Association on Corporate Responsibility, it’s also a great airline to fly. Its employees truly exemplify the ‘love’ symbol of the corporate logo because Southwest Airlines loves the Hispanic community. Through its partnership with HACR and other Hispanic community organizations, Southwest Airlines shows its support and commitment to us, and its generous donations are an investment in our work and the future of the Hispanic community.”

Cid Wilson President & CEO of HACR

“I have been flying Southwest Airlines for years, and I can say that they are the best when it comes to efficiency and reliability. As someone who is on the road all the time, I can attest that their system works, and I always make it to my commitments when traveling in this great airline.”

Hector Sanchez

Executive Director of Labor Council for Latin American Advancement and Chairman of National Hispanic Leadership Agenda

“Dependability and flexibility are important in today’s non-stop business world — that’s why Southwest Airlines is our official airline. Not only do they give us exceptional service, they also show us love.”

David C. Lizarraga

Founder and Chairman of TELACU Education Foundation

“Flying can be a challenge but Southwest crews, including the men and women in the cockpit and the flight attendants in the back, make every effort to create a pleasurable experience. From the Wi-Fi to the famous Southwest peanuts and pretzels, it all comes together quite nicely.”

Gaddi H. Vasquez

Senior Vice President of Government Affairs at Edison International/Southern California Edison

Latino Leaders Magazine wants to congratulate our good partners and friends at Southwest Airlines for the relevant milestones they are setting in the commercial aviation industry: the ending of the “Wright Amendment,” which allows commercial flights to have direct routes to many other airports throughout the country from the Dallas Love Field Airport, as well as its inauguration of Mexico routes from U.S. cities. This tremendous achievement shows Southwest’s leadership, hard work and determination to grow and progress. We admire the airline’s courage, its tenacity and the care it shows for the Hispanic community. With steps like these, we’re positive that Southwest will continue to lead in a very competitive industry, continuing to benefit the consumers and communities it serves. We will be there to witness these and many more milestones to come.

Jorge Ferraez

Publisher of Latino Leaders Magazine

latinoleaders.com

Franchise of Opportunity: Lourdes Cordero-Hilfman Lourdes Cordero-Hilfman is constantly on the go.

As a wife; mother of two children, Grace and Oasis Savannah; an active member in the Killeen community and a new franchisee for one of the most recognizable convenience store brands, 7-Eleven, CorderoHilfman’s day is jam-packed.

S

ince preparing for the opening of her franchise, which had its ribbon cutting in June, a normal day starts with much preparation in her store at 1000 South WS Young Drive in Killeen, Texas.

“I wake up in the morning, get to work and do what I have to do in my store,” Cordero-Hilfman said. “I make sure my employees are accountable and doing their job. I’m going to the bank and making deposits. Then I have to go pick up my kids, go to dance classes - the job never ends.”

Family woman, 7-Eleven franchisee, community leader, volunteer and a Zumba instructor a few times a week, CorderoHilfman embraces what it means to be a businesswoman in the 21st century.

Cordero-Hilfman was born in Illinois but lived her childhood and most of her young adult life in Puerto Rico. Businessminded from the beginning, Cordero-Hilfman graduated from University of Puerto-Arecibo and received a bachelor’s degree in communication in technology.

After graduation, Cordero-Hilfman decided to seek a career in the United States, which became her own land of opportunity.

“I graduated in June 2007, and I came to the States on Dec. 15, 2007,” she said. “There were better opportunities and a better future for me here.

“It was instilled in me to continue my studies,” she said. “I continue to stay driven and stay excited for the future, which is why I’m constantly on the go-go-go. I know everything hap-

“The system works, and it helps you get there if you have what it takes .”

58 • October / November 2014 2014

pens if you put your all and your equities in things. Really, I was willing to do it and put the effort, and I believed in myself.”

Graduating from Texas A&M University-Central Texas with an MBA, Cordero-Hilfman now had two degrees under her belt and determined it was important to find a career that would fit her already-busy life rather than the opposite.

“I actually concentrated more on my family. I had a baby at that time and stayed at home to nurture my child,” she said. “I have an 11-year-old, too, and I kind of focused on that aspect of my life - motherhood. I was looking at work based on the home, things that could have been flexible.”

With that goal of flexibility in mind, she discovered an opportunity with 7-Eleven in October 2013.

Cordero-Hilfman and her husband, Joel, felt that an investment into their own Killeen location was feasible for the family.

And in eight months, Cordero-Hilfman was a 7-Eleven franchisee and one of the newest faces in the company’s push for more Latinos becoming store owners in the United States.

“The system works, and it helps you get there if you have what it takes,” she said about the franchising process. “It’s about brand recognition. Everyone knows what 7-Eleven is.”

On top of all of her daily responsibilities, Cordero-Hilfman has been starring in a series of 7-Eleven commercials in English and Spanish and will soon participate in another upcoming commercial in Dallas, she said. After her commercial was presented at a 7-Eleven conference, Cordero-Hilfman said the crowd applauded and was excited about the message of getting more minority leaders in franchisee positions.

“I continue to get opportunities,” she said. “I have done (the commercials) with a Hispanic approach and concentrate on giving another turnaround of 7-Eleven bringing more awareness and being there for the Hispanic community. I’m young and Puerto Rican, which gave me the opportunity to be a spokesperson.”

Though fully stocked with all of the basic 7-Eleven amenities, Cordero-Hilfman wants to bring some of her culture and what she grew up with to her store.

“I carry some products and goods that have some flavor that differentiates my store from other 7-Elevens,” she said. “In

Puerto Rico, it’s about bakeries and having pastries and warm sandwiches and old ‘mom and pop’ stores with bread.”

Still new in her franchise, CorderoHilfman has to deal with daily struggles.

But with the support of her family and the company and with praise from the community, she takes it all in stride.

“Be passionate about what you want to achieve in your life. There’s no limit for success,” she said. “My goal is not just about having it all but about learning and overcoming obstacles.

“You have to continue overcoming obstacles, moving forward and looking for better opportunities,” she said. “It’s all about the attitude - it means everything. If you have a positive attitude and are optimistic, it will work out; it will happen.

Always look for alternatives.”

“You have to continue overcoming obstacles, moving forward and looking for better opportunities.”

Julie Garcia Contributed

Story by Photos

events

Nuevo Santander Gallery

McAllen,Texas

September 25, 2014

Food provided by: The Patio on Guerra

Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards:

The Entrepreneurial Spirit, South Texas Style Story by

Laura Reagan-Porras

Photos contributed SOCIALIFE

News Magazine

W

ith mild subtropical breezes, underneath rustling palm branches, the who’s who of business leadership gathered at Nuevo Santander Gallery in McAllen, Texas, to celebrate the entrepreneurial spirit of South Texas. The gallery contents, like the Rio Grande Valley where McAllen is nestled, is a convergence of the eclectic and iconic influences of faith and family. Faith and family are foundational to the success stories of the evening’s award recipients. The awardees attributed their success and work ethic to the blessing of Latino heritage, which fuels the fourth fastest growing economy in the nation, according to Forbes.

Publisher Jorge Ferraez hosted the event that awarded New York Life’s presidential awardees, called the Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards. He kicked off the evening by sharing his own story of entrepreneurism.

Ferraez and his brother began their publishing careers out of the back of their car trunk, selling a neighborhood newsletter. He has grown an international publishing empire that supports Latino leadership. For this reason, Latino Leaders Magazine is a perfect partner for New York Life. New York Life not only fosters entrepreneurship but also provides products that protect second and third generation wealth.

New York Life is a company of franchisees with a corporate central office that offers support to franchisees.

Co-host for the award event was Hector B. Vilchis, vice president of Cultural Marketing Latino Field. He proudly announced the awardees. The New York Life presidential awardees were Armondo Brennan and Gilberto Perez Jr., both McAllen residents.

Armondo Brennan has 20 years with New York Life. Brennan qualified for the Chairman’s Council level, of which out of 12,000 agents nationally, only 15 Latinos have reached this level. Brennan was impressed by the event and shared that he felt extremely honored by the award.

60 • October / November 2014

Jorge Ferraez, left, stands with New York Life awardees and Hector Vilchis, far right.

“I attribute my success to faith in God, faith in my ability to help others, a company which fulfills needs, faith in entrepreneurship, faith in our New York Life products, thereby demonstrating faith in our business.”

“In 1999, fifteen agents and I started a ‘cultural market of Latinos and for Latinos.’”

Brennan was invited by New York Life to form the market in McAllen, along with his fellows,” recounted Brennan. Today, New York Life sees McAllen as being the key to breaking through in the Latino market. Mr. Brennan reminisced that the marketing budget for the nationwide initiative began with $70,000.

“Today, there are 500 Latino agents in the company throughout the nation.

Life insurance is at the core of New York Life. Today there is more than $2 billion in life insurance for Latinos. I am very proud of the growth in our market and the contribution to family wealth business succession planning that we are making,” shared Brennan.

Vilchis also awarded Gilberto Perez Jr. the Chairman’s Council level reflected in the entrepreneurial spirit excellence award. Brennan recruited Perez to become a New York Life agent. Perez celebrates nine years with the company and has sold half a billion dollars in life protection and wealth transfer products. A large degree of that business is in equities, profit sharing plans and 401Ks.

with the support from:

Presented by:

Armondo Brennan, center, poses with his Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, presented by New York Life.

Generations of Rio Grande Valley residents gathered for the ceremony.

Attendees celebrate the success of those who earned New York Life’s Entrepreneurial Excellence Award.

“I attribute my success to my heritage and work ethic. I am the main employee in my office. I am the first in and the last to leave. I also attribute my success to the relationships we build. This is a belly-to-belly business meaning, we relate to our clients in all their life circumstances,” shared Perez. “The relational quality of business is a hallmark of New York Life and a hallmark of our shared Latino heritage.”

“We are a proud bilingual, binational and bicultural business,” exuded Perez.

Both awardees brought their award winning agents, Rhanda Zavala and Connie Hernandez. Each woman represented the new demographic. McAllen Metropolitan Statistical Area supports the fastest growing number of female entrepreneurs, shared guest, Cynthia Sakulenzki, the executive director of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce in McAllen.

Both awardees brought family members and clients, who seemed like family, to the awards dinner. More than half of the clients reflect the binational and bicultural nature of business on the Texas-Mexico border.

Client guests also honored at the banquet were, Naomi Garcia, business owner; Manuel Sanchez, MD in family practice; G. Athanasi Orfanos, MD, pediatrician; Yolanda De La Cruz, TV media; Carlos Ginther, commercial developer; Francisco Mario Zambada, business owner; Gilberto Garza, restaurateur; Francisco Ochoa, restaurateur; Cynthia Contreras Gutierrez, attorney; Mr. Noe and Ana Thelma Reyes, pediatric rehabilitation;

Gilberto Perez Jr., center, poses with his Entrepreneurial Excellence Award, presented by New York Life.

Antonio (Tony) Salinas, Jr. and Erica H. Salinas, home health owners; Deborah Cantu, business owner; Maria Columbra, MD, family practicioner; Larry and Jessica Delgado, restaurateurs; Jesus and Thelma DeLeon, funeral home owners.

Laura Reagan-Porras is a social issues freelance writer residing in south Texas. latinoleaders.com

PUTTING STUDENTS FIRST Story by Carlos Anchondo Contributed photos

Executive Director of the UT Institute of the Americas Juliet Garcia brings decades of experience to her newest leadership role.

Juliet Garcia always knew she would attend college.

“The expectation was there from the beginning,” says Garcia, who grew up in Brownsville as the daughter of a Mexican immigrant. “My parents set us on that path from the start. It was never if we were going to college but a matter of how.”

Garcia, who is the first generation in her family to earn a college degree, calls her parents her greatest advocates, starting from her first forays into public school.

“After kindergarten,” says Garcia, “I was given a test that placed me out of first grade and into second. My mother thought this sounded very nice until she realized they wanted to put me in a Spanish-speaking classroom instead of English.”

Promoted alongside a second student, an Anglo classmate and friend, Garcia’s predicament quickly became the topic of family conversation, where it was resolved that her mother would speak to the principal to settle the problem.

When Garcia’s mother approached the principal, she was told there was nothing he could do and that Juliet would have to spend the second grade in the Spanish classroom.

Undeterred, Garcia’s father made another appeal, only to be rebuffed again.

Hearing “no” a second time, Garcia’s father said he had no choice but to advertise this injustice in the local newspaper.

Chasing Juliet’s father down the hall, the principal relented, saying, “Mr. Villareal! Wait! We will find a place for your daughter in the English-speaking second grade.”

Inspired by her parents’ dedication to her education, Garcia has long remained a stalwart champion for children and young adults on their journey to higher education. On September 1, 2014, Garcia became the first executive director of the newly formed UT 62 • October / November 2014

Institute of the Americas, leaving behind a 23-year presidency at UT Brownsville. Garcia calls this latest position a moment she has been preparing for her whole career.

The institute is likened to the Aspen Institute of Colorado in that it will serve as a facilitant of ideas, a venue for discussing global issues in a nonpartisan environment and a place to grow and foster the next generation of leadership.

“The mission of the institute is to build bridges among the UT system and also with those across the Americas. At the institute, we will be able to discuss relevant and timely issues in a place where American leaders can convene and tackle these problems head-on and in a noble way, with a notion of civic engagement,” says Garcia.

While an exact location has not been decided on, the institute will be located within the greater Rio Grande Valley.

“I am very excited about finding a headquarters, establishing a site and building the overall reputation of the institute,”

Chancellor Francisco G. Cigarroa (left), stands with Garcia and her grandchildren on the UT Brownsville campus.

“What often keeps students from higher education is a lack of assets and lack of opportunities. So that is the mission: to expand those opportunities for students.”

says Garcia. “Our location in South Texas is really the epicenter of so many issues. It is an interface zone where languages and businesses and cultures all come together.”

Garcia unequivocally views the border region between the United States and Mexico as an asset and says that a great deal can be learned from this overlapping and fluid intersection.

In 1986, Garcia became the first female Mexican-American president of a United States college or university. When she left Texas Southmost College in 1992 to become president of UT Brownsville, Garcia embarked on a journey that would transform the Brownsville campus and produce more than 35,000 graduates from its classrooms.

All of this Garcia, her colleagues and the UT Brownsville students accomplished without the aid of the Permanent University Fund, a public endowment that provided monies to the UT and Texas A&M university systems.

“Do I think money can make a difference in what you allow a student to benefit from? Absolutely. Do I think a UT Brownsville student can run a race as well as a student from UT Austin? Yes. Just give me the same kind of tennis shoes as the UT Austin student, and we’ll compete in that race, be it the sciences, the arts or the humanities.”

Garcia departs UT Brownsville as the university forges ahead with the University of Texas Pan-American to create the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, an institution that will have its own medical school and will receive money from the Permanent University Fund.

As she transitions from one position of heavy responsibility to another, Garcia acknowledges that Latino students still face a variety of barriers which could prevent them from pursuing a higher education degree.

“I think it comes down to resources and opportunities,” says Garcia. “What often keeps students from higher education is a lack of assets and lack of opportunities. So that is the mission: to expand those opportunities for students.”

Ever the optimist, Garcia prefers to view students for the assets they are and encourages others to look what

students, at this interface of the Americas, can bring to the table.

“We can deal in two languages and two cultures here, and the bilingual physician or engineer is much more marketable than the monolingual individual.

That’s a real asset,” says Garcia. “Our hope is to change the paradigm of our country’s view of the Hispanic population so that instead of saying, ‘Oh my god, what are we going to do with all these Hispanics?’ we can flip it so they say, ‘How fortunate we are to have this more evolved person in our midst.’”

“If you want something badly enough, you can find a way to make it happen.

We always found a way to balance the needs of family with the need to get an education.”

Garcia says that she will continue to work to do everything she can to allow students the education they need to become productive citizens.

Reflecting on herself, Garcia says that the obstacles many Latino students face today are similar to the ones she herself combated years ago. She was young, she was Latina, and she was a woman in a time when higher education was dominated

by Anglo men who viewed her as an inexperienced person who did not fit the mold.

Despite all this, Garcia never gave up.

“Never stop working for your goals,” says Garcia. “If you want something badly enough, you can find a way to make it happen. We always found a way to balance the needs of family with the need to get an education.”

Garcia recalls her father saving $10 each month, starting immediately after she and her siblings were born, always with their education in mind.

“The magic of those dollars is not the monetary value,” says Garcia, “but the expectation that college was important.

As students, we need to seek out nurturing environments and 64 • October / November 2014

look for people who are on similar journeys, so that you can connect with these persons and together you help each other get there.”

Debunking the myth that Latino families do not place a great enough emphasis on education, Garcia reinforces the reality that many households struggle financially to afford an expensive university education.

“The truth is that before many can study Cervantes or study Shakespeare, the bills have to be paid,” says Garcia. “A student who is forced to worry about housing, about buying food, about providing for their family cannot fully focus on their education.”

The bottom line for Garcia, it seems, is that students must be helped in any way possible for them to succeed.

Garcia, who believes that America’s success as a democracy depends on an educated population, talks about the importance of embracing DREAMers, undocumented immigrants who are advocating for education and immigration reform, and supporting their full United States citizenship.

“Talk about an asset right before your eyes,” says Garcia.

“Sometimes, you think that the diamonds are far away from you, but often, they are looking you right in the face. What we know is that for democracy to be sustained we need people who are invested in its success. A college-educated Latino is invested in this democracy, and once invested in it, they will help nurture it, they will defend it, and they will sustain it. It is so important to take what some folks see as a deficit and to view it as an asset.”

As Garcia concludes her third month as executive director, she embraces the newfound liberty that her position provides. Garcia states that this new title will give her the freedom to explore many different missions and visions for working in the Americas and she looks forward to bringing together many smart and unique individuals.

“This institute will allow us to work without political barriers, and what I have learned through my years as a university president is to never let a political boundary line determine how we view ourselves or how we view each other. Let us focus on the experiences and assets we bring to the table and put ourselves out there as an example for the next generation of leaders.”

I The

Restless Futurist Paul Presburger made his presence felt at Lions Gate as Senior VP of International Business Development before his CEO-ship at Pantelion. As do many executives in the film industry, Presburger views the Latino movie market as a huge business opportunity waiting to explode. The operative word here is waiting. Like a time machine stuck on ‘future’ with no fixed date, poised for the inventor to push the button, the U.S. Latino film audience has proved a difficult demographic to target.

Like a horse that resists a saddle, this bronco is hard to wrangle. And therein lays the issue. This is no one trick pony. And it took everyone years to figure this out.

That lightning in a bottle is hard to catch, but if anyone can do it, Pantelion will.

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t was 2010, and expansion was the order of the day. Pantelion’s platinum parent company, the Canadian-founded Mini-Major Hollywood Studio, Lions Gate, had just gobbled up Summit Entertainment, the “Twilight” billions-factory, and was preparing the massive release of the “Hunger Games.” Franchise-friendly Lions Gate built its studio with low-budget serial hits like the seemingly endless “Saw” saga and Tyler Perry’s “dramedy” factory. Aside from purely commercial projects Lions Gate has a well-honed instinct for critical–- and urban-trending hits; they released “Crash”, “Precious” and “Monster’s Ball.”

Historically, Lions Gate enjoyed a positive experience with the Latino market, dating all the way back to the studio’s second release in 1995 of the Cuban comedy “Guantanamera.” Knowing the Latino audience as avid moviegoers, this vote of confidence made perfect sense. With Pantelion came a partnership with the Latin American mass media giant – Grupo Telavisa – and all that this implies. The goal: to produce up to 10 films a year. This is both a blessing and a curse. The access and influence is undeniable, but the budgets for production that work for Latin American productions are, by U.S. standards, small; and for U.S. Latino audiences who have grown up on mid- to big-budget movies, these smaller-budgeted films must touch a nerve of excitement and interest that’s proven elusive.

Presburger, Chief Executive Officer of Pantelion Films and the Managing Director at Televisa USA, is the restless huntsman – ever acquisitive, keen and on the prowl for unexplored opportunities and deals to enrich their portfolio of partnerships.

Presburger landed at Lions Gate in 2007 to facilitate expansion into international markets. Correctly assessing that the general market audience was being well provided for by the rest of the studios, he trained his laser focus on niche audiences across Europe, Asia and Latin America as well as the U.S. Hispanic market, developing strategic partnerships with Televisa in the U.S. and Latin America, Studio Canal in the U.K., Hoyts and Sony in Australia and Eros International in India.

Presburger also co-founded Tiger Gate Entertainment in 2008, a pan-Asian two television channel business with Lions Gate and brought Saban Capital Group to the deal in 2010; a merger transpired shortly thereafter of Tiger Gate with Celestial Pictures creating Celestial Tiger Entertainment (CTE), an independent Asian media company. Paul Presburger was EVP of International Business Development for Lions Gate until May 2009, when the stars aligned to launch Pantelion.

Presburger is the dealmaker, the visionary who closes. While the rest of the Latino entertainment world was talking about the need for a Latino studio and the untapped potential of the Latino market, Presburger hammered out the Pantelion Films joint venture with Grupo Televisa’s Chairman Emilio Azcarraga Jean, and Lions Gate’s CEO and Co-Chairman Jon Feltheimer in September 2010. Pantelion took the risk, making inroads developing, producing, acquiring and releasing a variety of films with varying degrees of success. The cross-cultural comedy “Casa de mi Padre” with Will Ferrell and Diego Luna’s “Cesar Chavez,” missed the mark despite innovative and aggressive marketing, but in 2014 Pantelion, struck solid gold with “Instructions not Included” which, with $100 million in box office receipts, became the highest grossing Spanish language picture of all time in the U.S. And then there is the TV element, which Presburger is guiding. Launching Televisa USA in 2012 with the intent to produce English-language television series for the U.S. market, and utilizing the Televisa library as a basis for proven ideas, Hollywood Heights, based on Alcanzar una Estrella, began an 80-episode co-production with Sony Pictures Television for Nickelodeon.

In 2013, Lifetime premiered Marc Cherry’s “Devious Maids,” an ABC Studios and Televisa USA co-production, based on “Ellas Son La Alegria del Hogar.” “Devious Maids” became the fastest-growing drama in Lifetime’s history and was picked up for a second season on August 13, 2013. “Chasing Life,” based on Televisa’s “Terminales,” aired in June 2014, as a Televisa USA, Lions Gate Television, ABC Family and Kapital Entertainment coproduction, and has shot 21 episodes thus far. Meanwhile, there are always deals to be made, and Presburger is vigilantly alert for advantageous scenarios to bolster Pantelion.

Latino Leaders: What drew you to this challenge?

Paul Presburger: For me, I came at it from always being involved in content around the world.I have moved TV content internationally, so it was kind of a natural flow for me to be doing this. Although I’m not Latino – I have a very big family in Mexico City – for me, it was the challenge of finding a passionate audience that is underrepresented with content.

I realized right away what the challenges are because we have a huge population, huge demographics, but they are not all the same. It’s different for the African-American market in that sense. Part of it was when I came to Lions Gate, I was overseeing international business with Televisa, and that was kind of the first step and ultimately what led

to the formation of Pantelion. We started making these movies, and there was no way that we could find to release these moves cost effective in the U.S. Lions Gate had done Spanish-language movies, but they were a year. So one of the first things that stood out was we needed continuity. We needed to be in theaters over and over again with content and create an expectation and create a momentum for it.

This really launched through my mind. We needed a dedicated distribution company focused on this market. It makes perfect sense.

LL: Well, that’s your audience-building solution, what about the cultural divide?

PP: When we open a film that’s very Mexican, it’s not going to work in Florida. People talk about the Latino market as being this monolithic market, and it’s not. So we had to ask where should we be? Where are we going to plant our flag? The fact that there is no one market is the biggest challenge, and trying to find where our audience is was the bigger challenge for us. I think we’re on the right path. It was a hypothesis that was wrong, and that was that the Latino market is underserved. As I started to think more about it, they’re not underserved. The statistic of Latinos as 16 percent of population buying 25 percent of the movie tickets says it all. They’re more frequent moviegoers going on opening weekends. Latinos are not underserved; they have lot of choices. They are underrepresented. So we start to ask what is going to make them go to see my movie over going to ‘Transformers’ or a Disney film?

They’re aspirational. They want to be part of America; they don’t want to be targeted and singled out. What are Latinos going to see? They are over indexing in horror, big action and they don’t go to see comedy because there are cultural things that don’t resonate. When you go to see a comedy like ‘Instructions Not Included’ or a comedy like ‘Pulling Strings,’ comedies with heart. It just plays differently.

LL: How are you dealing with the Spanish/ English crossover?

PP: Trying to unify that market – we’re looking at really universal stories; we’re trying to find a story that everyone can relate to.

‘Instructions Not Included’ was 20 percent English, 80 percent Spanish; “Pulling Strings” was 50/50. We’re trying to be organic to that.

If Hispanic characters are speaking to each other, they naturally will speak in Spanish.

We do not have to cross over to the general market to be successful. We have to cross over within the Latino market.

I would say I’m demanding really. The more ADD I become; the less patience I have

with age. What I value so much in Edward are his management capabilities. You can ask somebody once, and it gets done—the right way. The growth of the team is really amazing.

In the beginning, we were a ragtag bunch of people – we were just senior people – now, we’re this incredible team. We don’t worry about competition.

We’re a couple of steps ahead of everybody else. I’m just hoping that people don’t see me as short because I’m off doing the next thing.

LL: What do you consider your top quality as a CEO? PP: Great deal making, creative deals – we’ve been very creative in putting deals together.

For example, in the Dominican Republic, we have four or five movies ready to shoot down there, and from a financing perspective, it’s a very creative solution for these movies. I would say I am creative for the business and deal side.

For example, we’re selling to Europe; we just started Pantelion International. We will be selling our movies overseas, but really the most interesting opportunities are remakes. We have already licensed some French films for remake.

It really comes down to universal stories.

LL: Where is Pantelion headed in the next five years?

PP: We will grow the number of pics released and event entertainment ancillary business just want to grow the business we sit in meetings and discuss the size of the market; to expect to do Instructions-size business every time is misleading. We have to think differently about how we market in order to have people find us.

Judi Jordan Photos contributed

Story by

Global Projection

Gabriel Bustamante

2U Global Sales and Admissions Executive Vice President

Text: Brenda

Friederichsen Photography: Bruno Sánchez

Proud of being Mexican but always with an international view, Gabriel Bustamante has dedicated more than half of his life doing projects that imply a relation and strategy with various countries of the globe.

At the present time, he is the executive vice president for global sales and admissions for 2U, an enterprise that works along with the best universities in the United States, to create online academic programs of the highest level.

Now, after an agreement between the Tecnológico de Monterrey and the University of Washington in Saint Louis, 2U is present in the United States with a master program.

T

he first approach Gabriel Bustamante had with the global market was before finishing his bachelor in law at the Anáhuac University, when he was hired by Haschel Company, where he specialized in toy manufacturing. For seven years, Gabriel was responsible for conducting the agreements on product distribution around the world.

“This enriched my profession because, even though I have always had an international view and interest on the global theme and making business with different countries, there I put it into practice, I got to know different cultures and different ways of making business.”

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In 2006, the American publisher of children’s educational materials. Hooked on Phonics, called him to join its company as the manager for the distribution of products that teach children to read in about 20 countries.

That was a key job for Gabriel because it was there that he met the co-founder of 2U enterprise, which works with top-tier universities in the United States.

“I did a project for the company to establish an office in Hong Kong and started recruiting students

L at ino Le a de r s

for one of the masters. Afterward, they invited me to manage the second program that we had, which was the first MBA with the University of North Carloina at Chapel Hill.

“My job is to manage the team, the representatives that help the students to enroll in the program; it is a 300-person team in Washington.”

Projection in Mexico 2U is a company that partners with the universities to help launch masters programs online. 2U offers different areas as marketing, recruitment, placement, while the institutions develop and teach the courses.

WHO IS HE? Gabriel Bustamante •2U Global Sales and Admissions Executive Vice President •Scholastic Formation: Bachelor Degree in Law at the Anahuac University

Currently, they have agreements with Interview done

by Brenda schools as the University of Southern Friederichsen California, Georgetown and UC Berkeley. on September the 25th in In 2015, the University of Mexico City.

Washington in Saint Louis, together with the Tecnológico de Monterrey (http://onlinelaw.wustl.edu/dual/tec/overview), will begin the double masters program in law/ masters in transnational legal practice, which will enable the students to obtain a dual degree. latinoleaders.com

If It’s Not a Long Shot, It’s Not Alonzo

Story by Natalie

Holtz

Interview with the first Latina to create and star in her own primetime comedy, Cristela Alonzo

U

From left, Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, poses with Cristela Alonzo on the set of her new show

ntil she was 7 years old, famed comedian Cristela Alonzo lived in an abandoned diner with her mother and two siblings in San Juan, Texas, as a squatter. Her mother, an immigrant from El Zancarrón, San Luis Potosi in Mexico, worked as a cook in a local restaurant, bringing home only $110 a week to support her family of four.

Fast-forward to today, and Alonzo – who had to share a twin bed until she left home at 18 – has performed on “The Conan O’Brien Show,” Comedy Central’s “The Half Hour,” and “The Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson.”

Perhaps best of all, she’s currently creating and starring in a new ABC series called “Cristela” which is loosely based on her life, making Alonzo the first Latina to create, produce, write and star in her own primetime comedy. The sitcom, which aired October 10, 2014, bears resemblances to family shows like “Roseanne” and was a roaring success with test audiences scoring higher than both Zooey Deschanel’s “New Girl” and Tim Allen’s “Last Man Standing.” The series chronicles the life of Cristela, who’s entering her sixth year of law school after juggling home obligations and working multiple jobs to pay her way. ”The show takes place in a time of my life that happened 10 years ago when I really did have to move in with my sister to take care of her kids and my

70 • October / November 2014

Photos from ABC Media Net mom,” Alonzo explains in a phone interview. “I always tell people the show is like 90 percent based on my life. The only big difference is that, in the show, I want to be a lawyer, and in real life, I’m a stand-up comic.”

“When I found out about the show, I called my sister, and she started crying,” Alonzo says.

“My sister said the best thing about the show was, and this has stayed with me, ‘Things like this don’t happen to people like us.’” Growing up, Alonzo says she watched a lot of TV because she lived in such a dangerous neighborhood; her mother often wouldn’t let her go outside.

It was then that Alonzo fell in love with sitcoms like “The Cosby Show,” and her dream of becoming a comedian was born. But when Alonzo left home as a teenager to move to Los Angeles, her mother begged her not to go.

“I understood it because my mother came from a different time,” Alonzo says. “But I was

“My sister said the best thing about the show was, and this has stayed with me, ‘Things like this don’t happen to people like us.’”

Cristela Alonzo, center, leads the newest comedy on ABC as the first Latina creator and star of her own show.

a person that was trying to breakthrough and get ahead. I wasn’t trying to get the minimum wage job to get by. I wanted to do something more with my life.”

Alonzo’s journey from there was far from linear. When she moved to LA, she lived in her car for a while. A few years later, she returned home to Texas after running out of money to pay for college and after discovering her mother was ill. Sadly, her mother passed away, and Alonzo fell into a deep depression.

“I started drinking a lot. I got a DUI,” Alonzo wrote on her blog. “I couldn’t handle losing my mom, especially feeling like I had wasted years trying to chase after this dream that hadn’t gotten me anywhere; wasted years I could’ve spent with her. I got two years probation with my DUI, and that’s when I started doing stand-up. I always did it because I loved it.” After years of putting in her time at comedy clubs, Alonzo got her first big break when she flew across the country to attend a conference held by NACA (National Association of Campus Activities), which helps connect campuses and performers.

“This was like maybe 3 years ago, and I was down to no money,” Alonzo recounts. “Luckily, I went to this conference to book college shows. I went and I thought, ‘If I can book 9 shows, I can make enough money to survive for the year and not give up.’ At that conference, I ended up booking 130 shows. That was the big turning point in my life because I was really close to giving up, and it was a really hard time for me. I was supposed to move

back to Texas. I thought it was all done.”

It’s no secret that the big cable networks have been trying to figure out a way to appeal to the 50 million or so Hispanic viewers that Nielsen measures. And because “Cristela” is, arguably, a Hispanic version of “The Cosby Show,” Latino Leaders Magazine asked Alonzo what kind of impact she hopes the show will have.

“You know, one of the big things I want to do with this show is I want to give Latino kids a chance to know that if I can do it, they can do it. When I was a kid, I really loved TV, but I really didn’t have anybody who looked like me that I could look up to. I want to be able to tell people like me that if they really want to do something, they can absolutely do it if they’re willing to work towards it. The chance is there. We’re living in a time where anything is possible. I’m living proof of that, and that’s what the show is about.” latinoleaders.com

events

Trinity Place Bar & Restaurant

New York, NY

Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards October 8, 2014 The Bank Vault Presented by:

with the support from:

Honoring New York’s biggest leaders and brightest stars On October 8, 2014, at a converted bank in Manhattan’s Financial District, more than 40 Latino leaders – from local small business owners to corporate vice presidents – walked beyond the crush of happyhour patrons, parted a pair of red velvet curtains and stepped through the circular threshold of what was once a high-security vault. Inside: conversation and cocktails to inaugurate a sophisticated celebration of their success – with the wine, whiskey and filet mignon fitting the locale and honorees.

T

his was how New York celebrates its Latino leaders.

In partnership with global insurance juggernaut New York Life, a company who has dedicated some $20 million to focus on preserving the wealth of the Latino community, Latino Leaders Magazine fêted some of the city’s top entrepreneurial talent, recognizing the successful careers of insurance agents and advisors, as well as, in the words of one of New York Life’s corporate vice presidents, Carlos Garcia, “highlighting successful Latinos of all fields.”

“We used this as an opportunity to recognize our top producers,” Garcia said that evening, “and in turn, have them invite and recognize their top Latino clients.”

And so entrepreneurs in disciplines as diverse as imported flowers (Luis Guillen of Dutch Petals in the Hamptons), cosmetics (Helena Crispin, a higher-up at Mary Kay), construction (Livaniel Zafra from Coloma Construction) and law (Janette Cortes-Gomez, who represented her self-titled firm) were present to receive a plaque and a toast.

Even the wine was a celebration of Latino leadership; ‘Mi Sueno’ is the personal offering of Rolando Herrera, a Napa Valley winemaker and businessman who begun his career in high school, as a laborer building a stone wall for the owner of a Northern California vineyard. The story goes his employer took note of Herrera’s work ethic and offered him a fulltime job, which Herrera later leveraged into winemaking, and in 2007, winery operating and full-fledged entrepreneurship.

The star honorees of the evening, however, were the agents working to make New York Life, in the words of Corporate Vice President of Latino Affairs Hector Vilchis, not only the “oldest, largest mutual life For more of the discussion, visit: 72 • October / November 2014

www.latinoleaders.com

Story by: Amy

insurance company in the U.S.,” but also a “premiere serve provider in the Latino community.”

These agents and advisors were tasked with bringing the “social value” of life insurance to Latinos, a group who, nationally, bring in some some $350 billion in annual revenue.

The evening concluded with a toast led by John Cabarga, Chivas Regal Brand Ambassador, who with a Chivas 18 at hand celebrated the evenings’s awardees and the future of all Latino entrepreneurs.

Schellenbaum | Photos by: Kevin Kane

Jose Urbano: “It takes a lot for folks to reach this level of production,” Vilchis said while introducing Jose Urbano.

Of course, it took the honoree only three years. “In a very short amount of time, he achieved Presidents Council and Executive Council. It’s a very successful trajectory.” He said it simply: “I love my job.”

Barjes R. Angulo: Described by Vilchis as a “really, really close friend,” Barjes Angulo has been at the company for seven years, earning a top council distinction. “He works with a lot of families and business owners,” Vilchis said.

“He really dedicates his life to helping people.” The key? Keeping his promises to his clients, Angulo said upon receiving his award.

“I really look forward to a long career here.”

Jose & Vanessa Narvaez: According to Vilchis, when New York Life talks about Jose Narvaez, “we’re talking about more than 20 years in business. We’re talking about family.

We’re talking about generations.”

Vilchis has known Narvaez, since the beginning of his tenure at the company, and has watched his daughter, Vanessa, a New York Life agent who accepted the award on Narvaez’s behalf, flourish under his tutelage.

Narvais could not attend the event, but Vanessa sang his praises while accepting the award. “Being able to work with him has given me a great advantage. I’m deeply honored to work with him.”

Luciene Deoliveira: Luciene Deoliveira has spent her eight years at New York Life unlocking the potential of the city’s Brazilian community. How? “A lot of clients and a lot of work.”

Deoliveira’s dedication to her clients and her goals as a New York Life agent is one that has yielded results that have changes the lives of those she serves.

Focused on the Family

Story by Amanda

Casanova

Photo contributed

George Castineiras passes down the importance of family saving and investment

I

f you give George Castineiras’ three children a $20 bill, surveyed have less access and lower contributhey will each know how to divvy the funds up best for imtions to workplace-based retirement plans. mediate use, long-term use and rainy-day savings. That’s “In the survey, Hispanics view themselves not too surprising given that Castineiras is the senior vice as savers rather investors,” Castineiras said. president of total retirement solutions for Prudential Retire“They always put paying off debt first. When ment in Hartford, Connecticut, where he helps businesses it comes to retiring, they save to take care of and individuals set up retirement and benefit plans. family and education but not always for retire“Growing up my family was very focused on having enough ment. This was just was a resounding validamoney for the next day and the day after, and once I had kids, tion of the way I grew up,” he added.

I wanted to make sure they wouldn’t make the mistakes that I The survey also found that language was not saw,” shares Castineiras who was born in Argentina and immigrated to Calia top barrier to financial education. Instead, fornia as an infant. He said his parents worked hard to provide for his family.

Hispanics surveyed said they worried about lack “We never had a lot of money, but we were never in need of anything of trust of service providers. “There is desire either,” he said. “It was a happy household, but there was one anxiety: to have advisers and professionals reach out to credit cards. They provided immediate gratification, but they came with them,” Castineiras said. “I don’t remember my a debt. I remember at least three episodes in my upbringing where we parents being in search of an adviser, but the would cut up the credit cards and burn them.” His family worked to pay community has matured. They are saying, ‘You off their debts, but they didn’t save anything, Castineiras said. “I would tell don’t have to speak Spanish to talk to us.’ They my dad, ‘I get that you need to pay off your debt, but put $10 away, too!’” want to trust advisers. They want to do busiCastineiras, who by 15 years old could negotiate mortgage rates ness. The primary reason we issued this survey and payments with lenders, realized the importance of financial planis that there is a huge segment that continues to ning and eventually graduated from Loyola Marymount University in grow and this market that has a need. They’re Los Angeles with a degree in economics and finance. He is working interested in creating a business relationship.” on his graduate degree at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology That’s where financial advisors come in to help (MIT) and has completed executive programs through Harvard, the unithe underserved Hispanic American community, versities of Pennsylvania and Michigan, and New York University.

Castineiras said. “We’ve made a lot of progress.

Today Castineiras has 26 years in the The Latino community in the U.S. financial planning industry— 12 of which have continues to mature. The industry Prudential’s Hispanic American been with Prudential, where he has worked needs to start to learn how to Financial Experience survey paints a as senior vice president of western regional work with this market and realize picture of a community with a deepsales and national corporate sales. He has been that they are not doing business rooted respect for family. According to named by 401kWire as one of the top 100 most with anybody… and they want the research, family is the most important influential people in the industry. In 2010, he to. It is up to advisers to gain the financial consideration, and lies at the was listed by Hispanic Business magazine as trust of Hispanic Americans.” heart of many financial decisions within one of the top 25 “Corporate Elite” executives.

“The industry has to stop believthe community. Hispanic Americans value Earlier this year, Castineiras was part of a ing you have to speak Spanish financial advice from trusted sources, team that released a study called the Histo penetrate this audience,” he including family and friends, but also panic American Financial Experience Survey. reflected as the interview wrapped private industry. With these survey findThe study surveyed more than 1,000 people up. “The focus is what is most ings, Prudential’s goal is to draw attention who identified as Hispanic and claimed an important to Latinos and teaching to the financial attitudes and behaviors annual household income of $25,000 or them about saving long-term and of the Hispanic American community and more. According to the survey, more than making sure they are prepared elevate the conversation to find ways 70 percent of Hispanics plan to work at least to take care of their family and to meet their unique challenges. part time after they retire. Also, Hispanics children and grandchildren.”

74 • October / November 2014

L at ino Le a de r s

“The focus is what is most important to Latinos and teaching them about saving long-term and making sure they are prepared to take care of their family and children and grandchildren.�

George Castineiras Senior Vice President of Western Regional Sales and National Corporate Sales

Diversifying Oscar: Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President Cheryl Boone Isaacs Story by Judi

Jordan

“Not Luck— Hard Work”

Contribued photos

“I’m not lucky; I always knew I’d have to work for whatever I wanted.”

Despite a career pinnacle that has been denied to all but three women, including legendary actress Bette Davis, who resigned after two months claiming that she was “just a figurehead,” Cheryl Boone Isaacs, now twice-elected president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (better known as the Oscars) asserts that it has been a lifelong journey, not a silver-platter appointment to the exciting, glamorous and coveted post of president.

From Pan Am to Paramount

She was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, the youngest of four children; her father, still alive and well at 103, was a postal worker who held two side jobs to put his children through college. Boone Isaacs traveled the world as a flight attendant for Pan American World Airways and studied political science at Whittier College with the aim of working for the USAA. That dream folded, and Cheryl went west, where she excelled as a marketing maven. She served as executive vice president of worldwide publicity for Paramount and, later, as president of theatrical marketing for New Line Cinema. She also continues to run her own firm, CBI Enterprises where she has consulted on several films, including Oscar winners, “The King’s Speech” and “The Artist.”

76 • October / November 2014

A Historic Appointment

In this interview about her very eventful first term as Academy president the soft-spoken, warm and friendly executive laughed about all the raffles she’s entered — and lost. Those days, however, seem long ago and faraway for the popular and serene Boone Isaacs.

Recently reelected to her second term as President of the Academy—Boone Isaacs acknowledges this is no small vote of confidence. As the first woman of color, and again, only the third woman to be elected in the Academy’s 87-year history, this is quite a stroke of luck by any standards. Admittedly, she has more than paid her dues. Cheryl has been working with the Academy in the PR power seat for 21 years and is also a member of the Board of Governors, representing the PR branch, to which she was also recently re-elected. The somewhat confusing term rules allow Boone Isaacs to participate as a Board of Governors’ member and as president. The presidential term is only one year and allows for a maximum of four straight terms.

The post is unpaid but loaded with perks — and speed bumps — galore. However, with her first go-round as an indication, Boone Isaacs has mastered the game.

What are Cheryl Boone Isaacs’ main objectives?

“Member engagement, international outreach; our museum — where construction begins end of this year in this building,” she says.

“My leadership style—well, I hope it comes across as steady, consistent, reliable, forward-thinking and inclusive.” The roomy office filled with colorful, modern posters and artwork and mid-century furniture betrays the stylish leanings of Boone Isaacs and underscores her bright, positive, warm personality. It also hints at the energy behind the gracious executive who is doing her utmost to diversify the eight-decades-old organization.

Embrace the Races

Inducted into NAACP’s Hall of Fame and honored on several joyful occasions, Boone Isaacs achieved more than most during her first term, which proved to be quite eventful. She hit the ground running with a head-spinning agenda of diversity inclusion that embraced the Latino film community as well as women, minorities and foreign filmmakers. On the tail end of a stellar 2014—a groundbreaking year where two directors of color took home the highest honors —Alfonso Cuaron and Steve McQueen for best director and best picture, respectively – it is extremely gratifying to see the continuity of engagement with Latinos joining the Academy, ensuring their participation after the gold dust has settled. Rather than “back away” from the issue of color and diversity, Cheryl embraced it and reveled in the excellence of the directors and actors who had found their “Oscar season in the sun.”

New, Diverse Oscar Voters

The voting for the Academy will be interesting to observe this coming Oscar 2015 season as the 276 newest academy members – invited to join under Boone Isaacs’s reign—are younger, more ethnic, more international and ultimately less likely to vote for the traditional status quo Hollywood fare and old-school favorites. This more democratic approach has been applauded in the press and by many members – and certainly by the new invitees.

Boone Isaacs concurs.

“It’s one of the biggest ‘classes’ in many years. “ She typically does not try to take credit, explaining, “This was an initiative that was started a few years ago, and to explain being invited in, a potential member must apply for consideration – they are asked to have two members sponsor them.”

Beyond the glitz, bringing the message of accepting a more diverse group of talented individuals worldwide is her mission. Everybody knows about the Oscars, but not as widespread are the programs that take place year-round to educate about film and the impact those programs has on the world.

“We are reaching out to make more people aware—they know Oscar. One of the biggest icons in the world, but we are about educating people—all people—about film, domestically as well as internationally, and we are looking for more storytellers. There are a lot of new voices; there are a lot of new stories to be told. This year, 2014, was an incredible year for films— wonderful! It was really a range. I’m so excited to be here at this time.”

Plant the Seeds — It Will Grow

“I believe in seeds planted. What we do today gets manifested in the future. So if you want your future to change from your past, spend a little time each day examining what you’re doing to change your future.”

Seeds planted in the Latino film community already bore fruit with the tribute to the iconic Mexican cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa, which came on the heels of Boone Isaacs’ first election. This was the first such Latino-focused tribute at the Academy, and it was thunderously well received. Here Gabriel’s son, Gabriel Figueroa Flores, Mexican actor Gael Garcia Bernal and Rodrigo Prieto, Mexico Cityborn, Oscar-winning cinematographer, lauded his career during a visual discussion led by director Gregory Nava. Boone Isaacs was delighted with the response.

“I was so excited to do this; it really opened the door for many more

Latino projects and filmmakers. The new membership offers diversity of taste.”

The Oscar is Mexican

In 1928, Mexican actor Emilio Fernandez reluctantly posed for the statue that has become the iconic gold-plated trophy, persuaded by his wife, Dolores del Rio. In recent years, Latinos have been taking home “Emilios,” and no doubt more will follow, given the opportunity under Boone Isaacs’ reign.

Latinos are definitely part of the different voices, new voices and recognition of talent around the world that we are pursuing. But when people ask, ‘as we broaden our reach does that mean we are changing our criteria?’ The answer is no – and what an insult.

What, lower the bar? Please. Great films come from everywhere. What we want people to know for many years the Academy was LA-based, and the heart and soul is still LA and Hollywood; however, there have been films and filmmakers around the world for a long time and emerging countries. This is a medium that is special! With no other medium do you get to go into a room with a couple hundred people and have a shared experience but maybe takeaway something different from the person you sat next to. We want Latino filmmakers to know that we are looking for them—brilliant people are everywhere.”

No Stranger

“I worked with the Academy for a long time; I knew [the Academy’s executive director] Dawn Hudson before my appointment. The academy is made up of absolutely fantastic people. They are the foundation. Many have worked here for a very long time,” Boone Isaacs says.

“We have the greatest asset – members at the top of their game. We all donate our time and engagement. Technology has helped us. This year, we sent out the foreign films so that all members can vote for all categories; all nominations come from the individual branches. In the past, there were just screenings and you would have to see all five films.

This way, we are able to send them out so many of our members travel to work. This way, they are able to see all films, and we have better participation.”

No Illusions

Her own long path to Oscar glory now activated, Boone Isaacs reflects on the journey. She had no unrealistic expectations growing up.

“I knew I would have to work hard for whatever I wanted. My childhood set me up for it – working class. I grew up in Western Massachusetts as the youngest of four; our work ethic was strong. It wasn’t from a negative space. If you wanted something, you had that notion that you can work for it. The idea that you could be whatever you wanted to be came later. Now, it goes over the top. Everyone feels entitled. Back then, it was do the best you can.”

For Cheryl Boone Isaacs that’s still the way. latinoleaders.com

events

Maestro

Los Angeles

August 20, 2014 InterContinental Hotel

Experts in Excellence: Latino

Presented with the support from:

78 • October / November 2014

Story by: Judi

Jordan and Eric Christensen | Photos by: Ejen Chuang

Leaders Los Angeles Maestros On August 20, 2014, The InterContinental Hotel in Century City, Los Angeles was the setting for an elegant, two-part celebration of achievement and shared wisdom as Latino Leaders’ Publisher Jorge Ferraez presented 2014 Los Angeles Maestro Awards to four unique and highly accomplished individuals.

I

n the sunlit salon of the InterContinental the fine, ripe Chardonnay and rich, full-bodied Cabernet of Maldonado Family Vineyards Napa Valley family vineyard were savored as the honorees gathered and mingled for the VIP cocktail prior to the ceremony.

Inside the ballroom, the stylish décor and inventive staging delighted invitees. As 200 VIPs enjoyed wine and appetizers, Sponsors Southwest Airlines and Northwestern Mutual presented, and Mr. Ferraez ‘decorated’ the ‘Maestros’ with the signature Latino Leaders medallion in recognition of their accomplishments.

Using an informal and inviting talk show format to interview the Maestros, Ferraez encouraged a relaxed conversation of their secrets of success, which revealed each individual’s personal charisma, mission and determination – a fascinating insight for students of power.

A delicious, high-protein dinner buffet followed, as the attendees congratulated the awardees and sipped more wine.

The unspoken question hung in the air—who would be Los Angeles’ 2015 Maestros?

2014 Los Angeles Maestros (from left to right) : Leadership: Sol Trujillo Community Service: Linda Griego Entrepreneurship: Moctesuma Esparza Professional Achievement Ramon Baez

latinoleaders.com

Maestro

Los Angeles Ramon Baez

Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at Hewlett Packard Maestro of Professional Acheivement For more than three decades, Ramon Baez has served in leadership positions at Fortune 100 companies in a variety of industries, including manufacturing, packaged goods, aerospace and defense, as well as products and services for the scientific community. Across all these industries, Mr. Baez has developed a reputation for leadership and transformation based on simplifying complex and inefficient processes, thereby delivering an improved experience for everyone he works with and everyone he works for.

“First of all, it means the world to me that all the people I’ve worked with are great people, and that led me to accomplish great things as a leader and to be recognized for those things. And that development is pretty impressive.

It makes you feel good, but it’s also wonderful to be recognized because there is great talent all over the world. You get recognized in the field you’re in, but to be recognized outside of that is special,” Baez said.

As Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer at HP, he is responsible for developing the company’s global information technology strategy, as well as the company’s internal IT assets, such as architecture, applications, data management, technology, telecommunications networks, and support and operations.

“My team is driving change. … My personal mantra as leader is, ‘Leaders should be serving.’ My team should be coming in for me to help them break obstacles. I should be able to communicate clearly where we are and where we’ve been.”

Sol Trujillo

Maestro of Leadership A precocious talent, Sol Trujillo rose quickly in the communications industry. Over his career, he has continued to succeed, both within the U.S. and abroad. He has also shown that leadership continues beyond the boardroom by advocating for diversity and being active in community affairs.

“I really like the word Maestro. It can be a teacher, a mentor. It can be a lot of things. In my case, in business, leading organizations, you can’t be an effective leader without being a teacher, a mentor, an instructor, a coach – a lot of things that come as part of the broader definition of the genesis of the award here tonight,” Trujillo said.

Born in Cheyenne, Mr. Trujillo studied at the University of Wyoming, obtaining both a B.S. in Business and an M.B.A. in finance. Seven years after starting to work at AT&T, at the age of 32, he became the youngest executive officer in the company’s history. Later joining US West, Trujillo eventually become its chairman, CEO, and president—the first U.S.-born Hispanic CEO of a Fortune 200 company. From there, Trujillo went on to serve as CEO of Orange SA, an international wireless communications company, CEO of California-based Graviton, and CEO of Australia’s Telstra Corporation.

80 • October / November 2014

Ramon Baez

“In the tech world everything is changing if you look at politics, and social interactions it is at the center point. Maestro means engagement, this is always critical as you move forward; you never want people left behind. Living in the U.S., where we are a democracy, one of the strengths is that people have a voice. And there is a balance of power. In today’s world there is importance placed on bringing people along and allowing people to have a voice.”

Trujillo has served as a trustee of Boston College and a commissioner on the Colorado Commission of Higher Education. He currently serves on the advisory Board of UCLA’s School of Public Policy and the Tomas Rivera Policy Institute, a California-based think tank focused on Latino issues.

“I live a dual life –one is a business life—in that I’m on boards of companies, driving companies, investing and at the same time, I have a family side, I lead a very Latino American-centric- life. I’ve been very engaged since I came back from my jaunts around the world to help foster the Latino brand in the US and around the world because Latinos are so integral to the success of our nation.”

Among other numerous awards and citations, President Clinton awarded him the Ronald H. Brown Corporate Bridge Builder Award in 1999, and Hispanic Business magazine named him one of the 100 Most Influential Hispanics in the United States.

“We need to see people that step out above and beyond for personal interest. That’s what leadership is about.”

Sol Trujillo

Jorge Ferraez

Moctesuma Esparza:

Maestro of Entrepreneurship Born and raised in Los Angeles, Moctesuma Esparza has dedicated himself to empowering and transforming the image of Latinos in Hollywood through his cinematic career as well as his entrepreneurship and community activism.

“I remember my father when I was a little boy would always address people who had accomplishment of mastery—so it always has a very warm and rich feeling to me because it reminds me of my childhood—my father—my first maestro. The respect my father gave people—this is very important and very deep for me. “ Esparza received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the UCLA School of Theater, Film, and Television. He went on to partner with Robert Katz to create the highly successful Esparza-Katz Productions. He has worked with stars such a Robert Redford, Jennifer Lopez, Andy Garcia, Jimmy Smits, Martin Sheen, Robert Duvall and Halle Berry.

Esparza founded Maya Entertainment, a vertically integrated media content company that acquires, produces, and distributes multicultural and Latino-themed motion pictures throughout the world. He has also established Maya Cinemas, a chain of modern theater megaplexes committed to offering the best quality movie-going experience to new and redeveloping markets with a strong Latino presence.

He also founded the Los Angeles Academy of Arts and Enterprise Charter School, co-founded the National Association of Latino Independent Producers, co-founded the Smithsonian Latino Center and is a founding member of the Caesar Chavez Foundation.

Moctesuma Esparza

UCLA School of Public Policy, and currently serves on UCLA advisory boards. In 2008, she received the UCLA Medal, the university’s highest honor.

From 1990 until 2000, Griego held a variety of civic appointments, including deputy mayor of Los Angeles, focusing on economic development; president and CEO of the Los Angeles Community Development Bank; and president and CEO of Rebuild LA, coordinating a five-year economic recovery following the unrest in 1992. She also served as a Los Angeles director of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

“I’m knee deep in opening the new Martin Luther King Jr. Hospital in Watts, which is serving 85% Latinos. So it’s very dear to my heart. … I spent the better part of 20 plus years working in South LA, and being able to open this hospital means a lot to me. This award is very precious. After this, I’ll go back to a board meeting.”

Griego has been a member of the Council on Foreign Relations for over 15 years, and she was a founding member of the Pacific Council on International Policy. In 2010, she also joined the board of directors of the German Marshall Fund.

For over 20 years, she has served on a variety of boards, including Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Blockbuster Inc., First Interstate Bank, and YMCA of Los Angeles. And for over a decade, she served as a trustee of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the largest private philanthropy devoted exclusively to health care.

Griego currently serves as a director of CBS Corporation and AECOM Technology Corporation, and as president and CEO of Griego Enterprises Inc., a business management company.

Linda Griego

President and CEO of Griego Enterprises, Inc. Maestro of Community Service Linda Griego has had a stellar career in public service and business. Born and raised in New Mexico, she has repeatedly developed ties to the Los Angeles community throughout her impressive career.

“First I was really stunned, my grandmother used to say to me, ‘When are you going to be a maestra?’ So, I’m very honored, and a little surprised—the accumulation of the work I’ve done—I’ve never done it to get an award, but this is really proud moment for me and it would be for my grandmother,” Griego said.

She graduated from UCLA with a Bachelor of Arts degree in history. She later served as a senior fellow of the

Linda Griego

latinoleaders.com

What Jorge Ferraez

is Drinking @JFerraez_Latino

From family traditions

R

ecently, I had a very interesting conversation with Laura Giadorou-Koch, CEO of Dolium, a pioneering Argentine winery that became the first Latin American winery to obtain a “B Corporation Certification,” which means it is a company that uses its power of business to solve social and environmental problems.

“Our family-run enterprise started operations over 17 years ago with a state-of-the-art underground facility, designed to combine old tradition and modern technology to produce high-quality wines. This allows maintaining very stable temperatures year-round, given the wide range of daily temperature changes, without artificial heating or cooling. Operation is run with 10 full-time employees hand-by-hand with the owners. Our mission is to be good stewards of the land, the grape, the community and the consumer. Our high sustainability vision is to reduce, reuse, recycle and take care of our employees, customers and environment.”

Laura’s father, Mario Giadoru, a self-made, successful Argentine businessman, founded the company in 1997. Based on the influence of Roman and ancient Greek cultures, which inspired the name of the company (Dollium means “amphora” in Latin), Giadoru decided to build the cellars underground. “He thought it was going to do a lot for the wine processes but also for the environment and habitat of the region, by not visually and noisily contaminating the area.”

Dolium has a good variety of high-end wines, like the 2006 Dolium Malbec Gran Reserva Single Vineyard (Lujan de Cuyo, Arentina $120) that shows powerful purple fruit, chocolate and blueberry notes, big body with a powerful structure and a well-balanced sweet tannin persistence.

With only 16,000 cases a year, this boutique, very original bodega is one to follow.

82 • October / November 2014

Bolgheri Tenuta dell’ Ornellaia ORNELLAIA 2004 (On a dinner with a good friend) Region: DOC Bolgheri Tuscany, Italy Varietal: Bordeaux Style Blend Price: $120 Aromas: Earthy, chocolate, spice Flavors: Forest fruits, plum, coffee Impression: Silky and elegant with ripe fruit Structure: Subtle but powerful Drink with: Grilled steaks Why I loved this wine? Long finish with a minty hint My Rating: 96 pts.

Orin Swift D66 2011 (Bought at H-E-B Central Market) Region: Cotes de Catalanes, Rohne, France Varietal: Grenache, Syrah, Carignan Price: $39 Aromas: Dark fruit, blueberry marmalade Flavors: Black cherries, coffee, chocolate Impression: Bold and succulent Structure: Ample, balanced, medium body Drink with: Coq au Vin or another hearty dish Why I loved this wine? Delicious My Rating: 90 pts.

LAN Gran Reserva Rioja 2005 (Bought at Whole Foods Market) Region: Rioja, Spain Varietal: Tempranillo Price: $28 Aromas: Nutty, fruity, red currant Flavors: Plum, currant, fragrant Impression: Round and ample Structure: Medium Body, drinks very nice Drink with: A hamburger Why I loved this wine? Drinks nice, ample aromas and rich finish My Rating: 89 pts.