Ricardo Alvarado

I have wanted to be a filmmaker since the age of 11. Coming from proud parents who found efficiency and livelihood in labor work and brought me up to follow the same path. But growing up I saw, read, and understood stories that created one dimensional characters, lacking in true inter-cultural points of views; juxtaposed with novels and narratives that created concrete communities, communities outside of the white gaze and cultural expectations. Toni Morrison, Roberto Bolano, Alfonso Cuaron were just some of the story tellers that fired an influence inside of me, yearning for multicultural representation. My motivation to true thematic representation spread not just in film but in advocacy, working for a Latino Non-profit to uplift voices and extend resources; I have projected the same energy into my films. Hiring all BI-POC cast and crew, making multi-language, strong female led driven stories, I sought to expand resources not just creatively, but also through technique, with the crew I work with. From my first short film at 19, to working with Travel Oregon for a film, I have hired the very voices to represent art that our community can guide, question, challenge, and grow from. I want to continue that growth by writing, producing, and directing a new short film that pushes for the same thematic advancement both creatively and culturally.