Since its founding in 2011, AdocPR has played a key role in shaping the island’s documentary film landscape, fostering collaboration among filmmakers, scholars, students, and professionals committed to telling Puerto Rico’s most urgent and heartfelt stories. Through Cinema on the Road, AdocPR continues its mission of making documentary film accessible to diverse populations, preserving collective memory, and promoting cultural dialogue between Puerto Rico and its diaspora.
The Chicago edition of Cinema on the Road will feature a curated selection of thought-provoking documentaries that explore identity, justice, music, community resilience, and the power of memory.
Saturday, May 3, 3:30 PM
- Voces de Pasión (2025), by Sonia Fritz – Chronicles the lives of five internationally acclaimed Puerto Rican opera singers and the musical institutions that shaped them.
Saturday, May 3, 6:00 PM
- Todas las flores (2023), by Carmen Oquendo-Villar – A documentary from Colombia that offers an intimate portrayal of a brothel in Bogotá that becomes a refuge for sex workers.
Sunday, May 4, 4:00 PM
- Julia Vive (2025), by Álvaro Calderón – A narrative about Julia de Burgos, memory, justice, and presence in Puerto Rico’s collective consciousness.
Short Films Preceding screenings:
- Esenciales – A youth-produced short film from Documentar la Memoria, a program launched in 2022 that offers hands-on video and photography workshops to young people from rural communities. This short film highlights the everyday struggles and resilience of the community of Quebrada Arenas in the east central municipality of San Lorenzo.
- Metamorfosis – Another youth-produced short film from Documentar la Memoria documenting how a community in the municipality of Orocovis transforms an abandoned school into a cultural and educational hub.
This powerful selection highlights the artistic vision and social conscience of Puerto Rican filmmakers. From environmental justice to cultural heritage, these stories inspire reflection and reconnection across borders.
