On July 18, the first Fresno Summer Film Fest was held with films, food, and fresh opportunities that drew about 60 attendees to the festival. The event was put together with the help of local student filmmakers who wanted to show off their work outside of the classroom.
According to one of the filmmakers and documentarians, Ricardo A. Reyna, the event expected a small turnout of around 15 to 20 people, mostly family and friends.
Held at My Homie’s Kitchen in downtown Fresno, the festival showcased three documentaries. All of the documentaries had a central theme of community and advocacy.
“A lot of these films that are being shown are about topics that aren’t being discussed or some people might not know about, and it just creates awareness and it creates community dialogue,” Reyna said.
The event included screenings of the documentaries and panel discussions with the crew of each film, attracting film enthusiasts, local vendors, and community members alike.
“This is all about bringing people together, bringing community, sharing their story of purpose. It’s what it’s all about – supporting each other,” said Samuel Contreras, an assistant professor at Fresno State.
“JOJOLAND: A Fight Against Fentanyl” by filmmaker and documentarian Jaselina Garcia was the first film shown of the night. The film is about the local anti-fentanyl movement, which was founded by Antonio Quevedo after his son, Joseph, who died of a fentanyl overdose in 2020.
“To be a filmmaker, and spread that out throughout the valley and in the world, it means a lot,” Garcia said.
The film centered around Joseph’s life and what his father is doing to keep his memory alive.
“I didn’t think we would get something so sad, but it was done really well in a tasteful way,” said Fabio Saravia, an attendee for the festival.
The next documentary shown was “Threads of Change: The Power of Neighborhood Industries” by Reyna. This film was about Neighborhood Thrift, a Fresno thrift store that aims to help the community it belongs to.
One of the things Neighborhood Thrift does is provide jobs to people who need them. At one point, one of those people the store helped was Reyna.
After dropping out of high school, Reyna worked with Addie Carr, the social services director for Neighborhood Thrift, who helped him get back into school and get a driver’s license.
When deciding on his final project before graduating Fresno State and knowing he could make it whatever he wanted it to be, he chose Neighborhood Thrift.
By doing this film and telling their story and mission, Reyna has come “full circle.”
“I thought that their story is very much my story,” Reyna said. “I am a product of the work that they do.”
“The Flow of Justice” by Contreras was the final documentary of the night. The film is about a community’s fight for clean water in the Central Valley. For the film, Contreras used the help of his students, including Reyna and Garcia at the time, to make the documentary.
The film focuses on the fight of small communities in and outside Fresno County for clean, drinkable water. It also shows how those groups work with local and state advocacy groups, who focus on water justice, to accomplish their goal of water equity.
“We live in a time where filmmaking is advocating,” Garcia said.
By the end of the film, we see there is still progress needing to be done in these communities but the film was focused on the struggles of those who need clean water, not legislators or the advocacy groups to better service those who really need the help.
“I did not interview one politician – they have an outlet,” Contreras said. “So for me, it’s really about getting the voice of the voiceless.”
Contreras will be debuting his documentary nationally in Texas.
That same drive to uplift underrepresented voices is what inspired many of the student filmmakers at the festival, including Reyna and Garcia.
“To see my students doing [film], just for the love of it and the passion of it, it’s just an amazing thing to see,” Contreras said. “It is truly a really proud moment.”
Reyna and Garcia both recently graduated from Fresno State, marking the culmination of years of hard work and creative growth as students and as young filmmakers.
“It starts off small with something like a small film fest like this but it grows into people going and doing actual things like making the films and telling the stories that need to be told,” Reyna said. “I know there’s a lot of college students that I was with that made films, and we only really got to watch them in class. I wish that we were able to show them here tonight.”
As students, they often questioned whether the countless hours they spent developing, refining, and perfecting their individual projects would ever amount to anything beyond the classroom.
The films shown were all about Central Valley issues. Whether it’s about localizing drug related deaths, a neighborhood business that gives back to its community, or the California water crisis, each film really focused on the people here in the valley.
“You want people to be mad when they see your movie,” Garcia said. “You want people to be sad when they see your movie. You want to move people emotionally with your films.”
Beyond the films, local businesses were also there providing resources and fun to the festivals. From braiding hair to information on fentanyl and overdoses, it added to the community feel of the event.
“I think community events like this are important for Fresno,” Saravia said. “It ended up being a really fun time.”
Some who organized the event said they hope to expand and make the festival a tradition going forward.
“We’re hoping to create that funnel and pipeline, to be able to have some of those first steps for a college student who makes a film, to be able to come out and be like, ‘Hey, I’m able to showcase what I made outside of the classroom,’” Reyna said.
All of those who were involved are hoping to do another film festival this winter after this upcoming semester concludes for any Fall 2025 graduates along with doing another summer one next year.
