Selena and Johnny Canales | Courtesy: CineFestival

SAN ANTONIO — The Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center has announced the full program for the 46th CineFestival San Antonio, set for July 9–13, 2025. This year’s festival shines a spotlight on documentaries dedicated to two Tejano music icons — Selena and Johnny Canales — and celebrates the heritage, resilience, and diversity of Latinx communities across Texas and beyond.

The festival will take place at the Carver Community Cultural Center (226 N. Hackberry Street), featuring a full slate of free screenings at the Little Carver Civic Center and evening premieres at the Jo Long Theatre. Additional programming will be offered at Santikos Mayan Palace (1918 SW Military Drive), including feature film premieres and special free Senior Cinema and Family Day programs.

Passes for the festival and the complete lineup will be available online starting June 23 at guadalupeculturalarts.org/cine-festival. Individual tickets for all screenings will go on sale June 27.

Honoring Tejano Music Legends

This year’s festival leads with the highly anticipated documentary Selena y Los Dinos, directed by Isabel Castro (MIJA, DARLIN). The film showcases never-before-seen footage from the Quintanilla family archives, capturing the late Tejano icon and her family’s rise to unprecedented fame. Produced by Julie Goldman, Christopher Clements, J. Daniel Torres, Simran Singh, and David Blackman, and executive produced by Suzette Quintanilla and A.B. Quintanilla III, the documentary will premiere with director Isabel Castro and select cast members in attendance.

Another highlight is Take It Away: The Rise and Fall of Tejano Hollywood, directed by Adrian Alejandro Arredondo and Myrna Perez, which follows the life and career of Johnny Canales. The syndicated music variety show host introduced generations to the best of Tejano music, launching the careers of legendary stars such as Selena, Ramón Ayala, and Intocable. The film is executive produced by Texas Monthly.

“At CineFestival, we share the pride that Selena y Los Dinos brought to the Mexican American communities of Texas and beyond, and we celebrate director Isabel Castro’s affectionate portrayal of an American icon and the family that rose to unprecedented success,” said Eugenio del Bosque, Director of CineFestival.

“These documentaries about Tejano music set the tone for a program that proudly showcases the diverse tapestry that American culture and society are fortunate to be,” he added.

Feature Films & Narrative Highlights

CineFestival San Antonio will also spotlight an impressive roster of feature films:

Carnalismo (José Luis Cano): A family in Durango, Mexico finds belonging through cumbias and low rider bicycle culture.
Hola Frida (André Kadi, Karine Vézina): An animated depiction of Frida Kahlo’s early life.
Prodigal Daughter (Mabel Valdiviezo): An emotional journey of reunification between a former punk artist and her Peruvian family.
Spring of the Vanishing (Andrew Glazer): A gripping documentary about a mother’s search for her missing son and the silence surrounding tragedy.
The Ladder (Emilio Miguel Torres): A sci-fi story about aging, second chances, and a mysterious medical procedure.
The Place In Between (Laura Perez): A darkly comic road trip about grief and belonging, filmed with an all-women crew in San Antonio.
Uvalde Mom (Anayansi Prado): The story of Angeli Gomez, who bravely rescued her children from the Robb Elementary shooting.
Valentina or the Serenity (Ángeles Cruz): An intimate depiction of loss and belonging in Oaxaca.

Short Films & Special Programs

The festival also shines a light on short films across a range of special sections:

Mesquite Award for Best Texas Short Film: 16 narrative and documentary shorts that reflect Texas’s rich Latinx heritage.
Vistas de San Antonio: 18 films highlighting the city’s diverse storytelling, including My Rocking Chair (dir. Alejandro Aldana) and works by students from Northwest Vista College, St. Mary’s University, UIW, and UTSA.
Texas Showcase: 15 shorts by Texas-based established and emerging filmmakers.
National Latinx Short Films: Award-winning shorts from across the United States, with connections to San Antonio.
Youth Films: Short works from talented young artists across Texas and the surrounding states.

A Celebration of Culture and Community

CineFestival San Antonio is made possible by the City of San Antonio Department of Arts and Culture, the San Antonio Film Commission, the Texas Commission on the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Ford Foundation, the San Antonio Area Foundation, H‑E‑B, and AARP.

Note: This production is not presented by the Carver Community Cultural Center or the Carver Development Board.

For the full lineup and tickets, visit: www.guadalupeculturalarts.org/cine-festival

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Ivan Gonzalez