Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Dueling Identities: La Guerra Civil asks, What is Mexican Enough?

21/01/2022

By Katie Small

For better or worse, boxing is a sport that has never shied away from using race as a tool to create spectacle. In La Guerra Civil, engaging interviews and detailed archival footage reveal how an epic 1996 rivalry between a Mexican icon and his Mexican American challenger launched a cultural battle, illuminating the dual identity that Latinos in the United States must contend with to this day.

Eva Longoria Bast n is no stranger to the Sundance Film Festival, having starred in 2020's Sylvie's Love and appearing in 2021's Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It. This year she returns as director with her energetic feature-length documentary debut, which takes an in-depth look at the legendary boxing match between seasoned Mexican champion Julio C sar Ch vez and the younger Mexican American Oscar De La Hoya. The famous fight pitted Mexicans against one another, as fans from both sides of the border had to choose a champion that most resonated with them.

In a pre-recorded introduction to the film, Longoria Bast n reflects, This battle between two legends was about more than boxing - it really takes us into a fascinating slice of the Latino experience.

The two fighters had very different introductions to the sport, and as a result their personal histories carried contrasting cultural significance. Hailing from Culiac n, Sinaloa, Julio C sar Ch vez was one of 11 children. He began working from a young age, climbing out of poverty after he made a name for himself in the boxing rings of Tijuana. His rags to riches story embodied Mexican ideals of grit and perseverance and inspired national pride throughout his iconic career.

Eva Longoria Bast n and Julio C sar Ch vez appear in La Guerra Civil by Eva Longoria Bast n, an official selection of the Premieres section at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Ilse Fernandez. All photos are copyrighted and may be used by press only for the purpose of news or editorial coverage of Sundance Institute programs. Photos must be accompanied by a credit to the photographer and/or Courtesy of Sundance Institute.' Unauthorized use, alteration, reproduction or sale of logos and/or photos is strictly prohibited. Meanwhile, Oscar De La Hoya was groomed to be a fighter; in the documentary, the son of immigrants recalls how he was forced into boxing. He was trained from age five and scouted at 11, before winning a gold medal for the U.S. in the 1992 Olympics. Although he was raised in a Spanish-speaking Mexican household, the golden boy from East LA struggled to gain acceptance from fans - he was regarded as not Mexican enough for his father's generation, not American enough for his own.

Eva Longoria Bast n and Oscar De La Hoya appear in La Guerra Civil by Eva Longoria Bast n, an official selection of the Premieres section at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival. Courtesy of Sundance Institute | photo by Ilse Fernandez. All photos are copyrighted and may be used by press only for the purpose of news or editorial coverage of Sundance Institute programs. Photos must be accompanied by a credit to the photographer and/or Courtesy of Sundance Institute.' Unauthorized use, alteration, reproduction or sale of logos and/or photos is strictly prohibited. Interviews with both Ch vez and De La Hoya provide insight into their personal experiences, while commentary from sports scholars, boxing commentators, and notable Mexican American figures - such as actor Mario Lopez, journalist Claudia Trejos, and comedian George Lopez - ground the moment in historical and cultural significance.

After the premiere, the director joined Sundance Institute programmer Dilcia Berrera, Oscar de La Hoya, and producer Grant Best in a live Q&A session. She reflected on her own memories of the 25-year-old fight, how it divided her household at the time, and how Mexican Americans continue to juggle dual - and dueling - cultural identities. What surprises me is how little has changed, Longoria Bast n notes.

For me, when people say, Oh you're half-Mexican, half-American' I go, No - I'm 100% Mexican, 100% American, at the same time. Own that, she says. Longoria Bast n reflected on how her own generation was discouraged from speaking Spanish, but says she is excited to see younger generations of Latinos embrace their diverse identities and celebrate their cultural legacies. You don't have to choose, and you don't have to assimilate [ ] Today's generation is turning the tide.
LINK: https://www.sundance.org/blogs/dueling-identities-la-guerra-civil-asks...
See more stories from sundance

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026

January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026 Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...

02/05/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Search, Faster Editing, and an AI-Ready Foundation for Modern Media

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

01/05/2026

NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to Integrate Dolby's Full Suite of Premium Picture and Sound Innovations

January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...

01/04/2026

DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION

January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...

17/02/2026

Eutelsat, Viewsat Renew Capacity Agreements to Support Development of Broadcast Market in MENA Region

Eutelsat announces the renewal of multiple capacity agreements with Viewsat, rei...

17/02/2026

The Evolution of Communications in Cloud Era of Global Broadcasting

At Milano Cortina 2026, one statistic stood out across industry reporting: 70% of global signal distribution is now happening over public cloud. What began as e...

17/02/2026

CP Communications Supports the Big Game Broadcast for 27 Years

CP Communications provided broadcast support for Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara, Calif. at Levi's Stadium, marking 27 years of working around the Big Game. Th...

17/02/2026

NBC Sports Graphics Team Goes Onsite, Embraces L.A. Motif for NBA All-Star

Street-level images of iconic Los Angeles landmarks are incorporated into the regular-season look With NBC Sports just months into its return to NBA coverage a...

17/02/2026

Jimpa Asks You to Choose Love

Sophie Hyde and John Lithgow backstage during the premiere of Jimpa. (Photo by George Pimentel / Shutterstock for Sundance Film Festival)...

17/02/2026

The 19th Annual South African Film and Television Awards (SAFTAs19) Nominees Announced

Johannesburg, 17 February 2026 - The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF), ...

17/02/2026

L3Harris Marks Delivery of 3 Million Fuzes to US Army

A Green Beret hangs a 60mm mortar round from a M225A mortar system on a live-fire range. (Photo credit: U.S. Army)...

17/02/2026

The AI Wild West, and Why it Needs a Sheriff

AI Is Scaling Faster Than Governance And That's a Risk AI adoption hasn't rolled out through neat transformation programmes. It has spread organically...

17/02/2026

TV Viewing Hits 12-Month High in Nielsen's January Report of The Gauge

Cable Surges 9% on Strength of College Football Playoffs and News, while NFL Delivers Top 15 Broadcast Telecasts ESPN (+86%) and FOX News Channel (+17%) Combin...

17/02/2026

Gray Signs Deal for Atlanta Braves Spring Training Games

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/02/2026

January TV Viewing Hits 12-Month High

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/02/2026

TAG Video Systems Expands MCS 1.7.0 With New Lens Visualization Tool

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

17/02/2026

BCNEXXT Positions Broadcasters to Unlock New Revenue Oppo...

As the FCC explores a potential clawback of Upper C-Band spectrum currently used for broadcast distribution, BCNEXXT is working with broadcasters and operators ...

17/02/2026

VEON and Hala to Explore Partnership in Ride-Hailing Services

17 Feb 2026 VEON and Hala to Explore Partnership in Ride-Hailing Services Dubai, February 17, 2026 - VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital operator ( VEON...

17/02/2026

Qube Cinema announces the acquisition of the business of Arts Alliance Media (AAM)

Qube Cinema announces the acquisition of the business of Arts Alliance Media (AA...

17/02/2026

Unveiling What's Next on Netflix for Australia and New Zealand in 2026

Back to All News Unveiling What's Next on Netflix for Australia and New Zealand in 2026 Entertainment 17 February 2026 GlobalAustraliaNew Zealand Link ...

17/02/2026

WBD Files Definitive Proxy Statement and Schedules Special Meeting for March 20, 2026, to Approve the WBD-Netflix Transaction

Back to All News WBD Files Definitive Proxy Statement and Schedules Special Mee...

17/02/2026

Arvato Systems Once Again Named One of Germany's Best IT Service Providers.

Arvato Systems Once Again Named One of Germany's Best IT Service Providers. The best IT service providers in 2026 G tersloh - Arvato Systems is once ag...

17/02/2026

ABC Consumer Media Report: Trusted data for a changing market

Open the report Our 2025 report brings together results from 155 consumer magazine titles across 42 market sectors, published by 59 media owners. Over the year...

17/02/2026

RT Choice Music Prize Announcement Classic Irish Album

Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize RT Choice Music Prize In association with IMRO and IRMA Classic Irish Album And the winning album is T...

17/02/2026

RT to provide Irish-language commentary on major rugby and soccer fixtures throughout 2026

RT has today announced that as part of its public-service remit, it will expand...

16/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: NEP Group Powers Game Capture With TFC Infrastructure, Specialty Cameras

The production infrastructure scaled seamlessly from regular-season games to the...

16/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: NBC Sports' Ryan Soucy and Kim Titone on Ops for a New Era of NBA on NBC'

The operations team reimagined traditional workflows were reimagined and built a...

16/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: NBA TV's New League-Run Era Debuts With Live Studio Shows

Once again an in-house operation, the league's network is producing shows fr...

16/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: For NBA Broadcast Operations, There's a Lot of New'

The league is producing its first All-Star with NBC, Intuit Dome, and, once agai...

16/02/2026

Boland's Groundbreaking 12G 4K Video Wall

When a customer in London needed a 4K video wall that could take 12G input, the media company found no video wall suppliers that could meet their specs and time...

16/02/2026

NATO Upgrades Brussels HQ Broadcast Studio with Grass Valley Cameras

Grass Valley, a media and entertainment technology innovator, has won a competitive NATO-wide tender to provide the new camera system for NATO's main broadc...

16/02/2026

Comcast Business Powers February's Biggest Sports Moments

Comcast Business announces it is again partnering with NBCUniversal to architect and manage critical components of the linear and digital broadcast for three of...

16/02/2026

NBC Olympics on NEP's Critical Role for the 2026 Winter Olympics

Week two of the 2026 Milano Cortina Winter Olympics are underway and crucial to the NBC Sports efforts has been the NEP Group which is providing a full range of...

16/02/2026

Train Dreams, Sorry, Baby, Lurker, and Other Sundance Institute-Supported Wins at the 2026 Spirit Awards

The Film Independent Spirit Awards have officially switched things up. This Sund...

16/02/2026

SBS's Powerhouse Current Affairs Line-up is Back with the Conversations and Stories That Matter to You

SBS's Powerhouse Current Affairs Line-up is Back with the Conversations and ...

16/02/2026

L3Harris Receives New Contract to Power THAAD Interceptors

A THAAD interceptor is launched during a successful Missile Defense Agency intercept test (Photo Credit: Missile Defense Agency)...

16/02/2026

aconnic ramping up production for ACCEED 4104 10 Gigabit system for international markets

aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, is increasing capacity and ramping up p...

16/02/2026

Content Vault Expands Device Specific File Encryption to...

Content Vault, the patent-pending content security platform originally developed for the film, television and entertainment industries, has today announced a ma...

16/02/2026

Unscripted Content Producer MEGUMI Signs Exclusive Partnership with Netflix

Back to All News Unscripted Content Producer MEGUMI Signs Exclusive Partnership with Netflix Entertainment 16 February 2026 GlobalJapan Link copied to clip...

16/02/2026

Mission: Impossible: Capturing sound 10 meters underwater

In Ep62 of the AMPS Podcast, they share how a 3 mm DPA 6061 Subminiature Mic became part of a custom solution hidden inside the underwater mask capturing breath...

16/02/2026

Netflix Releases the Second Season of 'Gangs of Galicia' on April 3

Back to All News Netflix Releases the Second Season of Gangs of Galicia on April 3 Entertainment 16 February 2026 GlobalSpain Link copied to clipboard Wat...

16/02/2026

"Unscripted" Producer MEGUMI Signs Exclusive Partnership with Netflix

Back to All News "Unscripted" Producer MEGUMI Signs Exclusive Partnership with Netflix Entertainment 16 February 2026 GlobalJapan Link copied to clipboard ...

16/02/2026

RT announces the Appointments of new Clarity Correspondent and Policy & Analysis Correspondent

RT News & Current Affairs has today announced the new appointments of journalis...

16/02/2026

New Data Shows NVIDIA Blackwell Ultra Delivers up to 50x Better Performance and 35x Lower Costs for Agentic AI

The NVIDIA Blackwell platform has been widely adopted by leading inference provi...

15/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: Entertainment Takes the Court in a Big Way

With new partnership between the league and NBC, workflows distinguish more between live, broadcast sound There'll be a lot new for the 75th NBA All-Star W...

15/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: NBC Sports Director Pierre Moossa Previews NBC's Return to the Event

After 24-year absence, NBC Sports returns to NBA All-Star Weekend with unique ca...

15/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: Peacock, NBC Sports Offer Viewers a Front-Row Seat With Courtside Live'

New to NBA coverage, the viewer experience offers several angles in addition to ...

15/02/2026

Live From NBA All-Star 2026: NBC Sports Returns With Plenty of Tech Toys in Tow

Coverage features 4X-slo-mo Supracam and Steadicam, Nucleus 4K cameras, closer play-by-play angle, 10 player mics NBC Sports is in the midst of its first NBA A...

14/02/2026

Cineverse Acquires TV Monetization Platform IndiCue

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...