The Non-Biological Mexican

Director Joseph Balderas · Runtime: 0:14:58

In the heart of Seoul, South Korea, a man named Jung-Su Lee has dedicated his life to mastering the art of Mexican cuisine. The Non-Biological Mexican explores his journey—how an unexpected connection to a distant culture reshaped his identity, and in turn, challenges what it truly means to belong. Through his story, filmmaker Joseph Balderas reflects on his own relationship with heritage, identity, and the blurred lines between culture and personal meaning.

Los Tres

Director Yehuda Sharim · Runtime: 0:58:20

Three Mexican-American artists find refuge in friendship and art as they compose their artistic vision in the face of denigration and a space/time that deliberately fails to see them.

The Best Little Tiny Park in Texas

Director Margaret Barry · Runtime: 0:08:14

A short documentary about Bepi Park, Texas’s tiniest “pocket” park, located in Austin, Texas.

About the filmmaker

Margaret produces and directs documentary short films for festivals and community events nationwide. Her first film, The Polish Hotel (2024) marked the beginning of her journey in filmmaking. Her short documentary, The Best Little Tiny Park in Texas, is about Texas's tiniest “pocket” park, Bepi Park. Bepi Park is located in Austin, Texas.

Margaret's first documentary short film, The Polish Hotel (24 minutes long), centers on a tight-knit Polish community of three generations of Polish and Polish-Americans and their 35 summers together. They converted a former boarding house for railroad workers in Union Pier, Michigan. Polish is the predominant language at the "hotel," affectionately known as the "The Polish Hotel," s a slice of Poland in the midwest. The elders of the community, who were forced out of Poland after World War II, left their homeland and invested precious time and money in the "hotel," and made it a priority to keep their traditions alive. To this day, the "Polish Hotel" remains the same as it was 35 years ago! Polish is still the predominant language; Polish food is the food of choice; the smell of perogi and other Polish delicacies wafts from the communal kitchen; Polish art adorns the walls; Polish folk dancing is performed at parties, The "Polish Hotel" is one of a kind. There is no other place like it in the world.

Lessons Learned In Cotulla

Director Oddett Garza · Runtime: 0:13:38

In Lessons Learned in Cotulla, four Mexican American women share their stories of resilience as they reflect on their journeys to pursue higher education despite the systemic barriers of their time. Filmed in Cotulla, Texas—where President Lyndon B. Johnson once taught at a segregated Mexican school—the documentary weaves together personal narratives, archival footage, and the town's historical significance in LBJ's fight for educational equity. Through intimate interviews, these women illuminate the power of education to transform lives and challenge the invisibility of Tejana experiences in American history.