Playing Sam
2024 WINNER - INDIEPIX VISION AWARD
2023
United States
89 mins
Feature Film Competition
| Ramon Pesante | |
| Jessica Hernandez, Burton Lewis Jr. | |
| Jenni Ruiza (Samantha), Marc Reign (Anthony), William DeMeritt (Alex), Alana Johnson (Ana) |
‘Playing Sam’ is a semi-autobiographical independent film that follows the story of Samantha, a non-Spanish-speaking Latina actress from the Bronx, struggling to fit into Hollywood’s narrow standards of beauty and ethnicity. The film explores themes of heritage, mental health, and sexuality with a frank and unapologetic depiction of an empowered Latina woman.
About the Director
Rising from foster care to producing television, Ramon Pesante overcame the pitfalls of generational trauma through the escape of movies, sitcoms, and comic books. He implemented the skills he developed working in television to create his first feature, ‘Playing Sam’.
Reviews
Playing Sam: One Story Takes a Village – by Belton DeLaine-Facey for Winter Film Awards
Playing Sam (2023) – Review and Summary – Wherever I Look, by Austin Estrada
‘Green light yourself.’ Miami film festival promotes up-and-coming Black filmmakers – Miami Herald, by Isaiah Smalls Ii
Tiempo for 9/17/2023: Suffolk County appoints Latino liaison officer; New York Latino Film Festival – ABC’s Tiempo
OPEN Friday | Ramon Pesante – Bronx Net
Intl. Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival coming to NYC – PIX11 News
Interviews
Photos (Click on Photo to View)
