Latino Film Institute’s Futuro XR fellowship, supported by Agog, brought immersive storytelling to the 2026 Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival for the first time. The showcase highlighted four original VR films and a growing interest in how immersive media can expand the possibilities of storytelling.
On an evening in May, filmmakers, festival attendees, industry professionals, and curious first-time XR users packed the Connect Lounge at the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival (LALIFF). The line to experience four immersive films created through the Futuro XR: 360° Video Lab stretched into the reception area, and animated conversations were happening throughout the venue.
The excitement reflected a significant milestone. For the first time in its history, LALIFF showcased immersive storytelling alongside its film programming, introducing festival audiences to virtual reality as a storytelling medium. Agog was proud to support that moment by funding the Latino Film Institute’s Futuro XR: 360° Video Lab, a five-month fellowship that introduced emerging filmmakers to immersive storytelling through workshops, mentorship, and hands-on production. The program culminated in the four original VR films that premiered at the festival, while also building new creative skills, relationships, and momentum for filmmakers exploring the medium for the first time.
“For us as Latinos, I want to highlight that we can be part of these technologies and these communities, and we’re slowly bridging that gap,” said Futuro XR fellow and filmmaker Maria de Jesus Mayo.
Watch a video about the fellowship:
About the Films and Filmmakers
April and the Sacred Garden
After a bitter argument with her mother, April retreats into her family garage, determined to shut out a heritage she refuses to claim. When a cracked pre-Hispanic figurine releases a strange green light, the familiar space transforms and draws her into a dreamlike garden ruled by Xochiquetzal, an ancestral goddess of nature, love, and creativity. In this surreal world, April faces her fears and discovers she is not being punished but welcomed.
About the director: Jimena Muhlia is an artist who has been pursuing interdisciplinarity for many years, beginning when she studied Architecture at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) while also being part of a dance/theater company (1999–2005). She studied film at the Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (2013–2019) and has presented works at film festivals such as Evaporado (2017), La Caja China (2018), Lily <3 (2020), and Vacilaciones Cósmicas (2024). She is an alumna of Talents Guadalajara (2021 and 2023). She currently works on editing both her own projects and those of others, while developing her next creative documentary projects, Partícula Suspendida and El Buzo.
Necuhtli
The Aztec Goddess Tonantzin has long been a symbol of resilience for social movements across time. Wisdom keepers serve as our community’s weavers, creating pathways that honor indigenous healing traditions while fostering vibrant collective life. Through this immersive project, we enter a poetic landscape of enchantment, destruction, and survival, led by a practitioner deeply experienced in redefining community care and leadership.
About the director: Maria de Jesus Mayo is a documentary filmmaker, multimedia storyteller, and media arts educator who champions the visibility of BIPOC communities through a social justice lens. She holds an MFA from the University of California, Santa Cruz, and is an alumna of the New School Graduate Documentary Program and the University of Southern California. Her short film La Lupita premiered at Doc NYC, and Simi, an unconventional meditation on motherhood, premiered at Urbanworld in New York City. She recently completed a Media Arts Teaching Fellowship with the Los Angeles Community College District. The themes of her work include intergenerational conversations, identity, and belonging.
Ventanas
Ventanas is a multi-platform immersive content series with a focus on bridging 360° VR technology into community and conservation spaces. This premier film for the Los Angeles Latino International Film Festival allows you to dive into ventanas (windows) showcasing the tanks of the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center so you can experience Shark Cove, Internal Wonders, Surge, and the Octopus Tanks. This ventana (window) into the tanks will allow you to see the majesty of our animal ambassadors in first person perspective. Creating a unique opportunity to “meet” our underwater friends that you can find within our local Southern California ecosystems.
About the director: María Azellea Sánchez Ordóñez is a filmmaker dedicated to storytelling that celebrates culture and supports conservation efforts. Her first animated film, La Concha Mágica, debuted at the 2019 San Diego Comic-Con Children’s Film Festival. As a community leader, she has supported emerging creatives through educational initiatives and mentorship, while also being a charter member of LatinX in Animation. She is currently developing immersive cross social platform content through her channel Juntos Veramos.
Generations
Generations follows the women of a Chicana family as each comes of age during a time of social unrest. In the 1940s, teenage Cindy goes out wearing a banned zoot suit. In the 1960s, Linda prepares for a student protest. In 2006, her granddaughter Mandi tries to join an immigration rally. The film reveals how tradition, activism, and love are passed down like heirlooms—not through words, but through action. It highlights the strength of women who protect, guide, and inspire each other across generations.
About the director: Miguel Ramirez is a Salvadoran filmmaker from South LA. His drive to expand the industry to include stories centering on communities of color propelled his work at Lionsgate, Apple, and Mission Entertainment. He was selected for the National Hispanic Media’s Script Writers Program and was awarded a grant by Dolby and Ghetto Film School to write and direct a short film. Miguel works as a script coordinator at Titmouse and Netflix and on the revival Everybody Still Hates Chris for Comedy Central, where he received his first writing credit. He is the recipient of the Eastside Arts Initiative grant. Miguel is writing a comic for the Wildfire Relief Anthology: We Are Los Angeles, to aid wildfire relief.
See more information about the films