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There just aren't enough positive portrayals of Latino life in film.

Latinos are the fastest growing minority, and we're obviously not going anywhere. We're extremely loyal as a people, and I think Hollywood is starting to recognize that. It's very rare for a major studio to nationally distribute a film with Latino talent, not only in front of the camera, but also behind the camera.

I don't want the Latino community to think I think the reason Latino films are not doing well is because of us. It is not fully our responsibility.

You go to Los Angeles or New York or Miami or Chicago, and you see Latinos everywhere; they are involved in every part of American society. That's why they have to start being represented in Hollywood, because an 'Americano' can't walk down the street and not see a Latino.

I have a theory. An audience doesn't need to get wrapped up in blackness every time they see a Negro actor. And a movie doesn't have to be about race just because there's a Negro in it.

The American movie, in part because America's a melting pot, the cultural hodgepodge that America makes, generates movies that have appeal across all international boundaries. And that's really not true for most domestic film industries. It's no longer true of France and Italy, less true than it used to be of the U.K.

Unfortunately, considering that we Latinos are really big for movie companies when they have blockbuster releases or new cable shows, when it comes to the dynamic of supporting our own product, it leaves much to be desired.

I do find that it's easier to get Latino-themed movies... but I don't think there's that stigma anymore. I think that what's harder is to be a woman, not to be a Latina.

Latinos don't go out and support their own films, but at the same time, it's not their responsibility.