latino lingo

All things related to effective Hispanic marketing, Hispanic advertising and Hispanic public relations.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

"For Greater Glory" a Must See for All, not Just Hispanics

I had the privilege of attending an early screening of "For Greater Glory," which opens in June and stars Andy Garcia and Eva Longoria, at the famed Tower Theater in Miami while attending Hispanicize 2012.  The event was attended by Mr. Garcia and his family and a bus load of Hispanicize attendees.

The movie is embargoed until its release in June and we had to assure we wouldn't write any reviews on the movie until then, so I will certainly comply.  Not that I'm even qualified to write a movie review. What I will say is that it is stunning movieaabout the Cristeros War in Mexico in the 1920s and I highly recommend it.

Following the film, Mr. Garcia was gracious enough to answer some questions. One of the people in attendance to ask a question was Pepe Serna, an actor who was in numerous films including Scarface, who asked Mr. Garcia about the pride of a Latino actor in a film like this.  Mr. Serna echoed a sentiment I had while watching the film that it was great to see Latinos in a film based on a Latino story, shows the quality of Latino actors and goes beyond the typical Hollywood stereotypes.  Mr. Serna encouraged the many Latino bloggers in the audience to talk up the film and help ensure its success.

To that, Mr. Garcia smartly said that while he understood, it was important to understand that this isn't just a film for Latinos to be proud of, but one that everyone can enjoy.  He added that as a Latino, he watches many films that are not about Latino themes and the opposite should also be true.  "I am neither English nor patient, but I went to see the 'English Patient,'" he said invoking laughter int the audience.   Excellent point, and well said.



Thursday, April 05, 2012

Amazon opens Tienda Kindle (eBooks Kindle en Español)

Amazon.com, hoping to capitalize on the growing power of Latino spending, has launched its first Spanish-language e-book store called Tienda Kindle offering 30,000+ titles.

The article cites a study by Pew showing that 21 percent of adults have read e-books in the past year, and that number keeps ticking upward. In a three month period, between December 2011 to February 2012, it increased by three percent.

While a book store owner is quoted as saying the price point of e-Readers are out of reach to Latinos, a survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project points to the contrary.  That survey showed that Hispanics have among the highest rates of table ownership at 15%.  Not to mention the fact Latinos spent more than $5 billion on mobile products over the holidays.

I wish the article author had done a little more homework before quoting a bookstore owner who stands to lose business with the increasing adaption of e-Readers and clearly doesn't understand the market.