The TV show Gentefied is a big illustration of Mexican Americans struggling for the American dream as they show how they fight together to accomplish their goals and be successful. The symbol of “Mama Fina’s Taco” on the door of the restaurant represents the Hispanic community because of the use of Spanish words in Los Angeles and the combination of yellow, red, and blue colors which are bright colors that highlight the culture of Mexico or Latinos. When the restaurant’s owner enters the place, their costumes differentiate from the workers as they are wearing simple clothes with a red apron and the owners wear formal suits which highlights some kind of irony as they are not in a much elegant restaurant but the opposite. In this scene, the owner asks for his paycheck, but they are not ready, which shows how they struggle to keep up the money. In addition, the establishing shot of the view from the street outside the restaurant with the tall Los Angeles buildings in the back is used to represent the difference between a rich place and those who live in the same state but are not as rich. Also, the modern colors with the light focusing more on that part of the buildings are contrasted with the dark lighting of the red colors of the city's short stores. This represents the fight for the American dream being hard and dark but having a good outcome.
In comparison, the film MacFarland is an inspiring representation of overcoming adversity with triumphs and challenges of young athletes to find their paths to success. They use a representation of breaking stereotypes when they say that they have 6 in the team and need 7 but not Danny Diaz because they think that because of his weight he will slow them down but with demanding work and the Coach’s help, he shows them wrong, surprising them. This highlights the fact that being fat does not stop one from achieving successful goals. The film contrasts the themes of economic and social differences by showing how the cross-country runners in a Latino community in McFarland, California differentiate from the other teams with more bright colors in clean uniforms like white with green lines to show the wealthy and private schools where they come from compared to their uniforms of grey with red colors that also highlight the anger but braveness that they have in themselves and leave it on the race. A representation of equality is also shown as the team’s coach is the opposite of their physical characteristics of darkish color and dark brown hair as he has fair hair, and he is white. Equality is seen because they disregard their jokes about their differences, they still fight together in each race and outside of the track.
Here are some of McFarland's posters from when it was published on February 20, 2015
Sometimes no matter if it is a film or a TV show they can have both positive and negative effects on their audience. Gentefied and McFarland both show different perspectives of what could be considered the “American Dream”. They can see it as a place where one must work a lot more than in their original countries and even like this, things are still economically hard. But they can also see America as a country of new opportunities and risks to take that could lead one somewhere far and amazing. One can also have another point of view about the Hispanic people being shown in the TV show as they are taken out from their cultural spots like adding LGBTQ+ and other races that can somehow be unrespectful for them.
In contrast, the film does well in demonstrating the respect the runners have for their families and cultures as they work hard on the farms with a humble mind. This typical representation of Latin families does well in teaching to keep humbleness, respect toward others, and perseverance toward hard work because this can have beautiful effects on a community and themselves. Although it is needed to highlight their possible views of these subjects, it is important to state that times are changing and so should people’s thoughts so that there is inclusivity, respect, and equality. Viewers should consider this so that they can rise above adversity and not let these media define them completely or create a strategy for media progression to specifically understand the possible effects of their production on their audience so that they can wisely choose the best option.
Gentefied:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mFgMyqHZCE
Above there are the links for the official trailers of Gentefied and McFarland.
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