[This review is part of the Mercury’s 2021 Portland International Film Festival (PIFF) guide. You can check out all our PIFF reviews here.]
Now in its 44th year, this year’s Portland International Film Festival features six different collections—or “blocks”—of short films. Entries from local, national, and international filmmakers give viewers brief but profound glimpses into their unique worlds and perspectives. I watched a few from Shorts Block 2 to give you a taste of what to expect.
La Tienda (The Shop)
The shop in question is that of Camila Araya and Daniela del Mar’s Letra Chueca Press, a local Latinx womxn-owned letterpress studio. Portland has long been a hotbed for art and activism, and La Tienda takes a look at the intersections of these practices.
Soon after meeting, Araya and del Mar bonded over their similar roots (both hail from Chile) and shared craft. The pair started printing for themselves, and came to find truth in the feminist phrase that “the personal is political.” Their posters are pressed with socio-political messages in bold and colorful Spanglish words, and some letters come out crooked—hence the name, which translates to Crooked Letter Press. “Straightness is overrated,” del Mar says with a laugh.
