Alejandro A. Riera
@alejandroariera.bsky.social
Writer, editor, critic, movie lover, Doctor Who fan, proud to be a boricua, a cubano and a gallego. Curmudgeon extraordinaire. You can find my writing at alejandroariera.substack.com, cinelandiausa.com, the Chicago Reader, and thirdcoastreview.com.
once upon a time, we cut off the trolls’ oxygen and they got bored and wandered off. that’s how this place became the so-called “bubble” they hate so much. the end.
John Scalzi@scalzi.com · 2d agoBluesky oldheads will remember that brief period of time when the conservative trolls tried to storm the place and were flummoxed by the idea they would have to organically grow an audience and that someone who didn't want to talk to them could nuke every interaction they ever had from orbit
Calling all Latino filmmakers! The International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago (ILCC) has opened submissions for the 43rd Chicago Latino Film Festival, scheduled for April 15-26, 2027. For more information:
Chicago Latino Film Festival Opens Early Submissions for 43rd Edition • Chicago Latino Film Festival
The official blog of the Chicago Latino Film Festival. Learn all that is new with CLFF running this year from April 3rd to 14th, 2025.
chicagolatinofilmfestival.org
Three days after my birthday. 😉
S P A R K S@sparksofficial.bsky.social · 2d agoMUSIC THAT YOU CAN DANCE TO (40th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) ⚡️ 🔹 released October 30th on Curb Records 🔹 double LP, CD, and digital 🔹 remastered from original master tapes 🔹 expanded with remixes, previously unreleased demos & alternate takes curbrecords.ffm.to/musicthatyou...
Fetterman is telling us exactly what he plans to do Telling us to expect him to switch parties in the 120th Congress Take this seriously Get out there Elect Dems in all 35 Senate races We need a Dem Senate majority large enough to make his inevitable party switch immaterial
Voting for him. As Secretary of State, he was a strong supporter of public libraries and a strong opponent of book banning. He's also made the office that much more efficient. Johnson has not only been a disappointment but his administration turned its back to the Latino community.
Chicago Sun-Times@chicago.suntimes.com · 4d agoTaking aim at Mayor Brandon Johnson's revolving door of senior leadership, Illinois Secretary of State Alexi Giannoulias joined the race to replace Johnson, portraying himself as the coalition builder needed to solve Chicago's problems.
I just subscribed to this block list, and I really appreciate the public service provided here
Tess is Surviving the Horrors@mothmother.com · 4d agoI started getting followed by some "film festivals" and "writing festivals" and thought "oh, these are cool!" Then I looked a little closer. They're all part of a network that preys on writers, charging us for reviews, and feeding our stuff into slop generators. So I made a list.👋🏻🖕🏻😠
ICYMI News of my new role at the Chicago Latino Film Festival was picked up by New City.
MCA Announces Rashid Johnson Survey | Julia Momosé's F1 Cocktails | The Chicago Origins Of Paul McCartney's DJ
Today in Chicago culture: Friday, July 31, 2026.
newcity.com
Alejandro A. Riera@alejandroariera.bsky.social · 6d agoAs of this week, I am the Publicity and Programming Manager for the 43rd Chicago Latino Film Festival. I will now be involved in the feature film selection process & will still be in charge of all communications and content for the Festival. Some good news after all the crap I've been dealing with.
It works all the time. I had to do the same to a Latino website that was shutting down without paying its writers.
Jason Bailey@jasondashbailey.com · 5d agoAnd, less than an hour after posting this, there is an apology email and an invoice being generated. It just.... should not work like this, ya know
Indeed it should not work like this, but it does seem worth noting that sometimes it does.
Jason Bailey@jasondashbailey.com · 5d agoAnd, less than an hour after posting this, there is an apology email and an invoice being generated. It just.... should not work like this, ya know
Writers, beware. Thread
Jason Bailey@jasondashbailey.com · 5d agoWell, it’s invoicing day, and since they’re really apparently not going to pay me for something I wrote for them two months ago, I guess today is the day to post about how @vulture.com fucks over its film freelancers. Long (sorry) thread, with receipts:
Drained, Chester sat down and waited for the police to arrive. Staring at Alan’s still-warm body laying among the empty shells, he felt no remorse. There were two sacred rules. You didn’t touch another man’s wife, or another man’s nuts. His ears perked up as the sound of sirens rose in the distance.
As of this week, I am the Publicity and Programming Manager for the 43rd Chicago Latino Film Festival. I will now be involved in the feature film selection process & will still be in charge of all communications and content for the Festival. Some good news after all the crap I've been dealing with.
facebook.com
The tocayo had me at Le Carre.
Alejandro Arbona 🇵🇷@alejandrobot.com · 6d ago"Downton Abbey meets John le Carré in slow-burn cat-and-mouse thriller TRADECRAFT MANOR." A graphic novel by me and Leandro Fernández—coming March 23, 2027 from BOOM! Studios…I'm extremely proud of this one! www.comicsbeat.com/exclusive-bo...
Some of the movies his name is attached to are not very good either, particularly JOKER.
Feds: Chicago investors scammed in $100M alleged fraud by ‘Joker’ movie producer
CHICAGO — His film credits include producer titles in blockbuster movies including “Joker,” “House of Gucci” and “Ghostbusters: Afterlife;” but now Jason Cloth h…
wgntv.com
Republicans are currently denouncing everyone in the Democratic Party as a “communist” and if you think Democrats firing at their left flank will make those attacks *less likely* and *less effective* you should try reading up on the history of McCarthyism
Christopher Webb@cwebbonline.com · last wk.🔴Civilian control of policing 🔴Amnesty for all immigrants 🔴Reparations & tribal sovereignty If Dems don’t start drawing clear distinctions between the Democratic Party and the DSA, Republicans will gladly do it for them. And they’ll use it to define every Democrat on the ballot. 3/3
I TOLD you all 25 years ago that if we shamed and shunned the Cat Piss Men masturbating to issues of “Wired” and “Science Fiction Eye,” we could have stopped this. But NO…
Adam Becker@adambecker.bsky.social · last wk.lol, no, that's not a thing
Haitian caretakers are who helped care for my partner of 35 years when he was paralyzed before his death. Now i go to the food bank for her & her children every week. Vance & other Republicans have no idea how their corruption & lies are damaging people. Where is the policies to replace their labor
paulpro@mariopro.bsky.social · last wk.VANCE SLANDERED THE HAITIANS IN SPRINGFIELD, OH "If I have to create stories...that's what I'm gonna do" TODAY, more than 350,000 Haitian migrants are losing their Temporary Protected Status ICE is SURGING to Springfield, Ohio where 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian migrants live @anntelnaes.bsky.social
Where I officially began my career as the film critic for the Chicago Tribune's Spanish-language publication more than 20 years ago. So many great memories, some obviously involving Ebert & Siskel and other dearly departed like David Schultz, Michael Wilmington, Andrea Gronvall & Sergio Mims.
A Home Away from Home: Goodbye to the Lake Street Screening Room
A loving ode to a place that shaped Chicago film criticism.
rogerebert.com
👇👇👇👇👇 "Critics are supposed to take the work seriously — to engage with it seriously — and provide additional context and analysis. It’s then up to the reader to decide how much (or little) of that deepens their understanding and appreciation of the show or film in question."
Nina Metz@ninametz.bsky.social · 2w agoHollywood's rich and famous are complaining about critics again Are people who make TV and film aware that the job of critic barely exists anymore? Probably not! Perhaps the fact that anyone is still employed as a critic is the actual sticking point This week’s newsletter
For those of you who are still over there because of "the reach" or "the discourse" or whatever.
Brandon Friedman@brandonfriedman.bsky.social · last wk.Musk calls for the assassination of a reporter who embarrassed him with basic questions
OBSESSION is really a movie about bipolarism disguised as a horror movie, right?
Happy U.S. Invasion of Puerto Rico Day!
SPARKS - (Baby,Baby) Can I Invade Your Country ?
YouTube video by Dcee730
youtube.com
You want to know why too many people don't respect the media? It's because the media doesn't respect itself. We're all embarrassed for you. Have some fucking dignity.
Jon Passantino@passantino.bsky.social · 2w agoAfter insisting the correspondents' dinner was worth reviving, the WHCA handed Trump a nationally televised platform to smear the very journalists it exists to represent, effectively turn the stage into a Trump rally. It was a disgrace. My latest @status.news www.status.news/p/the-white-...
Thou shalt not let the media whitewash Elon’s crimes. He belongs in prison. Prosecute him, seize his assets, and redistribute them to the people. NOTE: This is the merciful position.
The Guardian@theguardian.com · 2w ago‘I got carried away’: Elon Musk expresses regret about Doge and wading into Trump’s orbit
For the early evening crowd....
Alejandro A. Riera@alejandroariera.bsky.social · 2w agoMy latest contribution to @cinelandiausa.bsky.social is on Stillz’s exhilarating, brutal, at times confounding and sometimes trippy feature debut “Barrio Triste,” playing until tomorrow at the Siskel Film Center. (You need to be a paid subscriber to read the whole review.)
Will you look at all those talented Latinos? So happy for Wendy Mateo and the entire team behind the theater adaptation of THE BRIEF WONDROUS LIFE OF OSCAR WAO!
Chicago Sun-Times@chicago.suntimes.com · 2w agoChicago Shakespeare Theater and Paramount Theatre also landed at the top of the list with each company garnering 20 nominations. The winners will be announced on Sept. 14.
