IG: @splitznico

jakobfloresfigueroa.myportfolio.com

Hasta La Raíz

We, as a collective, cannot think of this violence against Hispanics as a contemporary problem; the physical violence, generational trauma, displacement, and other injustices we see today show that colonial violence still exists and has only changed name and form.

Hasta La Raíz, an offering of over 900 hours of labor, is dedicated to all who have wondered, “What would my life have been like if the settlers never came?” My film criticizes the colonial violence that has followed the original inhabitants of Mexico and their descendants for over 500 years. I highlight the resiliency of my ancestors and my contemporary Mexican/Chicano community while directly asking the audience (in the central dialect of Nahuatl) whether they will allow this cycle to continue.

I do not seek a singular person to condemn, nor do I offer reconciliation without accountability. Instead, I call for direct, immediate action. I call for decolonization; not a shift in language or representation, but a reconfiguration of how we inhabit this world. I invite you to sit in the uncomfortable, question what you have and haven't learned, and decide that today is the day you will fight for change.

Bio

Jakob Flores Figueroa is a Chicano Animator who specializes in 2D character animation, character designs, and storyboarding. Research is an important part of Jakob’s process when developing characters and story outlines. In Jakob’s independent work he explores his Mexican identity, diligently ensuring that his depictions of Mesoamerica are accurate and respectful. His films, An Honorable Death: Ixtli in Yollotl, Panquetzalitzli, and Hasta La Raíz, are all a part of Jakob’s mission to reanimate and recontextualize the stories of his ancestors. By bringing forth these stories, Jakob brings us closer to an ancestral future: a world where many worlds can fit.