The tiny drama “La Misma Luna” dominated the 23rd annual Imagen Awards, which honor Latino-themed entertainment and Latino talent on both sides of the camera. Five awards, including best picture, went to the drama about a young Mexican boy’s journey to find his mother in Los Angeles, where she’s an undocumented worker.
Such Latino luminaries as John Leguizamo, Jimmy Smits, Edward James Olmos, Lupe Ontiveros, Eva La Rue and Cesar Millan were in attendance at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, where 18 awards were handed out for achievement in features and television.
“Luna,” written by executive producer Ligiah Villalobos. won five Imagens on the feature side: best actor for Adrian Alonso, best actress for Kate Del Castillo, best supporting actor for Eugenio Derbez, best director for Patricia Riggin and best picture. The film set a record for a North American opening by a Spanish-language film when Fox Searchlight and the Weinstein Co. released it in March.
The TV awards were more widely dispersed, with ABC’s “Ugly Betty” collecting honors for best primetime program and best supporting actor for Tony Plana. (”Betty” star America Ferrera also appeared in “Luna.”). Carlos Mencia was named best actor for his Comedy Central showcase “Mind of Mencia,” while actress and pop star Christina Milian scored the best actress nod for the ABC Family feature “Snowglobe.”
The best children’s programming award went to the Nickelodeon mainstay “Go, Diego, Go!”
Several legacy awards were handed out. Plana received the Lifetime Achievement Award; Rodrigo Garcia, producer-director of HBO’s “In Treatment,” received the Creative Achievement Award; and Villalobos received the Norman Lear Writers Award.
“This year we saw an increase of quantity and quality of exceptional submissions across categories,” said Helen Hernandez, founder and president of the Imagen Foundation. “The increase of Latino representation across entertainment disciplines is truly indicative of the prevalent role we play in Hollywood, mainstream America and throughout the world.”
Hernandez launched the Imagen Awards in 1985 to nurture an increased Latino presence in the entertainment industry and more positive representations of Latinos on TV and movie screens.
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