In this episode of TIF Voices, we gather in the wake of Selena y Los Dinos, Isabel Castro’s documentary portrait of Selena Quintanilla and her family band, to reflect on what it means to witness Selena’s story told through her own image, voice, and archival history. Recorded shortly after the film’s Texas festival screenings, this conversation captures our immediate emotional responses as Tejanas in Film watching the documentary in community.
We discuss the electric atmosphere of the SXSW screenings, the presence of the Quintanilla family in the audience, and the distinctly communal experience of grieving, celebrating, and remembering together in a theater. The film’s use of never-before-seen home videos and interviews allows Selena to emerge not just as an icon, but as a funny, ambitious, young Tejana navigating family, fame, language, and identity in real time.
Our conversation explores how the documentary expands Selena’s legacy beyond scripted portrayals, highlighting her Texas twang, Tex-Mex cultural specificity, and role as an early symbol of Latina female empowerment. We talk about the emotional weight of hearing her speak for herself, the tenderness of family dynamics, and the way this film functions as a new chapter in a decades-long process of collective grief for Texas Latinas and fans across generations.
This is an episode about memory, representation, and what it means to finally see Selena in her own words.
👑 Your hosts are Tejanas in Film members Sharon Arteaga (@sharonarte) , Samantha Rae Lopez (@sraelopez) and Chelsea Hernandez (@blueseachel)