Cinema Junkie by Beth Accomando

Under the Same Moon kicks off the 15th San Diego Latino Film Festival (Fox Searchlight)

The San Diego Latino Film Festival celebrates its Quinceanera this year, and how wonderfully it has come of age. It has grown up into a stellar event, this year showcasing more than a hundred films with some 120 guests. That's a long way from its humble beginnings as a small student festival. The festival is sponsored by the Media Arts Center San Diego, which, through its Golden Hill home base, also provides facilities to train young people in filmmaking so that they can tell their stories. The festival kicks off tonight with the San Diego premiere of Under the Same Moon/La Misma Luna on its big Macy's screen at the Ultrastar Mission Valley Cinemas at Hazard Center). Directed by Patricia Riggen, the film concerns a young boy who comes to the U.S. from Mexico in order to find his mother after his grandma dies. This film will open theatrically in San Diego after the festival, but many of the other films playing have no U.S. release planned so this will be your only opportunity to catch some of these great movies. You will also have an opportunity to see the works of the Media Art Center's Teen Producers, who are poised to be the filmmakers of tomorrow. Listen to the festival's executive director Ethan Van Thillo and I talk about this year's event with Tom Fudge on These Days.