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MOVIE TESTIMONIALS
"I'm a Desert Storm Vet. I was in Puerto Rico during Maria and lived through hell for 6 months without electricity, but as a Vet with 25 years of Service, I adapted. If there's something that I learned during this period was that we as a People must be prepared and try our best to help our families and neighbors because we CANNOT depend on the Government. Great Documentary.”
- Robert Maza, Desert Storm Veteran
"The cinematography was excellent. The extreme devastation from the hurricane was clearly palpable. Demonstration of our people’s response to meeting immediate needs for survival – neighbor-to-neighbor, community-to-community – was a thing of beauty… thank you for your sincere concern and interest in bringing this story to light."
- Carmen Vivian Rivera, Coordinator at ¡Despierta Boricua! Recovering History Project
"Excellent, very well documented, I am a Puerto Rican living in the USA since 1976. I have missed the warmth and loving people of Puerto Rico. I really loved the pictures at the end and it showed how well educated we are. Viva Puerto Rico!"
- Ivette Babuca de Jesus, Tucson, AZ
"Great film John! Thanks for not making it a bleeding heart film (that we need the USA), but a film with puñeta (a punch)… we have hundreds of years of torture and slavery and our drums still summon our resolve to move forward into a new light."
- Angel Franco, NY Times Pulitzer Prize-winning Photographer
"John, this was brilliant. Thank you so much for sending me the link. I watched it twice! Such a huge project, and so beautifully done. My heart went out to everyone in the film. So ashamed of my government for not responding with intelligence and compassion. So impressed by the community support that emerged across the island. Congratulations on covering it all with such a forward-looking message of hope."
- Mary Potter, World Languages Teacher, Dana Hall School
HUMANITARIAN DISASTER
CATEGORY 5 HURRICANE
THE RECOVERY
COMING TOGETHER TO REBUILD
THE FUTURE
HOPES FOR PUERTO RICO
On July 4th of 2018, award-winning documentary filmmaker, John Pritchard, began filming in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to help tell the story of what happened to the 3.5 million American citizens after Hurricane María struck on September 20th of 2017. María caused a humanitarian emergency and is one of the worst natural disasters recorded in U.S. history by taking the lives of more people than Katrina. The storm created the second largest blackout in world history with millions of people struggling to access fresh food and clean water for weeks, even months. After ten (10) months, there had been a mass migration of hundreds of thousands of people to the U.S. mainland and thousands still had no reliable electricity. But despite that gloomy reality, Pritchard was inspired to learn how strong and optimistic the Puerto Rican spirit really is and decided to call the film, ¡OJALÁ! which is used to express wishing and hopefulness (I wish or I hope).
¡OJALÁ! - Puerto Rico Rebuilds is a bilingual documentary film about the wishes, hopes and dreams of the Puerto Rican people after hurricane Maria. Sparked by the destruction throughout the island, we learn about the strong and resilient nature of the Puerto Rican people. Overcoming many challenges, they have come together and are rebuilding their lives to not simply survive, but thrive. ¡OJALÁ! is not about politics, it is about the Puerto Rican spirit.
The film features interviews with renowned leaders in government, business, education, journalism, and community service, as well as creative artists in film, theatre, music, painting, and sculpture. (see interviewee photos below the poster). You can learn more about the film by downloading the 30 pg ¡OJALÁ! GUIDEBOOK which includes seven (7) video clips from the movie. For the best viewing experience, get it for free as a multimedia Apple Book on the iTunes platform.
You can also download the ¡OJALÁ! GUIDEBOOK
as a PDF at ojalamovie.com/GUIIDEBOOK.pdf
¡OJALÁ! had its Premiere in New York City
at the International Puerto Rican Heritage Film Festival on Nov. 16th.
The ONLINE DEBUT was on Discovery of Puerto Rico Day, Monday, November 19th.
Read Press Release Here at OjalaMovie.com/Press
CLICK HERE TO WATCH THE COMPLETE MOVIE FOR FREE
“The film illustrates the transformation of struggle to resiliency and the evolution of despair to hope. Puerto Rico’s rich culture binds its inhabitants by promoting a rekindling of dreams that strengthen the desire to rebuild. Cultural reunification heals, protects, and fortifies the minds, hearts, and souls of our people. Puerto Rico rises after Hurricane María in order to present itself, once again, as an island of international competitiveness and global attraction.”
—Dr. Carmen J. Cividanes-Lago, Executive Director, Association of Private Colleges and Universities of Puerto Rico (ACUP)
INTERVIEWS
FROM
PUERTO RICO
