Joelle Gonzalez-Laguer

Filmmaker Joelle González-Laguer  left his home at the age of 19 and moved to New York City. Already interested in producing films and plays, he enrolled in Hostos Community College  and graduated in 1994. He earned his B.A. at Hunter College (CUNY) and his M.F.A. in Film and Media Production from The City University of New York.  However, González-Laguer is prouder of his work outside the classroom as President of the Lesbian and Gay United Force (LAGUF) at the college. During Gay and Lesbian Week in the early 1990s, González-Laguer led the organization’s week-long celebration, which included appearances on talk shows, pageants, symposia about LGBTQ issues, conferences, and parties to celebrate the diversity at Hostos. The organization [LAGUF] was ahead of its time and supported the gay and lesbian community on and off campus by creating a safe haven at Hostos.  He later taught Film and Media at Hunter College for eight years and served as the internship advisor for two years. He also taught an Introduction to Sociology course at Hostos until 2012. During his tenure at CUNY, González-Laguer received three educational development grants that enabled him to study in Argentina and Cuba. Joelle Gonzalez-Laguer has written and directed several shorts, including “Adios Christopher” ”Boricua en 3 Ritmos” - “Guys, Gays and Gratification.”   The documentary, “A revolt through letters, the Clemente Soto Vélez story” about the legendary poet, had its premiere in April 2013 at the Havana Film Festival in New York and has since been distributed. Another of his films, “Martorell: De aquí, pa’lla” had its premiere in July of 2012 at  IPRAC’s Movies in the Park film series in Chicago and won best short documentary at the International Rincon Film Festival 2013. From January to April 2013, González-Laguer wrote a monthly column entitled “Desde La Orillita con Joelle”/From the sidelines with Joelle for the Chicago newspaper La Voz del Paseo Boricua. González-Laguer has been invited to showcase and discuss his films at the University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras, Columbia College in Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago, the Catholic University of Ponce, Puerto Rico, and Hunter College of CUNY. They have also been shown and discussed at the Claridad Newspaper Gala, PR and in the Jornada Betances Film Series.  In 2014 González-Laguer was an artist in residence at Kartemquin Films in the Diverse Voice in Docs Project, a professional development and mentorship program, backed by the Joyce Foundation, Sage Foundation and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. In March , he was awarded the Conmmemrative Medal for the 175 Aniinversary of the Puerto Rican sta2014teman Eugenio Maria de Hostos. In May 2014, he won the "What moves you forward video competition", sponsored by NALIP, MiTu Network. Finished  Luis/Lizza (2015)  He is promoting his latest film Love with a Colonial Scent (2017).  Joelle lives in Isabela, Puerto Rico with his parents. 

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