Florida Premiere / USA / 2024 / English, Spanish / 88 min / Latin, Mass Shooting, Motherhood
Director, Writer Producer: Anayansi Prado; Writer; Pablo Proenza; Producer : Ina Fichman, David Goldblum; Executive Producer; Executive Producers: Rahdi Taylor, Julie Parker Benello, Patty Quillin, James Costa;
Contact anayansiprado@gmail.com
Special Guests: Anayansi Prado & Angeli Gomez
Uvalde Mom tells the story of Angeli Gomez, the mother who captured national attention when she rushed into Robb Elementary to save her two sons from a mass shooting. With exclusive access to Angeli, the film spotlights an ordinary, working class, Latina single mom and centers her as an American hero while also uncovering a faulty system that has been exposed by one of the deadliest mass shootings of children in American history.
Director Biography – Anayansi Prado
Anayansi Prado is an award-winning documentary director and producer with over 20 years of filmmaking experience. Her work has focused on issues of immigration, indigenous land rights, race identity, education and other social and humanitarian issues. Anayansi’s films have aired nationally on PBS and abroad, including her four feature films Maid in America (2005, Independent Lens) about Latina domestic workers in LA, Children in No Man’s Land (2008) about unaccompanied immigrant minors crossing the US/Mexico border, Paraíso for Sale (2011) about American retirees migrating to Panama, and The Unafraid (2018, America Reframed) about undocumented students in Georgia. Her films have screened at numerous film festivals including Tribeca Film Festival, Los Angeles Film Festival, Full Frame & Double Exposure.
Anayansi also directed and executive produced the Discovery en Español series Voices of Change (Voces de Cambio) about humanitarian issues in the Latino community, which featured Carlos Santana and Edward James Olmos. She was one of the directors of And She Could Be Next, a two-part documentary series that follows a defiant movement of women of color as they transform politics from the ground up, filmed by a team of women filmmakers and executive produced by Ava DuVernay, Grace Lee, and Marjan Safinia. She’s directed and produced commissioned films and branded content videos for 23andMe and TedTalk.
Anayansi is a 2023 Concordia Studios Fellow, a 2022 Chicken & Egg Fellow, a Creative Capital Artist, a Rockefeller Media Fellow and a Film Expert for the State Department’s film diplomacy program the American Film Showcase. Her work has received support from the Sundance Documentary Fund, The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, The Ford Foundation: Just Films, Chicken & Egg Pictures, Tribeca Studios, ITVS Development Fund, The Fledgling Fund, Latino Public Broadcasting, and others. Anayansi taught documentary filmmaking in 5 continents and was a visiting professor at UCLA’s School of Theater, Film, and Television, California State University, Northridge and Chapman University’s Dodge College of Film and Media Arts. She’s served as a mentor for the Film Independent Documentary Lab, Firelight Media and Sisters in Cinema.
Anayansi holds a bachelor’s degree in TV & Film Production from Boston University. Born in Panama, she resides in Los Angeles, CA.
Director Statement
On May 24, 2022, I, like many others, was horrified by the tragic events that unfolded at Robb Elementary in Uvalde, Texas, where 19 children and two teachers lost their lives to an unfathomable act of violence. As the days turned into weeks, and more details emerged, my focus shifted from the tragedy itself to the community that bore the brunt of this loss—a predominantly working-poor, rural, Latinx community near the border. I felt a profound connection to these families, having spent years documenting similar stories in communities often overlooked by mainstream narratives. It became clear to me that the path to justice for these families would be fraught with challenges, compounded by systemic inequalities that persist in our society.
My journey began with an earnest desire to understand the complexities surrounding this event, leading me to reach out to those impacted. It was through social media that I connected with Angeli Rose Gomez, the remarkable mother who defied the odds on that fateful day. Her brave actions—risking her life to rescue her children while nearly 400 law enforcement officers stood by—captured the nation’s attention, both online and through news outlets. Yet, when I met Angeli in August 2022, I learned that her heroism came with a heavy price.
During our first meeting she shared her harrowing experience of being arrested for trying to save her children, followed by the relentless harassment she faced by the authorities for speaking out. Despite her courageous media interviews, which aimed to shed light on the inaction of law enforcement during the shooting, she was met with threats intended to silence her. Authorities warned her that if she did not cease her media engagements, she would face charges.
Angeli’s vulnerability was heightened by her history with the criminal justice system. This put her in a precarious position, yet her resolve remained unshaken. She continued to speak up, embodying the spirit of a community that was demanding answers and refusing to be oppressed by those in power.
The events surrounding the Robb Elementary tragedy exposed a broken and faulty system—a system that failed not only on that day but has continued to fail the Uvalde community in the months that followed. The authorities’ inaction during the shooting reflects deep-rooted issues within law enforcement, revealing a disconnect between those sworn to protect and serve and the communities they are meant to safeguard. The lack of accountability and transparency in the aftermath has only compounded the pain and distrust felt by families seeking justice.
Angeli’s story is emblematic of a larger struggle against this systemic failure. It highlights how marginalized communities often bear the brunt of negligence and oppression, and it underscores the urgent need for reform in our gun laws, policing practices and justice systems. As I listened to her story, I knew I had to share it with the world. Documentaries have a unique power to illuminate real-life struggles and triumphs, and I believe Angeli’s story is one that must be told. It transcends the confines of a single tragedy, highlighting resilience in the face of adversity and the relentless pursuit of justice.
Through this film, I aim to honor Angeli as the brave woman that she is—not just for her actions on that day, but for her unwavering commitment to seek accountability in a system that often silences the most vulnerable. Angeli’s journey is a testament to resilience, a call to action for all of us to recognize humanity in every story, and a reminder that true heroism often arises from the most challenging of circumstances. I invite you to join us in amplifying her voice and the voices of those who have been underserved, as we strive to bring light to this critical narrative.