TROVA BORICUA

PBS Digital Studios presents

Brown Man Imaging Inc

in association with Black Robin Media

A film by Fernando Rocha

TROVA BORICUA

Produced & Directed By

Fernando Rocha

Researcher

Noraliz Ruiz Caraballo, PhD 

Cinematographer

Fernando Rocha

Sound Designer

Fannie Cepeda

Editor

Gerardo del Valle

Executive Producer

Lynne Robinson

MEDIA CONTACT

Stephanie Kennard, PBS

skkennard@pbs.org;

571-319-7478

TAGLINE: the cat’s out of the bag…

LOGLINE: A Puerto Rican troubadour’s daughter sets her sights on following in her father’s footsteps, far beyond her beloved island shores.  

SYNOPSIS: “I was born wrapped in poetry” explains Shamira Santiago, who started singing Puerto Rican “trova boricua” when she was only 4 years old. The centuries-old traditional musical genre, featuring 10-line stanzas of improvised poetry speaking to identity, politics and the tensions arising from gentrification, extends far beyond musical expression. 

PBS: TROVA BORICUA is one of eight films in the PBS Creative Voices series, “The Story in Us”, a new anthology series premiering on PBS VOICES, a documentary-focused YouTube channel. Produced in collaboration with PBS Creative Voices Ignite Filmmakers Program, the eight-part series explores how culture, history, and identity are preserved through the universal art of storytelling.

Director’s Bio: Fernando Rocha is a Mexican-American Cinematographer based out of Queens, NY, whose work spans both scripted and unscripted genres. He is a 2023 PBS Ignite X Creative Voices Fellow, a 2022 Sundance X Adobe Ignite Fellow, a 2022 Southern Exposure Film Fellow and a 2021 Fulbright Scholar.

Fernando’s visual approach merges the organic and intimate nature of documentary filmmaking with the attention to detail of the narrative field in order to create a visual language that is right for each story. He graduated from American University in Washington, D.C. and was a member of the school’s Frederick Douglass Distinguished Scholars program. He also supplemented his studies at the University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts as well as the FAMU Conservatory in Prague.

In addition to his work as a Cinematographer, Fernando spent over 12 years performing Mexican Folkloric dance throughout the DMV region.

Technical Details: TROVA BORICUA 

Country of Origin: United States

Runtime: 11:08 minutes

Screening Formats DCP

Aspect Ratio 16:9

Sound Dolby 5.1

Spoken Language: English and Spanish

Subtitles: Yes

Closed Captions Yes

Principle Location: Filmed in Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico 

 FULL CREDITS

Produced and Directed by

Fernando Rocha

Featuring 

Omar Santiago

Shamira Santiago

Irvin Santiago

Mariano Cotto

Luis Sanz

Lisvette Sanz

José Rivera

Lenny Jeannette Adorno

Jodiel Torres Montañez

Orlando Laureano

Modesto Nieves

Christian Nieves

Wilfredo Cancel “Machito Swing”

Mateo André Correa Vázquez

Criollo Ensemble of the University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus

Music

Envuelto en una poesía Composed by Hipólito Ríos Coriano

Patriota en Mineatura Composed by Lenny Jeannette Adorno

En los Novayores Composed by Ladislao Martínez

All other pieces were created by performers through improvisation on camera.

Original Music Composed by: Gerardo Arrioja Horcasitas

Co-producer

Ivis M. Negron Pérez

Researcher

Noraliz Ruiz Caraballo, PhD

Fact Checker

Omar Marrero Rivera

Cinematographer

Fernando Rocha

Editor

Gerardo del Valle

Camera Assistant

Maria Raad

Production Assistant

Manilo Alberto Quiñones Guzmán

Sound Operator

Freddie Alonso

Sound Designer

Fannie Cepeda

Locations Furnished By

Department of Music, University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus

Department of Contemporary Arts, Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus

House of Culture, Municipality of Trujillo Alto

Chinchorro 222 (Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico)

FOR BLACK ROBIN MEDIA

Executive Producer

Lynne Robinson

FOR PBS

Executive In Charge

Maribel Lopez

Director of Programming

Gabrielle Ewing

Fact Checker

Yvonne McGreevy

Series Branding

Leah Nichols

Project Manager for PBS Creative Voices

Nina Shelton

Sr. Director of Programming/Development for PBS Creative Voices

Wendy Llinas

Original Production Funding provided by Anne Ray Foundation.

The Story In Us is a production of Brown Man Imaging Inc in association with Black Robin Media for PBS Digital Studios. 

This program is produced by Brown Man Imaging Inc, which is solely responsible for its content.