Robert Rodriguez

A collection of interviews with Robert Rodriguez that discuss his life and filmmaking career.

A history of hermits and eremitism from antiquity to the present: Greco-Roman influences, early Christianity, hermits in medieval Europe and East Asia, decline in Western modernity, the rise of solitude, and rehabilitation of hermits.

Named One of The Hollywood Reporter’s “100 Greatest Film Books of All Time” Famed independent screenwriter and director Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Once Upon a Time in Mexico, Spy Kids, Machete) discloses all the unique strategies and original techniques he used to make his remarkable debut film El Mariachi on a shoestring budget. This is both one man's remarkable story and an essential guide for anyone who has a celluloid story to tell and the dreams and determination to see it through. Part production diary, part how-to manual, Rodriguez unveils how he was able to make his influential first film on only a $7,000 budget. Also included is the appendix, "The Ten Minute Film Course,” a tell-all on how to save thousands of dollars on film school and teach yourself the ropes of film production, directing, and screenwriting. A perfect gift for the aspiring filmmaker.

America has an urgent need for Latino and Latina executives. This book identifies a path to uplift and amplify their representation in leadership. Latinos and Latinas will account for a third of our workforce by 2050—yet they make up only 5 percent of senior roles in corporate America. Dr. Robert Rodriguez and Andrés T. Tapia call this low percentage of Latino and Latina corporate executives today the “5 percent Shame.” Inspired by Price M. Cobbs's seminal work on the secrets of successful Black leaders, this book seeks to understand the impact on Latinos and Latinas of the external forces of conscious and unconscious biases and of the internal forces of whether to assimilate or double down on their cultural identities in their quest to get ahead. The second edition features a new foreword by Henry Cisneros, former secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as updated statistics and graphs to represent how America's career landscape for Latinos has and has not changed and how to ensure Latinos can rise to their fullest potential. Using insights from in-depth interviews with twenty highly successful boomer Latino and Latina executives and focus groups with dozens of Gen X and millennial leaders, the authors have captured lessons about how these individuals chose their career paths, addressed challenges, and seized opportunities. The discussions are interpreted through the lenses of the authors' different personal experiences as Latino leaders in corporate America and synthesized as a guide for future leaders.

Robert Rodriguez stands alone as the most successful U.S. Latino filmmaker today, whose work has single-handedly brought U.S. Latino filmmaking into the mainstream of twenty-first-century global cinema. Rodriguez is a prolific (eighteen films in twenty-one years) and all-encompassing filmmaker who has scripted, directed, shot, edited, and scored nearly all his films since his first breakout success, El Mariachi, in 1992. With new films constantly coming out and the launch of his El Rey Network television channel, he receives unceasing coverage in the entertainment media, but systematic scholarly study of Rodriguez’s films is only just beginning. The Cinema of Robert Rodriguez offers the first extended investigation of this important filmmaker’s art. Accessibly written for fans as well as scholars, it addresses all of Rodriguez’s feature films through Spy Kids 4 and Machete Kills, and his filmmaking process from initial inspiration, to script, to film (with its myriad visual and auditory elements and choices), to final product, to (usually) critical and commercial success. In addition to his close analysis of Rodriguez’s work, Frederick Luis Aldama presents an original interview with the filmmaker, in which they discuss his career and his relationship to the film industry. This entertaining and much-needed scholarly overview of Rodriguez’s work shines new light on several key topics, including the filmmaker’s creative, low-cost, efficient approach to filmmaking; the acceptance of Latino films and filmmakers in mainstream cinema; and the consumption and reception of film in the twenty-first century.

Frederick Aldama's The Cinema of Robert Rodriguez (2014) was the first full-scale study of one of the most prolific and significant Latino directors making films today. In this companion volume, Aldama enlists a corps of experts to analyze a majority of Rodriguez's feature films, from his first break-out success El Mariachi in 1992 to Machete in 2010. The essays explore the formal and thematic features present in his films from the perspectives of industry (context, convention, and distribution), the film blueprint (auditory and visual ingredients), and consumption (ideal and real audiences). The authors illuminate the manifold ways in which Rodriguez's films operate internally (plot, character, and event) and externally (audience perception, thought, and feeling). The volume is divided into three parts: "Matters of Mind and Media" includes essays that use psychoanalytic and cognitive psychology to shed light on how Rodriguez's films complicate Latino identity, as well as how they succeed in remaking audiences' preconceptions of the world. "Narrative Theory, Cognitive Science, and Sin City: A Case Study" offers tools and models of analysis for the study of Rodriguez's film re-creation of a comic book (on which Frank Miller was credited as codirector). "Aesthetic and Ontological Border Crossings and Borderlands" considers how Rodriguez's films innovatively critique fixed notions of Latino identity and experience, as well as open eyes to racial injustices. As a whole, the volume demonstrates how Rodriguez's career offers critical insights into the filmmaking industry, the creative process, and the consuming and reception of contemporary film.

Presents a biography of the young Latino filmmaker who made "El Mariachi" for $7000 and went on to direct "Desperado" and "From Dusk Till Dawn."

Praise for Latino Talent "Latino Talent is an invaluable resource for anyone interested in learning about Hispanic Americans in the workplace and in leveraging and maximizing their contributions. This unique book--written by an expert who's deeply respected in this field--provides a practical and compelling perspective on why organizations should continue to invest in developing?this?young and increasingly influential population segment."? --RAYMOND ARROYO, Chief Diversity Officer, Aetna Inc., and President,?PRIMER "Latino Talent is a must-read for diversity and HR executives who are responsible for Latino initiatives in their organizations. The book also provides justification as to why organizations need to raise the sense of urgency regarding their Latino-related workplace practices." --TIM RICHMOND, Vice President, Talent Acquisition, Abbott Laboratories "Latino Talent includes wonderful insights gleaned from practitioners in the field. Readers are exposed to corporate best practices when it comes to Latino talent management initiatives. The strategies and solutions provided in Latino Talent are proven, applicable, and deliver results." --ISAIAS ZAMARRIPA, Director, Talent Acquisition, General Mills Corporation "America has awakened to the large and growing Latino demographic in this country and now wants to tap into this fast-growing consumer base. The best way to make inroads into this demographic is by building your Latino talent pool so they can create successful programs that get results. Whether you're at a Fortune 1000 company, government agency, academic institution, or not-for-profit organization, you'll want to read this strategic approach to building your Latino leadership." --ABE TOMAS HUGHES II, CEO, Hispanic Alliance for Career Enhancement (HACE) "Employers interested in maximizing the contributions of Latinos in the workplace will find Latino Talent to be very useful and practical. In this book, Dr. Rodriguez has done extensive research to help companies and employees build bridges for understanding and inclusion." --JULIE FASONE HOLDER, Corporate Vice President, Human Resources, The Dow Chemical Company