By BRIAN DONOHUE
“Borderline Butterfly,” directed by Simon Sanderbo Nelson, follows Red Bankers Itzel Hernandez (photo above) and Julie Flores-Castillo (photo below) in their work as immigrant community advocates in the months leading up to the 2024 presidential election.
“Recorded mostly in Red Bank, New Jersey, in the summer of 2024, the documentary follows the daily activities of two local immigrant rights advocates set against the backdrop of ICE raids and an upcoming presidential election,” the film description on the festival website reads.
“Meanwhile, the advocates reflect on their own experiences of lacking papers and witnessing deportation, and how these experiences led them into activism on immigrant rights. As an ethnographic film, it illustrates how immigration politics and activism intersect on local and personal levels, and it offers a thought-provoking contrast to the current situation on immigrant activism in the U.S.”
Hernandez and Flores-Castillo both work with the American Friends Service Committee‘s Immigrant Rights Program, which has an office in Red Bank.
Hernandez sits on the planning board, and Flores-Castillo is a Democratic committee and Parks and Recreation committee member seeking a seat on the Red Bank Borough Board of Education in November.
The movie will be presented as part of a block of New Jersey-produced short films. The show starts at 6 pm at the Basie Center Cinemas, 36 White Street. Tickets are available through the festival website.
redbankgreen editor Brian Donohue may be reached via email at [email protected] or by calling or texting 848-331-8331 or yelling his name loudly as he walks by. Do you value the news coverage provided by redbankgreen? Please become a financial supporter if you haven’t already. Click here to set your own level of monthly or annual contribution.
