The Man Behind the Camera

Most Chicagoans know Joe Miñoso as the dependable firefighter Joe Cruz on NBC’s hit drama “Chicago Fire,” where he’s been winning viewers’ hearts since 2012. But this latest achievement proves Miñoso’s talents extend well beyond acting, showcasing his profound storytelling abilities and vision as a director.

Born to Dominican parents, Miñoso has long been a respected figure in Chicago’s entertainment scene. His move behind the camera represents not just a career evolution but a deeper dive into storytelling that resonates with his cultural roots and the immigrant experience in America.

“Paper Flower”: A Story That Matters

“Paper Flower” tells the poignant story of a 10-year-old Latino “DREAMer” who must care for his seven-year-old sister while their family navigates the complex and often heartbreaking challenges of immigration. What makes this short film particularly special is how it illustrates the way imagination becomes a survival tool for children facing harsh realities beyond their control.

In just a few minutes of screen time, Miñoso manages to capture the innocence, resilience, and hope that define many young lives caught in the immigration system. The film avoids heavy-handed political messaging, instead focusing on the human element that transcends policy debates.

“I wanted to show how children process trauma through creativity,” Miñoso explained in a brief statement. “Sometimes imagination is the only safe space available to kids going through impossible situations.”

Festival Triumph

The film’s victory at the 41st Chicago Latino Film Festival carries special significance, as the festival has grown into one of the most important showcases for Latino filmmakers in North America. The Audience Choice Award specifically reflects how deeply the film connected with viewers from diverse backgrounds.

Festival Director Pepe Vargas praised “Paper Flower” for its “authentic voice and visual poetry,” noting that “Joe brings the sensitivity of an actor who understands emotional truth to his directorial work.”

The win places Miñoso in distinguished company among previous award recipients who have gone on to significant careers in filmmaking, both in Hollywood and in international cinema.

What’s Next

For those eager to see “Paper Flower,” the International Latino Cultural Center will be presenting the film along with other festival shorts favorites at their Reel Film Club showcase on Tuesday, May 27th at Facets Film Forum in Chicago. During this special event, Miñoso will be presented with the Audience Choice Award statuette designed by Mexican sculptor David Camorlinga Tagle. In addition to this prestigious recognition Joe will be presented with a Studio Version of Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve video editing software.

As for Miñoso himself, sources close to the actor-turned-director suggest this may be just the beginning of his filmmaking journey. While he continues his role on “Chicago Fire,” he’s reportedly developing several new projects that explore themes of identity, family, and cultural heritage.

A Chicago Story

What makes Miñoso’s achievement particularly meaningful is how it represents Chicago’s vibrant intersection of television production, independent filmmaking, and cultural diversity. As one of the city’s most recognizable Latino actors, his move into directing signals new opportunities for authentic representation both in front of and behind the camera.

“Paper Flower” arrives at a crucial time when stories about immigration and childhood are often politicized and dehumanized. Through the universal language of visual storytelling, Miñoso reminds us that behind every policy debate are real children using every tool at their disposal—including their boundless imagination—to make sense of a complex world.

For a city that prides itself on both artistic excellence and cultural diversity, Joe Miñoso’s directorial debut stands as a testament to Chicago’s continuing importance as an incubator for meaningful, socially relevant cinema.

The Reel Film Club will showcase “Paper Flower” along with other Film Festival Favorite shorts on Tuesday, May 27th at 7 PM (reception at 6 PM) at Facets Film Forum, 1517 West Fullerton Ave. Tickets are $25 ($20 for ILCC & Facets members) and include a reception with appetizers and cash bar (21+)<.

The Audience Choice Award for Best Fiction Feature went to Dear Gentlemen, actor and novelist Patricia Castañeda’s directorial debut about the women’s suffrage movement in 1950s Colombia led by lawyer Esmeralda Arboleda starring Julieth Restrepo (Neftlix’s Griselda and The Residence). The Audience Choice Award for Best Documentary went to Norita, Jayson McNamara and Andrea Tortonese’s documentary about Norita Cortiña, co-founder of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, and her lifelong struggle for human rights in Argentina. The documentary was co-produced by Jane Fonda, Naomi Klein and Gustavo Santaolalla, who also provided the score.

Finally, Chicago Fire’s Joe Miñoso’s auspicious and touching directorial debut, Paper Flower, the story of two young children trying to make sense of their parents’ immigration struggles through their own imagination, won the Audience Choice Award for Best Short.

Even though CLFF is a non-competitive festival, since 1993 the public has had the opportunity to vote for their favorite film in several categories for the Audience Choice Award. 

In addition to the Audience Choice Award statuette designed by Mexican sculptor David Camorlinga Tagle, the winners will receive Blackmagic Design’s DaVinci Resolve Studio post production software valued at $295. The software combines editing, color correction, visual effects, motion graphics and audio post production into one tool, allowing filmmakers to work with camera original quality images throughout the entire process. With worldwide offices across the USA, UK, Japan, Singapore and Australia, Blackmagic Design is one of the world’s leading innovators and manufacturers of creative video technology. With its long history in post-production editing and engineering, Blackmagic has created some of the most talked about products in the industry, including affordable high-end quality editing workstations. 

The Chicago Latino Film Festival had its best post-pandemic run this year. Out of 100 screenings, 32 were sold out or almost sold out. The Festival saw an increase of 44% in sales and attendance over last year. 2,000 students attended the Student Outreach Screenings, three days of free morning screenings held at the Landmark Century Center that provide students from across the Chicago Metro area the opportunity to learn about the diversity of other cultures, the possibility to connect with their cultural heritage, and the prospect of meeting film directors/actors/producers to discuss viable career options in the arts. 

“Audience attendance and response went above and beyond our wildest dreams and goals. We implemented a number of new initiatives and mechanisms to drive audiences to our theaters, and educate them on our diverse slate of films; the results speak for themselves. Moviegoers are still looking for that unique connection to other cultures and experiences that only the movies can provide, especially in these challenging times. This 41st festival reenergized us; we are now looking forward to the countless possibilities the 42nd has to offer,” said Pepe Vargas, executive director and founder of the International Latino Cultural Center and the Chicago Latino Film Festival.

The Chicago Latino Film Festival, held April 3rd-April 14th, presented 51 features and 30 shorts from Latin America, Spain, Portugal and the United States in three venues throughout the city: Davis Theater, 4614 N. Lincoln Ave.; Instituto Cervantes, 31 W. Ohio St.; and the Landmark Century Center Theatres, 2828 N. Clark St. 

The ILCC is now looking ahead to the 42nd Chicago Latino Film Festival, April 16-27, 2026. Submissions for the 42nd edition of the Festival open September 2nd, 2025.

AUDIENCE CHOICE AWARDS

The winners and runner-ups of the 41st Chicago Latino Film Festival Audience Choice Awards are:

• Feature/Winner: Dear Gentlemen/Estimados señores (Colombia; Director: Patricia Castañeda): In 1954, a group of women led by lawyer Esmeralda Arboleda (Julieth Restrepo) embarked on a battle to bring women’s suffrage to the National Constituent Assembly of Colombia. They endured personal attacks from their opponents, but their resilience proved decisive. In her feature film debut, actress, novelist and screenwriter Patricia Castañeda portrays with empathy and courage the uphill battle Arboleda and her peers faced in their struggle against a patriarchal regime.
  • Second Place: Underdog/Correr para vivir (Mexico; Director: Gerardo Dorantes): In his feature film debut, Gerardo Dorantes explores how organized crime has penetrated the heart of the Tarahumara community in the state of Chihuahua through the story of two highly competitive brothers who want to become the best runners in the world. 
  • Third Place: What Rhymes with Magdalena (United States; Director: José Pérez): Chicago filmmaker José Pérez’s feature debut centers on​​ Magdalena, a poet whose relationships have only ever ended in painful heartbreak. The night before a major decision, Magdalena is determined to break the pattern and tracks down her eight exes, desperate for closure. But reconnecting with them proves difficult as, one by one, they challenge Magdalena’s views in unexpected ways. 

• Documentary/Winner: Norita (Argentina/USA; Directors: Jayson McNamara, Andrea Tortonese): Executive produced by Jane Fonda, Naomi Klein, and Gustavo Santaolalla (who also provides the score), Norita follows Nora Cortiña, co-founder of the Mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, as she seeks justice for her disappeared son during the dark days of Argentina’s dictatorship. Norita is a tribute to a heroic, complicated woman who passed away last year at the age of 94
  • Second Place: The Most Beautiful Deaths in the World/Las muertes más bellas del mundo (El Salvador/USA; Directors: Quique Avilés, Ellie Walton): Five artists whose families escaped to Washington, DC from El Salvador’s violent civil war during the 80s come to terms with its legacy. Avilés and Walton’s documentary follows a poet, a dancer and several musicians; their work, personal archives and stories offer an intimate account of a community in search of its own identity, salvation and happiness.
  • Third Place: I Am My Grandma’s Granddaughter/Nieta de mi abuela (Dominican Republic; Director: Tatiana Fernández Geara): “Don’t end up alone like I did.” This plea from her grandmother Teresa before she passed away haunts Tatiana Fernández Geara. Filled with questions about what it means to “not end up alone,” the 40-year-old documentary filmmaker embarks on a journey through family archives, old films and hundreds of letters, constructing —or trying to— a story about love, expectations and solitude.

• Shorts/Winner: Paper Flower (USA; Director: Joe Miñoso): Chicago Fire’s Joe Miñoso tells the story of a 10-year-old Latino “DREAMer” who has to care for his seven-year-old sister through their family’s immigration struggle by using the power of his imagination.
  • Second Place: Arranca (Puerto Rico/USA; Director: Lilliana M. Molina): Carmen is a 75-year-old woman in the early stages of dementia. Laura, the eldest out of her four children, lives a hectic life but she always makes time to take care of her mother. Things get out of control for Laura when Carmen can’t find her precious emerald ring, a gift from her beloved husband Sebastian.
  • Third Place: Unless We Dance/A menos que bailemos (Colombia; Directors: Hanz Rippe Gabriel, Fernanda Pineda Palencia): Dance teacher Jonathan undertakes an initiative to rescue young people from the crime that stalks Quibdó, a city with the highest homicide rates in Colombia. This is how Black Boys Chocó emerged, a dance company where hundreds of young people try to overcome difficult social situations through dance. 

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE INTERNATIONAL LATINO CULTURAL CENTER

With the Festival behind them, the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago is ready to continue its year-round program of cultural events including concerts, dance presentations, plays, culinary experiences…and film, among so many other disciplines.

The Center’s Chicago Latino Music Series returns in May and June with a Latin Jazz double whammy at Constellation, 3111 N. Western Ave: legendary Cuban saxophonist, clarinetist and composer Paquito D’Rivera, in his first Chicago-area performance of the year, alongside guitarist Fareed Haque and multi-instrumentalist Howard Levy (Wednesday, May 14), and Latin Grammy award winning Puerto Rican trumpetist Charlie Sepulveda and his group The Turnaround (Friday, June 6). This summer, the ILCC will present the second annual Levitt VIBE Chicago Music Series in several city parks including Riis Park, 6100 W. Fullerton Ave. Sponsored by the Mortimer & Mimi Levitt Foundation, this groundbreaking series of free concerts will be presented every Saturday for 10 consecutive weeks from June 14-August 16. Details about this festival and other concerts will be announced soon.

The International Latino Cultural Center’s film programming continues with their monthly Reel Film Club at Facets, 1517 West Fullerton Avenue. Held on the last Tuesday of each month (except March, April and December), the Reel Film Club celebrates a theme night with a reception and screening showcasing films and filmmakers from Latin America, Spain and Portugal followed by a post-screening discussion. Then, during the summer and in collaboration with the Chicago Parks District, the Center will present four family-friendly films every Wednesday from July 6-30 in different parks throughout the city as part of their 19th annual Films in the Park program. Films for both series will also be announced soon. For more information on this and other events, visit latinoculturalcenter.org.