INFLUENTIAL VOICES: “You Belong Here” with Linda Yvette Chavez

1950 3rd Street,La Verne CA 91750

14 November, 2021

Description

A Conversation with the inspirational Linda Yvette Chavez on life, creativity, finding your voice, and building community through stories. Screenwriter, producer, and showrunner Linda Yvette Chavez, co-creator of the Netflix hit series, “Gentified,” will be the featured guest at University of La Verne's Cultural & Natural History Collections' Influential Voices Speaker Series on Sunday, November 14, 2021. The hybrid event, titled “You Belong Here,” will be held from 3 to 4 p.m. at the university’s Ann and Steve Morgan Auditorium, and also via Zoom for remote participants. The event is free of charge, but donations are welcome. All participants must RSVP. The in-person event will be held at the Ann and Steve Morgan Auditorium, located at University of La Verne’s main campus, 1950 Third St., La Verne, Calif., 92397. All participants must wear a mask and have proof of vaccination to attend the in-person event.For those who are unable to attend, we will be steaming over Zoom. Information for the Zoom link is on the ticket. *** *** *** *** **** Hailing from Norwalk, Linda Yvette Chavez is a native Californian who remains true to her Los Angeles roots. As an undergrad at Stanford, Chavez developed her storytelling talents with legendary playwright Cherríe Moraga, whose classes inspired her to purse a writing career. Chavez went on to study Writing for Cinema and Television at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts, earning her MFA, and receiving the prestigious Jack Nicholson Award for merit in writing. Ms. Chavez is a graduate of the Writers Guild of America’s prestigious Showrunner Training Program. She also is a Sundance Momentum Fellow, and was named a “writer/creator to watch” two years in a row by Robert Rodriguez, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Zoe Saldana as a part of their Latinxt List (2019 and 2020). Glamour magazine named Chavez one of the top Latinx women changing the game for representation in television. In its first season, “Gentified” was nominated for three Imagen Foundation awards including Best Comedy Series. While producing the series, Chavez adapted Erika L. Sanchez’s New York Times bestseller “I Am Not Your Perfect Mexican Daughter” into a feature film for Anonymous Content (“The Revenant;” “Spotlight”). She also spent time in the writers room of Nickelodeons Emmy award-winning series “The Loud House.” Chavez currently is writing a film for Fox Searchlight, while also gearing up for season two of “Gentified,” set to premiere November 10. In addition, with support from Sundance, Chavez also is pursuing directing with her first feature film, “Fieras. All of that, and yet she describes herself simply as “the wholesome chola next door making chilaquiles out of chaos.”