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Make it REAL

We are a full service film production company with a focus on multicultural stories that shift perspectives and bring people together.

Culture. Authenticity. Community. Perspective. Curiosity.

Style & Approach

Before any project begins, before a camera is even touched, we begin by forming a deep connection with our subjects. We ask questions. We listen. And only after we feel like there is a strong understanding of one’s story does the recording actually begin. Through over a decade of experience there is one principle that reigns supreme: story & access over everything else.

We focus on visceral storytelling. We look for visuals that you can feel, smell, and taste. We can’t emphasize enough the importance of audio because that is what really transports the viewer into a scene. We let the story dictate our pace, not algorithms.

Nowadays with the constant bombardment of content screaming for our attention, we believe that viewers will crave a respite from all the noise. REAL stories that breathe and allow viewers to transport themselves into a new perspective.

:: Telly Awards for Best General Documentary, Best Sports Documentary

:: Telly Awards for Best General Documentary, Best Sports Documentary

  • Evan M. Rodriguez

    FOUNDER + DIRECTOR

  • Kenny X Hamlett

    DIRECTOR OF PHOTOGRAPHY

  • Jesse Lichtenstein

    EXECUTIVE PRODUCER

Our Story

El Astrál was originally the name of a movie theater in Washington Heights, NYC founded in 1964 by Faustino Hermiño Rodriguez, a Cuban immigrant. What separated his theater from others in the area was that he specifically screened American movies with Spanish subtitles making box office entertainment accessible to his community of fellow immigrants still trying to find their footing in a new land.

Sixty years later his grandson, Evan M. Rodriguez, had developed a career as a documentary filmmaker and wanted to honor his abuelo’s legacy, not just by carrying on the same business name, but by telling cross-cultural stories that bring people together and build community. 

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