Film Alumnus Returns to Campus and Inspires Students
Former student Armando Ibañez visited the students of the Film Production program
to share his journey of working in the film industry on March 9.
He graduated from Cerritos Community College with an A.A. in Film Production. Armando is the writer and director of the award-winning YouTube series Undocumented Tales, a story that follows the journey of a Mexican undocumented and queer server living in Los Angeles. The series has been screened around the country, at universities, community spaces, and film festivals including Outfest. In 2018, he was nominated for the LAWEBFEST Awards in the categories of outstanding writing, outstanding directing, outstanding drama series, and won for outstanding lead actor. In 2019, Armando received the Entrepreneurship Fund from Immigrants Rising to finish the third season of Undocumented Tales which premiered last year. He’s currently writing the fourth season of the series and making a living as a film editor.
"It’s good to bring back former students to share their experiences of navigating the extremely competitive field of film production. Students realize that it takes a lot of hard work and perseverance, even when faced with obstacles," said Film Professor Steven Hirohama.
“His story was inspirational. He was struggling throughout his life but he did not let that stop him from achieving his goals," said one of the students in attendance.
In November, Armando served as the keynote speaker for the grand opening of the Equity Center in November 2022.
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