Pacoima Tutors Come To You

Pacoima tutors are incredibly proud of local filmmaker Crystal Jackson, a Pacoima native who researched the incredibly rich history of the area and brought it to the big screen in a two hour documentary entitled, “Pacoima Stories: Land of Dreams.” Fellow prior resident Danny Trejo, one of Pacoima’s most famous exports, attended the film’s premier, which documents the story of the San Fernando Valley’s unofficial minority district.

The film follows several narratives from residents who lived through the various noted stages in Pacoima’s recent history. It talks of the hardships and extremely poor living conditions, ramshackle construction and poverty that burdened the district. It delves into the issues of incoming and outgoing racial groups, illegal drug sales and how the closing of a local factory deeply impacted the residents. It also reaches a more positive note and interviews some of the success stories, the great achievements of those who came from such humble beginnings.

The idea for the documentary was born from a short YouTube video that Jackson had made to commemorate black history month. She was inspired by the passionate way residents spoke about their community. In fact local residents have been so keen to see the documentary that they organized a second viewing open to locals to attend.

Pacoima natives produced the documentary; Lionel “Lon” Grandison Jr. and Lance “Sir Lance” Grandison, who are both very well known in their community and beyond. Most of those interviewed in the documentary knew Ritchie Valans first hand. Ritchie Valens was an extremely popular Mexican-American singer, songwriter, and guitarist and a forefather of the Chicano rock movement. His most famous song was “La Bamba”, which was adapted from a Mexican folk song. It was a huge hit and put Ritchie Valens into the hall of fame. Many still mourn the tragedy of his life being cut short by a freak accident in 1959. February 3rd, 1959 has become known as “the Day the Music Died’. The accident in which Valens perished also claimed the lives of fellow musicians Buddy Holly and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson.

Rudy Ortega, President of the Fernandeno Tataviam Band of Mission Indians also features in the documentary alongside other prominent Pacoima residents who shed light on the various reincarnations of the communities social, economic and ethnic divides. Politician Cardenas and former NFL football player Charles White are also featured to round out the positive success stories.

Jackson founded the Pacoima Historical Society, which Pacoima tutors frequently reference. Jackson has collected hundreds of historic photographs documenting the area that are housed at the society. Jackson plans to take her work “Pacoima Stories: Land of Dreams” onto the festival circuit.