Sometimes telling a good story takes time.
And patience.
But 10 years?
That鈥檚 how much time 蜜柚直播 filmmaker and longtime culture critic has spent on his mariachi documentary 鈥
He鈥檚 not finished ... yet.
鈥淭he story is very compelling. This is a chapter of American history that has never been told,鈥 the 69-year-old former 蜜柚直播 Citizen music critic said last week as he tied up loose ends on a version of the film that he will screen at on Sunday, Aug. 14.
That version is a rough draft, a work in progress. Buckley said he hopes to have the final version completed in the next few months after he considers input from Sunday鈥檚 audience.
鈥淭he Mariachi Miracle鈥 has been a Herculean task that included conducting some 350 interviews with mariachi players, educators and supporters, and piecing together a narrative that tells the story of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 lead role in mariachi鈥檚 rise from obscurity to national prominence.
Daniel Buckley, director of 鈥淭he Mariachi Miracle鈥 has worked on the documentary film for 10 years, which chronicles the history and significance of 蜜柚直播鈥檚 role in the rise of mariachi music.
About a half dozen of the people he interviewed early on have since died; one interview subject died two weeks before Buckley was set to speak with them.
鈥淚 had no idea it was going to take this long,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t took 10 years to do this, and I鈥檓 still learning stuff every day.鈥
Buckley鈥檚 research has made him arguably the authority on mariachi in 蜜柚直播, a genre of music that piqued his interest when he first started covering 蜜柚直播鈥檚 classical music scene for the Citizen in 1987.
鈥淭o me, (mariachi) was as high an art form as those others that I was covering,鈥 said Buckley, who moved to 蜜柚直播 from his native New York in 1971 to attend the University of 蜜柚直播.
In his junior year of college, he took a part-time job at a record store in El Con Mall, where he was exposed to the city鈥檚 diverse music scene and the Hispanic community.
When he landed a job as the Citizen鈥檚 music critic, the was in its fourth year, and 蜜柚直播 native Linda Ronstadt had just released her seminal Spanish-language mariachi album 鈥淐anciones de Mi Padre.鈥
The album, which went on to sell more than 2陆 million copies in the U.S. and ranks as the biggest selling non-English-language album of all time, was a game-changer for mariachi in 蜜柚直播 and the country.
鈥淭he impact here in 蜜柚直播 was that young men and women who were mariachi suddenly saw themselves as being from the same hometown as this woman, who was astronomically impacting the global mariachi world,鈥 Buckley said.
Alfredo Valenzuela, aka Dr. V, founded Davis Bilingual Elementary School鈥檚 Mariachi Las Aguilitas.
In the late 1970s, 蜜柚直播 High School Spanish teacher Mack Ruiz, cofounder of , started the first mariachi school program with 蜜柚直播 High鈥檚 Mariachi Ariztlan. Around the same time, Dr. V 鈥 Alfredo Valenzuela 鈥 launched his pre-mariachi guitar group at Davis Bilingual Elementary School. Within a decade or so, 蜜柚直播 Unified School District was starting mariachi programs and classes at several schools, including Pueblo High School鈥檚 Mariachi Aztl谩n de Pueblo High School, which has gained prominence locally and beyond 蜜柚直播鈥檚 borders. In 2016, the group opened a show in California for the pop jazz and Latin lounge orchestra
The emphasis on mariachi education inspired schools around the country including in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Houston, Chicago, Las Vegas and New York City to launch their own programs.
Mariachi Aztl谩n de Pueblo High School has gained prominence locally and beyond 蜜柚直播鈥檚 borders. In 2016, the group opened a show in California for the pop jazz and Latin lounge orchestra Pink Martini.
Buckley鈥檚 documentary goes back to the beginning of mariachi in 蜜柚直播, (The Ugly Little Monkeys), a youth mariachi comprised of barrio kids brought together in 1964 by Father Charles Rourke, an Irish Catholic priest who served several 蜜柚直播 parishes from 1961 through 1969. The group rose to national prominence and most of the members, many of whom Buckley interviewed, went on to prestigious careers in law, business, science and education. Mariachi Cobre, whose members came from Los Changuitos Feos, went on to become the house band in the in Orlando, Florida.
(蜜柚直播 filmmaker David Valdez鈥檚 documentary delves into allegations of the boys being sexually abused by Rourke. The priest left 蜜柚直播 in 1969 and committed suicide in 1993 while he was under investigation for child molestation involving incidents that occurred in New Mexico.)
Buckley covered the rise of mariachi throughout his 22-year Citizen tenure, which included directing the paper鈥檚 multimedia production for eight years before the newspaper closed in 2009. That鈥檚 when Buckley turned to his Plan B and started working in documentary filmmaking.
蜜柚直播 High School student Maya Arce performs at the 蜜柚直播 International Mariachi Conference. In the late 1970s, 蜜柚直播 High School Spanish teacher Mack Ruiz, cofounder of Mariachi Cobre, started the first mariachi school program with 蜜柚直播 High鈥檚 Mariachi Ariztlan.
鈥淲hen the Citizen closed, I needed to learn how to make that transition,鈥 he said. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a big difference between making a three-minute clip and a film.鈥
His first film project in 2009 was a collaboration with Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre that explored the history of Cine Plaza culture in 蜜柚直播 in the early part of the 20th century. The downtown Cine Plaza Theater, a gathering spot for Hispanics from downtown barrios to see Spanish-language films and live Mexican entertainment, was torn down in the mid-1960s to make way for downtown urban development.听
series spun off three additional short documentaries: One on followed by one on urban renewal and attempts to stop the destruction of downtown landmarks, and the third in 2011 on on the west side.
In 2012, Buckley focused his lens on the historic . 鈥溍坭种辈モ檚 Heart and Soul: El Casino Ballroom鈥 was his first full-length feature documentary.
After 10 years, filmmaker Daniel Buckley is ready to share his progress on 鈥淭he Mariachi Miracle鈥 on the big screen.
But 鈥淭he Mariachi Miracle鈥 is his most ambitious project. Except for some small funding boosts from supporters and a pair of local foundation grants, Buckley has financed the project on his own.
鈥淚t鈥檚 always been tremendously underfunded. And frankly, for 10 years I鈥檝e lived on the brink of bankruptcy,鈥 Buckley said with nary a hint of regret.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a gigantic task, and there are a lot of questions, but on the other hand, I have a community that has stepped up time after time to help me and to share those most intimate stories,鈥 he said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a great moment and a precarious moment, but it鈥檚 really exciting as hell at the same time to finally come to a point where an audience is going to sit down and see what we are working on. I have great faith that somehow or other it will all come together.鈥
If you go
What:听Sneak peek screening of Daniel Buckley's documentary "The Mariachi Miracle."
When:听1 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 14; doors open at 11:30 a.m. and live entertainment from mariachi and folklorico dancers will begin at noon.
Where: Fox 蜜柚直播 Theatre,
Tickets: $15, $5 for those 6 to 12 years old, free for children 5 and younger.
Info:听 for details听or call听520-547-3040.