Being a third-generation Chicana from East Los Angeles, filmmaker and storyteller Kayden Phoenix has created a must-watch team of Latina superheroes. What’s different about these heroes is that they are unique and varied–a rainbow of personalities–like those found in the real life.
With the rise of superheroes throughout the years in movies and comics, fair representation has been a long-discussed topic. Phoenix Studios has answered the call by introducing a team of Latina superheroes called A La Brava. In this superhero universe, Latinas of different heritages fight against female injustices. Each book tells its origin story and social cause.
“A big part of my life’s purpose is to give voice to stories as multifaceted, atypical, and diverse as the people we find in the real world,” says Kayden Phoenix.
Combine Phoenix’s passion with a fresh-eyed Latina artist team like acclaimed Eisner-nominated illustrator, Eva Cabrera (SANTA, LOQUITA) and newcomer Amanda Julina Gonzalez (JALISCO, RUCA), an uprooted New Mexican who recently graduated from Laguna College of Art and Design in Animation, and you get beautiful, inspiring, crafted pieces of art.
The A La Brava team of Latina superheroes consists of JALISCO, a blade-wielding Folklorico dancer that uses her culture as her weapon; SANTA, a brawler that takes down the ICE detention centers; LOQUITA, a teen detective in the supernatural world; RUCA, a vigilante dispensing justice; and BANDITA, the gunslinger in modern-day New York.
Though a relatively new Universe, only the first three Latina superhero books are out, WonderCon found and invited A La Brava to be apart of the show. Kayden Phoenix and Amanda Julina Gonzalez are grateful to be in the ‘Rise of the Latina Superhero’ panel (Fri March 26th at 1 pm PST). They also have a virtual booth there that weekend–March 26th and 27th.
The goal of Phoenix Studios is to create superhero characters that reflect the experience of many in the real world. For example, Jalisco is a dancer of Mexican descent who has a passion for her culture. She’s facing the kind of violence that your typical male superhero doesn’t encounter.
Fans can see more of Kayden Phoenix and her expanding universe of Latina superheroes at WonderCon, book signings, school lectures, and at https://latinasuperheroes.com/
