Press Kit

Short Synopsis

Settling St. Malo is a short poetic documentary adapted from the collection of the same name. The film follows poet Randy Gonzales, a New Orleanian of Filipino descent, as he uncovers his family’s hidden history and the broader story of Filipino settlement in Louisiana. Through poetry, narration, archival footage, and dreamlike reenactments, the film explores the history of Filipinos in New Orleans, Manila Village, and St. Malo, the earliest Filipino settlements in the United States. It reveals how art can reclaim memory and illuminate the enduring presence of Filipino communities along Louisiana’s coast.

Long Synopsis

Settling St. Malo is a short poetic documentary adapted from the collection of the same name. The film follows poet Randy Gonzales, a New Orleanian of Filipino descent, as he uncovers his family’s hidden history in New Orleans and connects it to a broader story of Filipino settlement in Louisiana.

The story begins in New Orleans, where Gonzales learns that his great-grandfather was a leader in the city’s Filipino community during the 1930s. His search takes him beyond family archives and Mardi Gras parades to Louisiana’s disappearing coastline, where he explores the histories of Manila Village, a 19th-century shrimp-drying settlement, and St. Malo, the first permanent Filipino settlement in the United States. Along the way, he reveals how Filipino immigrants helped shape Louisiana’s seafood industry and coastal culture.

In Settling St. Malo, poetry serves as the film’s guiding voice, leading viewers across Louisiana’s coast and through layers of history. Archival footage and dreamlike reenactments help us imagine a history nearly erased yet still alive in place and memory. The interplay between verse and image transforms the poetry collection into a cinematic experience, showing how art can reclaim memory and illuminate the enduring presence of Filipino communities along the Gulf Coast.

By weaving family revelation with historical recovery, Settling St. Malo invites viewers to see Louisiana’s landscape as both archive and inheritance. It is a film about rediscovering one’s roots and recognizing the Filipino presence that has always been part of America’s story.