'This does not have Hollywood glitter on it.' On making a Selena documentary only the archive could tell

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The archetypal clip I entered a vault holding the Quintanilla family’s archive, I conscionable stood there, overwhelmed by the magnitude of what had been preserved. Up until that point, I wasn’t definite however to attack a communicative arsenic known and beloved arsenic that of Selena Quintanilla. But successful that vault, I realized my documentary film, “Selena y Los Dinos,” would beryllium champion told done the intimacy the household had been signaling each on — hours of footage of them connected the road, household meals, backstage footage of them getting ready, Selena practicing for her performances.

Over the people of respective years, I worked intimately with the Quintanillas to reassemble a household past that is arsenic overmuch astir euphony arsenic it is astir a family’s emotion and loss. The process was meticulous and affectional — unearthing forgotten tapes, restoring brittle footage and returning, again and again, to the question of authorship. How bash you archer a communicative that the satellite thinks it already knows? How bash you sphere its information against decades of mythmaking?

During that process, I took Polaroids successful moments of calm portion reviewing the Quintanillas’ archive and conducting their interviews. It’s thing that I bash successful astir of my productions — a mode for maine to retrieve however those moments felt — a tangible reminder of a clip and place.

This speech with Suzette Quintanilla— Selena’s older sister, the band’s drummer and present the CEO of Q-Productions — emerged from our shared process of excavation. We spoke astir the determination to unfastened the family’s backstage archive and the value of legacy. What follows is not conscionable a speech astir the film, but astir the ways we support idiosyncratic live done representation and sound.

Isabel Castro: Let’s commencement astatine the beginning. You are the writer of a batch of these videos, you were down the camera. What was it similar for you to stock that archive with caller people?

Suzette Quintanilla: Nervous. It did consciousness unusual due to the fact that I had ne'er shared it. It’s weird due to the fact that I besides felt similar I was acceptable to bash it.

I’m gonna spell backmost [in time]. I bought Selena a constitution case. It was large and chunky — due to the fact that she would ever hide her constitution whenever we were flying connected the level oregon whatever. So I had fixed her that, and my ma ended up giving it backmost to maine aft Sister passed away. That was my go-to aft she died. Every week, I kept it upstairs successful our house, successful my office. I would conscionable spell to it and outcry my ass off, similar uncontrollably.

She utilized to deterioration Boucheron astatine the clip erstwhile she passed and she had a vessel successful there. Every clip I’d unfastened [the case], it smelled similar her. I didn’t privation to stock that with anybody. [It] was my clip with her. It’s hard to explain.

And a batch of radical would inquire astir it, due to the fact that they knew that she ever carried it. Fans would inquire astir it. I enactment it successful the [Selena] depository astir 5 years ago, close aft we reopened from COVID. I thought, “OK, I’m acceptable to portion with it now.”

Same happening with the film. The archival has ever been there. I cognize it’s been there. Not that I thought astir it a lot, I conscionable knew it was there, and I felt comfy that it was there. I ne'er truly thought, “Oh I’m gonna gatekeep this due to the fact that 1 time I’m going to marque a documentary.” It ne'er crossed my caput to bash that aboriginal on. That thought process came astir possibly 4 oregon 5 years ago. But I’m not gonna lie, I was precise tense having you guys successful the vault.

IC: I conscionable privation radical to recognize that determination are virtually floor-to-ceiling bookcases wherever determination are hundreds of VHS tapes and hundreds of Betacams. When Daniel, the producer, and I were led into the vault with Suzette, I astir had a bosom attack. That was truly the infinitesimal wherever I was like, “I privation to bash this truthful badly.”

SQ: Was that similar being a kid successful a candy store?

IC: Oh, my God. A 100 percent. But my representation of it is similar opening a doorway and it’s conscionable airy emanating. To beryllium wholly frank, up until that point, I was thinking, “How are we gonna archer this communicative successful a antithetic way? Like however americium I gonna beryllium capable to propulsion that off?”

SQ: Really?

IC: Yeah, I was scared. And past I saw this archive, and I said, hide astir it. Just showing this worldly instantly is going to marque it different.

SQ: You felt overwhelmed, I’m sure.

IC: Exactly. I felt overwhelmed due to the fact that up until that constituent I didn’t cognize if I was going to propulsion this off. I had pre-project jitters. It’s conscionable truthful overmuch responsibility. It’s similar looking up astatine a immense upland and being like, “Am I gonna beryllium capable to ascent this? And americium I going to beryllium capable to ascent this successful a mode that makes everybody other proud?” You know, I didn’t privation to telephone it in.

SQ: OK, it’s comic that you accidental that. When I hung up with you, I knew it wasn’t going to beryllium similar that arsenic soon arsenic I met you. I knew instantly. I was like, “Alright, she’s decidedly the 1 that has bosom successful it. And I felt something. I cried.”

IC: Is determination thing specifically that precipitated you being ready? That truly made you think: Let’s bash it now?

Selena’s outfit successful the euphony video for “Amor Prohibido” (left); the reddish button-up garment belonged to her husband, Chris Pérez. Selena’s outfit from the “Amor Prohibido” medium screen (right).

SQ: Making this documentary has been successful the backmost of my caput for a precise agelong time. I cognize the value of it and I’ve seen the maturation and the relevance of what we mean. Not conscionable Selena, but our family. And past honestly, Isabel, I mean, this is 1 of the reasons wherefore I wanna permission [behind] this documentary due to the fact that I deliberation that passim the years radical person this content that we’re riding connected her coattails.

IC: Yeah. That’s a immense misconception.

SQ: It’s the furthest happening from the truth. I privation to marque definite that I bring that to the forefront again, that this was a household effort. Was Selena the star? Hell yeah. I effort to explicate it this way: If I was nary longer here, would Selena y Los Dinos inactive continue? Yes, of course. The crushed we’re not capable to proceed anymore, and we chose not to, is due to the fact that she’s irreplaceable. You can’t regenerate idiosyncratic similar Selena. She’s a beacon, truthful to speak, particularly for america Latina women. If I was to person a dollar for each clip idiosyncratic came up to maine and told maine “I grew up listening to her and I felt truthful connected to her due to the fact that she was me. I was her” — I understood that.

Also, things person been changed connected societal media. I spot pictures of her with Michael Jackson. They’re like, “Oh my gosh, she met Michael Jackson?” No, she did not. Throughout the years, I noticed that stories would beryllium changed. I felt that it was important to instrumentality this capsule of who we were and what we created and bring it to 2025. If audiences are going to hunt for anything, I anticipation that they hunt for this documentary due to the fact that it’s told by the radical who created Selena y Los Dinos. It’s her husband, it’s me, it’s Abe [my brother], it is my parents, my mom, my dada — our manager. I mean it’s [our bandmates] Ricky [Vela] and Pete [Astudillo], they co-wrote with Abe the bulk of our deed songs that are inactive being performed. So these are the antithetic reasons wherefore I felt that this was the clip to bash it.

IC: Your reply conscionable present clarified a batch of things for me. It’s that you guys privation to person authorship implicit your communicative and with AI and things similar that, it is becoming progressively hard to beryllium capable to truly assertion your story.

From near to right: Selena’s iconic reflector outfit; Selena’s purple jumpsuit from her 1995 show astatine the Houston Astrodome.

SQ: The movie was based disconnected of Selena’s life, our life. And Jennifer [Lopez], I emotion Jennifer. She did a large occupation [in the 1997 movie]. But Hollywood glitter is sprinkled onto it. And it’s much focused connected her life, her abbreviated beingness of 23 years. How impactful it was and what she created and however hard we worked. That movie is inactive applicable to this time and I judge that it volition beryllium for a precise agelong time. It’s a classic. The Netflix Selena bid — Hollywood glitter. But this documentary, it’s wholly antithetic from those two. This does not person Hollywood glitter connected it.

IC: Every clip I spot posts about, “Why different happening astir Selena?” I get truthful frustrated due to the fact that of however insidious the racism is against Latinos. The fig of times wherever I’ve made thing oregon I’ve seen thing get made and past it conscionable gets benignant of pushed aside, enactment into a antithetic box.

SQ: Oh, invited to my world! That happened passim our full career. It’s frustrating, but my dada utilized to say, whether they’re talking bully oregon atrocious astir you, they’re talkin’ astir you. That inactive resonates. I tin ne'er alteration the position of however radical presumption our family. There’s a crushed wherefore she’s relevant. There’s a crushed wherefore we are inactive talking astir her. And there’s a crushed wherefore this documentary, this atrocious boy, is going to beryllium connected Netflix successful 190 countries, 32-plus languages.

IC: It’s brainsick to deliberation about. You mentioned however overmuch of a beacon Selena is for our culture. That feels particularly pertinent close now. What does that mean to you astatine this moment?

SQ: Well, this existent moment’s ever been there. It’s conscionable been, successful my opinion, enactment connected the forefront due to the fact that of our president and due to the fact that he’s truthful vocal against who we are, due to the fact that helium is frightened — intelligibly scared. But it’s ever been there, and I deliberation it volition everlastingly beryllium there.

The vault astatine Q Productions lodging each of the Quintanilla archive

IC: With each this worldly going connected successful L.A., the temper is scared. People are scared, radical are sad. And determination are Selena murals everywhere. And to me, your euphony and Selena correspond the quality of our culture. When I was making this film, that was thing that was motivating maine the full clip too. I wanted this movie to beryllium astir joyousness and astir power.

SQ: Oh, it is. Honestly, going backmost to your question, I don’t cognize what to truly accidental to that due to the fact that I consciousness like, we’re inactive going to bash us, right? As Latinos, we should not fto the voices of what the satellite wants america to do. We support connected trucking. I deliberation the champion happening is to enactment existent to who you are.

IC: Selena conscionable represents this consciousness of community, the shared language, and really a precise antithetic happening astir Selena is that each Latinos tin link to her. Right?

SQ: I agree. And that is simply a rarity. It was a rarity backmost past and it’s a rarity inactive to this day. Because remember, Isabel, our genre of euphony — Tejano euphony — successful the realm of Latin euphony is tiny. Our euphony is lone played fundamentally successful Texas, Arizona. We took that small bitty speck of euphony and it’s planetary now. And the happening is, it wasn’t a happening that became fashionable due to the fact that of what happened, due to the fact that it’s inactive present 30 years later. I bash believe, though, successful regards to her passing, that it does present play a tiny origin successful her legacy. A batch of people, I don’t think, would admit oregon privation to speech astir that. I consciousness that that is simply a tiny portion of the curiosity of who she was. I mean, however tin you not? You person this young miss — everybody knows the story. She’s connected the brink of doing what we see the eventual dream, of doing the crossover, and past she’s murdered. Unfortunately, it volition ever beryllium there. However, not that it’s a cardinal factor, due to the fact that Selena was Selena and she was doing what she was doing. Our euphony was doing what it was doing mode earlier immoderate of this. But we cannot tally from the tragedy. The calamity is portion of the story, unfortunately.

IC: The calamity is inactive a portion of the story. There’s a curiosity astir however she died, but I deliberation there’s thing else. What bash you deliberation astir her story, astir y’all’s story, makes Latinos consciousness truthful connected to you?

SQ: To me, it’s easy. The bicultural thing, I deliberation astir radical tin place with that due to the fact that we struggle. Everybody struggles with it. Back past cipher truly spoke astir it. And past I consciousness that it’s the household facet of it, the information that we were each inactive together. Latinos and familia, right? I besides consciousness that it was Selena’s realness of who she was arsenic a person. She didn’t enactment connected this facade of “I got to enactment a definite way” and “I can’t amusement radical who I truly am.” You consciousness similar you knew her. Then, I deliberation wherefore the euphony is inactive applicable is due to the fact that our euphony is different. It’s a fusion of the English vibe successful determination with the cumbia. Brother modernized the set and the guys modernized a signifier of cumbia. It’s not dated.

IC: It feels benignant of timeless. It feels similar thing that we person integrated into our civilization and volition astir apt beryllium determination for a very, precise agelong time.

The Quintanilla Family has a canine sculpture connected their porch

The determination of the celebrated "washing machine" creation successful the 1997 "Selena" movie by Greg Nava.

Abraham Quintanilla II's artifact car collection, which helium collected implicit his years connected the road.

Suzette Quintanilla astatine her bureau successful Q Productions.

Switching gears a little, thing that a batch of radical don’t recognize is that our full camera unit was Latina. The DP was Lorena Durán. I recovered her work, and it is truthful beautiful. And past I’ve worked with Cassandra Giraldo for implicit a decade, and she’s an unbelievable cinematographer and photographer. I changeable a small too. And earlier I knew it, and it genuinely wasn’t intentional, the full camera section was Latina. I’ve ne'er seen that before. What was that similar for you? You’ve had a batch of camera crews implicit the people of your career.

SQ: I’ve ne'er seen that astatine all. I retrieve due to the fact that I conscionable saw everybody moving astir successful my house, moving worldly around. I didn’t cognize what anyone determination did, I conscionable knew that they were portion of the movie crew. But then, erstwhile they got down the camera, they were mounting it up, I was like, wait, y’all are the camera people? They’re like, yeah! It conscionable made maine consciousness like, “that’s badass.” I had ne'er experienced that before. I mean, those are steps and boundaries that you conscionable privation to outcry retired about.

IC: What was that experience? When we filmed the interviews?

SQ: Extremely nervous. I was truthful freaked out. I didn’t slumber really for days erstwhile I recovered retired the day that you were going to movie me. I knew that I was going to stock my earthy feelings, and I didn’t cognize however overmuch I was consenting to springiness to that. I didn’t cognize what you were going to inquire me. I didn’t cognize however heavy you were going to go. I was acrophobic for my ma arsenic good — she’d ne'er done an interrogation before. It was astir maine dealing with the world of wherever you were going to instrumentality me. You took it determination truly good, by the way.

IC: I admit that. This is 1 of the things that I conflict with the astir successful my profession; there’s sometimes a contradiction betwixt what’s going to beryllium champion for a communicative and my ain comfortableness level astir asking idiosyncratic to spell there. You guys were wholly connected board, but we knew that you’re going to person to relive a trauma. That’s conscionable a truly hard happening to inquire idiosyncratic to do.

SQ: I mean, I don’t adjacent cognize however you did that, due to the fact that erstwhile we were successful it, it went away. It’s conscionable everything that leads up to that point.

Candid polaroids of the Quintanilla family

IC: It was an unthinkable interview. I mean, the interviews that I did with your household are truly going to enactment with maine for the remainder of my life, due to the fact that you guys opened up to maine successful a mode that was truthful antithetic and truthful brave and truthful surprising. Because I cognize you guys said you were ready, but determination was a portion of maine that thought, however overmuch are we going to larn successful this interview? How susceptible are you going to be? And everyone went there, and that’s conscionable specified a gift. It was a acquisition to me, but truly it was a acquisition to the millions of radical that are going to spot this. Not to freak you out.

SQ: No, I know. And I cognize that if it was dense for me, I cognize it was highly dense for everyone. I cognize you don’t privation to cognize this, but my father, helium looked truthful hard and everything, but helium cried for astatine slightest a mates days aft you guys left. Every time my ma said helium was crying. It conscionable brings up worldly to the front. We effort to support that portion of our heart. We thin to propulsion it down, and past erstwhile it’s resurfaced oregon erstwhile we spot a video oregon we spot thing similar the movie oregon whatever, it conscionable takes you backmost to a definite time.

IC: I deliberation radical don’t recognize that it is yet a batch of bravery and self-sacrifice successful bid to support your sister’s representation alive. You enactment precise hard to sphere her legacy. It’s an enactment of love.

SQ: Many, galore moons ago, I thought, if I die, volition Sister beryllium forgotten and our bequest beryllium forgotten? That was a happening successful my head, and that was truthful galore years ago. I know. Why interest astir that? It’s conscionable due to the fact that it mattered to me. And years ago, I retrieve I told [my husband] Bill, I said, I tin dice tomorrow, and I cognize that Sister’s bequest volition unrecorded on. I cognize now.

IC: And what bash you deliberation made you recognize that?

SQ: Just the growth. I spot it. I woody with it each day. I spot young girls coming and small kids coming into the depository and they talk of her arsenic if she conscionable died.

[Crying]

IC: I’m sorry.

SQ: I’m crying due to the fact that if she lone knew — she ne'er knew though, Isabel, that’s the thing. She didn’t know. She genuinely didn’t know. Maybe that’s what made her special, that she ne'er thought she was arsenic large arsenic what she truly was. It’s everybody that loves her that’s carrying her.

Isabel Castro is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and photographer. Her latest film, ”Selena y Los Dinos,” won awards astatine Sundance and SXSW and is retired connected Netflix.