Cinema Puerto Rico: una antropología visual

Performance artist, Carmelita Tropicana, lives in Manhattan's East Village, by Hamilton Fish Park. After a performance one night, she's mugged by a knife-wielding thief. The next day, in a clash with anti-abortion protesters in front of a woman's health clinic, Carmelita is arrested, along with her lively friend Orchida and her sort-of up-tight and wannabe-wealthy sister, Sophia. They're placed in a cell with another woman, who turns out to be last night's mugger, a down-and-out young woman named Cordelia (Dee). Relationships between each pair of women and among the four of them go through changes as the afternoon passes.

After a long career as a detective in the Criminal Investigation Corps of the Police of Puerto Rico, José Rafael Prado takes office work before retiring. The murder of a coworker creates a vacancy Prado quickly wants to fill in order to "retire with honor".

This documentary explores how art and beauty serve as a path to recovery and social contribution in the lives of four Puerto Rican artists diagnosed with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. Those living with these conditions are often stigmatized, as their circumstances—which are not their choice—affect how they cope with daily life and integrate into society.

By means of interviews with family, friends, and colleagues, this documentary pays homage to the multi-faceted career of poet, journalist, actor & director Edwin Reyes. The film showcases his poetry as well as his artwork, and glimpses at the literary culture and political environment relative to the independence movement in Puerto Rico.