Director, producer, and screenwriter Mohit Ramchandani discusses writing and directing “City of Dreams,” which deals with human trafficking.
This movie chronicles the journey of a Mexican boy named Jesús (Ari Lopez), a young farmer from rural Mexico, whose dreams of becoming a soccer star are shattered when he is smuggled across the border and sold to a sweatshop in downtown Los Angeles.
NYC screening of ‘City of Dreams’ at Director’s Guild of America Theater
On November 25th, a special New York City screening of “City of Dreams” took place at the Director’s Guild of America (DGA) New York Theater, which was followed by a panel discussion with Ramchandani, Oscar winner Mira Sorvino, and executive producer John Devaney.
“It feels amazing to be here, especially since I just had a Dirty Martini at Le Méridien Bar next door, so it feels even more incredible,” Ramchandani said.
“Having Mira Sorvino here tonight is great! I love Mira; she is my buddy,” Ramchandani exclaimed.
Idea for ‘City of Dreams’ movie
On the idea for the film “City of Dreams,” Ramchandani said, “I am originally from India and my father worked in a sweatshop. I read about a case of 72 immigrants trapped in a house in California, and this was 10 years ago.”
“I had no idea how much worse the issue is getting,” he admitted. “Obviously, after 2020, there were a lot of cases of a lot of kids coming across the border and the New York Times did an expose last year about 300,000 kids going missing, so it has been bizarre to see how fiction is turning into real life.”
Significance of the human tracking issue
On the significance of the human trafficking issue, Ramchandani said, “I think humanity is important to me. People being given the basic things in life: shelter, food, love and warmth are important to me. I think human trafficking is unfathomable, especially the fact that it even happens.”
“Anything that isn’t a proponent of humanity should be abolished; that’s how I look at it,” he added.
Lessons learned from this screenplay
On the lessons learned from this screenplay, Ramchandani reflected, “This screenplay taught me more than I can even explain. I actually wrote the screenplay as a way to forgive my dad.”
“My father is three characters in the movie: he is the little kid, he is the bald guy that runs the sweatshop and he is the boss. My father was abused so as a result, he was very abusive. He died when I was 15, and part of why I wrote the movie was trying to get an insight into his mind,” he elaborated.
Advice for young and emerging filmmakers
For young and aspiring filmmakers, Ramchandani said, “Don’t believe in the system. If you have a voice and if you have something to say, then say it! You have a camera in your phone. Never give up and never listen to what anyone tells you.”
“The amount of people that told me that this movie would never get released (because it is too violent)… The majority of the time we are listening to people who do not know anything or who do not have any real skills or talent,” Ramchandani expressed.
“This is not a business; it’s an artform, and if you are young filmmaker or an artist, don’t listen to them,” he underscored. “Express yourself!”
Closing thoughts on ‘City of Dreams’
For fans and viewers, the director remarked, “I want people to get angry, so that they can say ‘enough is enough’ and ‘this has to end.’ Throughout human history, we’ve had atrocities, and it is only when society, as a whole, decided to say ‘enough is enough’… only then was when things came to an end.”
To learn more about director and filmmaker Mohit Ramchandani, follow him on Instagram.
Read More: ‘City of Dreams‘ review
