An Introduction

Fair Trade is the story of an undocumented immigrant struggling to turn his life around. Cesar fled from northern Mexico, escaping a life as an employee of the La Familia Michoacana drug cartel. His life as an undocumented worker is hard. But in this hardship he has found a sense of joy and freedom. One night, he is confronted by a Federal Agent who presents him with a unique offer: if he helps the agent commit suicide, Cesar will receive a green card.

The concept for this movie came about during the Christmas of 2004. While living in Chicago, I had been watching weeks of evening news covering two stories. One was the case of Terry Schiavo where two sides of a family argued over whether a woman diagnosed as being in a prolonged vegetative state should be taken off life support. At the same time, massive immigration protests were occurring nationwide by undocumented residents struggling to attain legal rights. From this the story of Fair Trade was born. 

I wrote it a few months later intending to shoot it the next year as a short film in it's native language of Spanish. It was shelved, then found again, then rewritten, put away again, and then finally brought back for good. After being in Los Angeles for 3 years, I decided this now the right moment to make this film. A crew has been nearly assembled, a teaser has been shot, and we are raising funds as I write this. For those who choose to follow along with me, I'll share with you every pitfall and triumph. Please support us on our Indiegogo page. And in the end, we will have all made something truly special.