Little Manila: Filipinos in California's Heartland

Little Manila: Filipinos in California's Heartland will be broadcast on select PBS stations nationwide in May

The 30-minute documentary covers the infamous neighborhood in Stockton, California. Filled with chopsuey houses, gambling dens, and dance halls, Little Manila was once a bustling area in downtown Stockton and home to the largest number of Filipino immigrants outside of the Philippines. As farm laborers, Filipinos faced backbreaking work, low wages, and at times extreme racism, yet they still referred to Stockton as the "City of Gold," and looked to the United States to fulfill their dreams.

Produced by Filipino-American filmmaker, Marissa Aroy, the documentary is narrated by famed Filipino-American film producer, Dean Devlin (Independence Day, The Patriot). "Little Manila: Filipinos in California's Heartland" tells the immigrant story as Filipinos experienced it and the efforts of the new generation to preserve that history. In its premiere broadcast on Sacramento's PBS station, KVIE, the program garnered high viewer ratings. Aroy, who is currently working on another documentary about Filipino Americans hopes for a successful nationwide broadcast.

"We've got such a large Filipino population in the US, and we're hoping that we have an audience that represents that population," says Aroy. "It was a pleasure to make the documentary and to work with Dean Devlin, who has been an inspiration to me since I saw him in L.A. Law."

For more information on the program: http://www.kvie.org/programs/kvie/viewfinder/little manila/default.htm