Jane Dunn
University of Mississippi student Alexa Christian is a screenwriter, producer and director. She described her much-anticipated short film “Segundo Muerte” in five simple words. “Hispanic boy honors his father.”
Christian is a junior majoring in theater. The native Memphian transferred from the University of Cincinnati in fall 2022 and is planning to pursue a Master of Arts in acting post-graduation.
“Segundo Muerte” is a tale about a young, disabled man following in his family’s footsteps to be a matador. Themes of family pressure, self-doubt and perseverance come through to craft a transcendent and heartfelt story.
“After a life-changing accident, the legacy child of a family of bullfighters has to prove to everyone, including himself, that he can carry on the family name with pride,” Christian said.
Hailing from an artistic family, her passion for theater and worldbuilding began in childhood and has led to constant creative expression throughout her life.
“Theater, for me, is really just home. It’s safety. I get to celebrate other lives and other people, and I get to learn about things that I never would be able to. You get to see the world through other people’s eyes,” Christian said.
The concept for the film originated in summer 2021 with a short story contest on Instagram. Drawing inspiration from Latin American music and Pinterest boards, Christian’s writing process began. However, the process was not without challenges.
Upon trying to submit the draft of the story, she realized she accidentally missed the deadline by two hours. Feeling discouraged, she did not think about the story again until later that fall during an introduction to filmmaking class at UC.
“My teacher gave us this book by William Goldman, ‘Adventures in Screentrade.’ The book had a little chapter about turning a short story into a short film screenplay and I was like, ‘Okay God, I’ll turn it into a screenplay,” Christian said.
Even though she loved the completed screenplay, she left it untouched for two years while navigating the transfer to UM and also working a job.
However, in summer 2023, she felt something calling her back to the screenplay and decided to enter it into several contests.
“Segundo Muerte” was awarded Best Script Short in the Vesuvius International Film Festival in August 2023 and was a quarter finalist in the International Screenplay Competition. It was also selected for the Lake Charles Film Festival in September 2023.
Taking this as a sign, Christian flung herself into the production process and began searching for the perfect cast. After reviewing 75 tapes, she narrowed the cast down to a core seven actors.
While most of the crew members are UM students, the cast is made up of professional actors from the Latino and Hispanic communities. Christian wanted to be sure the story is authentic and specific to both Latino culture and the bullfighting community.
“It’s its own culture. It has its own language. There are things in the Spanish language that don’t mean the same things for bullfighting,” Christian said. “This is something that can honor the Latin community and bring Latin representation to the forefront.”
This summer, she will begin production in McAllen, Texas, at the Santa Maria Bullring, one of the few authentic bullrings in the United States. She secured this location with the help of Kristie and Geraldo Martìnez of Olè! Entertainment, who specialize in organizing bullfights.
The Martinez duo have also assisted in ensuring the cultural accuracy of the film, informed by their ethnic background and rich history working with professional matadors. They encouraged Christian to portray the American style of bullfighting, in which the bull is not harmed.
Christian was influenced by her childhood to create a story that honored Latino culture. She attended the Foreign Language Immersion Childcare Center at age 3 and was immersed in a Spanish-speaking environment until she began traditional school later in life.
“It’s kind of like a love letter to the Latin community,” Christian said.
Christian plans to hold a premiere in Memphis sometime in August. She is also searching for project funding. This month, her team will be launching a Kickstarter campaign.
“The whole thing about Kickstarter is that you get rewards for donating. It’s a pledge, so it’s all or nothing. (If) we don’t make our goal, you don’t pay anything,” Christian said.
She will also be submitting it to the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in the live-action short film category, and she hopes to see it develop into a television series.
“I have never handled something this big,” Christian said. “I feel like it’s my life’s work.”
The film will begin streaming on YouTube on Oct. 15.
