Livin’ la ‘Vida’ lesbian
TV producer Tanya Saracho is giving a voice to queer Latinas on the soulbaring Starz series “Vida,” set to debut on May 6.
The Mexican-born writer is an industry veteran, with credits on hit shows including “How to Get Away With Murder,” “Looking,” “Girls” and “Devious Maids.”
But with her showrunner debut on “Vida,” Saracho wanted to go where no series has gone before — by showing the struggles faced by LGBTQ Latinos through the eyes of a normal, everyday (if slightly dysfunctional) Mexican-American family from East Los Angeles.
When audiences meet Emma (Mishel Prada) on the half-hour drama series, she and her estranged younger sister Lyn (Melissa Barrera) have just learned that their mother has died suddenly.
The tragedy reunites the siblings in the apartment they grew up in, where they discover she had been sharing her life with a wife, Eddie (Ser Anzoategui).
This initially enrages Emma, who was sent away to live with her grandmother as a young girl when her mother caught her and another young female in a compromising position.
The reasons for her mother’s rejection are yet unknown. But this question haunts Emma, a lesbian, who learns while navigating through her old barrio that many taboos against homosexuality within the Latino community still exist.
It’s through getting to know Eddie that the sisters discover who they really are and that home is where they want to be.
“Vida” is only the first collaboration between Saracho and Starz. The writer and playwright signed a three-year overall deal with the premium cable network in February.