LOS ANGELES — Even after 30 years since her passing, Selena Quintanilla is still making the world go “bidi bidi bom bom” — a true testament that the legacy of the Queen of Tejano’s music has withstood the test of time.
Netflix’s new documentary, “Selena y Los Dinos: A Family’s Legacy,” celebrates not only her life and legacy but that of her family, with whom she performed, triumphed and redefined music genres.
Yes, the world knows Selena’s unforgettable story, but for the first time in 30 years, the Quintanilla family opened up their personal archives to share her story in a way that hasn’t been told before.
“This film was an unbelievable act of generosity and vulnerability,” film director Isabel Castro told Spectrum News. “The family recognized that they were finally ready to sit down and talk about their experience as a band and their memories of Selena.”
(“Selena y Los Dinos.” Courtesy of Netflix)
Castro described making the film — while protecting Selena’s story — as a beautiful experience because both she and the Quintanilla family realized they wanted to create the same film.
“Initially there was some adjusting while we were building trust,” she said. “It was a conversation about what they wanted from the film and what we wanted to find out and kind of find that [commonality] within the archive that they gave us.”
In making “Selena y Los Dinos,” Castro said she was reminded of not only how young Selena was, but “looking at the footage day after day I really understood how authentic she is.”
“One thing that I learned was that she was really funny and really witty. I didn’t know before making this film, the sense of humor she had,” said Castro.
Castro was just 8 years old when she discovered Selena — who became a huge influence and symbolic figure throughout her life.
“To me, she represents the pride and power of being Latino and also of being [a] bicultural Latino … ni de aquí, ni de allá,” she said. “She grew up in a place that was very influenced by Mexican culture, but she didn’t grow up speaking Spanish. There is something about that that really resonated with me and has stayed with me throughout my life.”
Selena became the No. 1 selling female artist in Latin music history and is acclaimed for hits such as “Como La Flor,” “Bidi Bidi Bom Bom,” “I Could Fall In Love” and “Dreaming Of You.”
In 1994, Selena won a Grammy for Best Mexican/Mexican-American Album for “Selena Live!” In doing so, she became the first female Tejano artist to win a Grammy.
In 2021, Selena was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Grammy.
(“Selena y Los Dinos.” Courtesy of Netflix)
Next January, the “Selena: From Texas to the World” exhibition will open at the Grammy Museum in Los Angeles. The exhibition will mark the first time some of Selena’s personal artifacts will be on display outside of the Selena Museum in Corpus Christi, Texas.
“Selena y Los Dinos: A Family’s Legacy” will stream on Netflix on Nov. 17.
Click the video above to watch the full interview with Isabel Castro.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source spectrumnews1.com ’
