Singing Our Way to Freedom

SYNOPSIS
Singing Our Way to Freedom is a multilayered look at the life of San Diego Chicano musician, composer
and community activist, Ramon “Chunky” Sanchez. Borrowing from musical traditions on both sides of the
U.S.-Mexico border, Chunky uses music and humor as powerful weapons in fighting for social justice.
From his humble beginnings as a farmworker in rural California to the dramatic moment when he
received one of his nation’s highest musical honors at the Library of Congress, this character-driven film
reminds us that the battle for freedom has to be fought anew by every generation. (89 minutes)

Paul Espinosa is an award-winning filmmaker and president of Espinosa Productions, a San Diego
production company specializing in films focused on the U.S.-Mexico border region. He has been involved
with producing films for nearly 40 years. His many films for PBS include The Lemon Grove Incident, ...and
the earth did not swallow him, The Hunt for Pancho Villa, The U.S.-Mexican War: 1846-1848, In the
Shadow of the Law and Ballad of an Unsung Hero. Espinosa’s films have been screened at festivals around
the world and have won many awards including eight Emmys. He is Professor Emeritus in the School of
Transborder Studies at Arizona State University.