Johnny Turn To God
Jhonny Vaya Con Dios narrates Marvin “Jhonny” Girón’s experience with the health care system and institutionalized homophobia in El Salvador when he tests positive for HIV. Johnny faces living with a potentially fatal disease in a small, impoverished country with a less than stellar health system.
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Samuel LópezDirectorThe Sugarcane; Our Faces, Our Stories; Samuel & Samantha
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Samuel LópezWriterThe Sugarcane; Our Faces, Our Stories; Samuel & Samantha
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Marvin Geovanni GirónKey Cast"Johnny"
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Samuel LópezProducer
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Project Title (Original Language):Johnny Vaya Con Dios
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Project Type:Documentary, Short
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Runtime:29 minutes 42 seconds
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Completion Date:August 1, 2022
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Production Budget:70,000 USD
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Country of Origin:Canada
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Country of Filming:El Salvador
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Language:Spanish
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Shooting Format:Digital
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Aspect Ratio:16:9
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Film Color:Color
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First-time Filmmaker:No
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Student Project:No
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International Aids ConferencesDurban
South Africa
Work in Progress -
International Aids Conference Global VillageMontreal
Canada
August 2, 2022
Aids 2022 -
Lift Off Sessions Pinewood Studios, EnglandVimeo On Demand
United Kingdom
January 16, 2023
Online
Official Selection -
Lift Off Global Network Ltd. Sessions 2023 Pinewood StudiosVOD
United Kingdom
February 6, 2023
Online
Official Selection
Distribution Information
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vtape.orgDistributorCountry: CanadaRights: All Rights
PRODUCER/ DIRECTOR: SAMUEL LOPEZ
Samuel Lopez was born in El Salvador. He left with his family during the civil war of the 1980s and settled in Montreal. Samuel is a certified translator and an HIV+ AIDS activist. HIV has been a theme of interest in his work and in his life as a community activist long before he tested positive.
In 1993, Samuel made his directorial debut with the documentary Samuel & Samantha. Samuel & Samantha is an autobiographical documentary about his life as a Latino drag queen. In 1996, while at the University of Toronto, Samuel wrote the screenplay “L’Histoire d’Henri” (“Henry’s Story”). In 2008, Samuel directed and produced the short documentary “Our Faces, Our Stories” for the group Latinos Positivos (HIV+ Latinos). He has directed several short documentary videos for Latinos Positivos Toronto and the Canadian AIDS Treatment Information Exchange. He completed the feature documentary “The Sugarcane” (2013) that premièred at the Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano in La Habana, Cuba.
Sexuality and HIV are themes that have driven my artistic expression since my very first work. In 1993, I made my directorial debut with the short documentary Samuel & Samantha (which screened at the Frameline Film Festival), an autobiography about my life as a Latino drag queen activist. This was a time when gay Latinos were pushing to open spaces in a homophobic society and being a drag queen was a political statement. This documentary also embodied the lasting legacy my deceased older brother Mario left me with -- to be a political activist in Toronto’s gay community and support the fight against AIDS.