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Luna de Xelajú - Gaby Moreno & Oscar Isaac

Gaby Moreno and Oscar Isaac cover Paco Pérez's iconic Guatemalan song "Luna de Xelajú," which holds a special place as the unofficial anthem of Guatemala, adding significance to their collaboration. The entire performance was captured in a single take, filmed, and recorded at the beautiful Palace Theater in DTLA. With just two voices and two guitars, they sing together this timeless, sweet, and nostalgic song from their motherland.

  • Gaby Moreno
    Name of Band or Artist
  • Oscar Isaac
    Name of Band or Artist
  • Diego Contreras
    Director
  • Ernesto Abrego
    Co-director
  • Diego Contreras
    Producer
  • Andrew Petersen
    Producer
  • Gaby Moreno
    Key Cast
  • Oscar Isaac
    Key Cast
  • Marlo Thomas
    1st Assistant Director
  • Jon Chema
    Director of Photography
  • Colin Macdonnell
    Steadicam Operator
  • Mike Lemitzer
    1st AC
  • Alan Sova
    2nd AC
  • Isaac Guy
    DIT
  • Warren Aldrich
    Stylist/Costume Design
  • Luke Poole
    Key Grip
  • Mark Steuer
    Best Boy Grip
  • Myles Evenson
    3rd Grip
  • Marlon O’Brien
    Gaffer
  • Alice Becerra
    BB Electric
  • Brent Batista
    Set Lighting Technician
  • Saury C. Armenta
    Production Assistant
  • Jowaan Sullivan
    Production Assistant
  • Juan Jose Tabarini
    Production Assistant
  • Diego Contreras
    Editor
  • Mikey Rossiter
    Colorist
  • Juan Pablo Berreondo
    Live Song Recording and Mixing
  • Gus Koven
    Sound Designer
  • AJ Murillo
    Foley Artist / Mixer:
  • Kelly Bayett
    Creative Director
  • Beau Manning
    Mix Assist
  • Fireland
    Production Company
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    Luna de Xelajú - Gaby Moreno & Oscar Isaac
  • Project Type:
    Music Video
  • Genres:
    Spanish Folk, folk
  • Runtime:
    3 minutes 52 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    March 31, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    15,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    United States
  • Country of Filming:
    United States
  • Language:
    Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2.40:1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
Director Biography - Diego Contreras

Armed with a warm, soulful sound, Moreno creates music that offers an intoxicating invitation into her musical world for English and Spanish speakers alike. Since moving to Los Angeles from her native Guatemala, singer-songwriter-producer Gaby Moreno has released 7 albums, earned a Grammy nomination for her albums Alegoría (Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album, 2023) and Illusion (Best Latin Pop Album, 2017), and won a Latin Grammy (Best New Artist, 2013). Moreno has shared the international stage with pop music luminaries such as Bono, Andrea Boccelli, Tracy Chapman, Ani DiFranco, Punch Brothers, Hugh Laurie, Buena Vista Social Club, Calexico, David Gray, and many more. Through her various projects, Moreno has redefined Americana as the only prominent Latina in the genre today, opening the doors for other marginalized voices and transforming the landscape overall.

In addition to her critical acclaim within the music industry, Moreno has also amassed a long list of accolades within the TV and film worlds. Most famously, she co-wrote the seminal theme song for cult classic TV show, ‘Parks and Recreation’. Her moving version of the classic song “Cucurrucucú Paloma” was chosen to play at the end of the emotional episode "God Bless America" for the last season of Netflix's original show, "Orange Is The New Black”. Most recently, her music was featured in Guillermo Del Toro's new Netflix show ‘Cabinet of Curiosities’ as well as receiving a 2023 Guild of Music Supervisors Awards nomination for her song on the film ‘Valet.’

Her album “¡Spangled!” - a collaboration with musician, songwriter and arranger, Van Dyke Parks – is a set of ten songs celebrating the migration of song across the  Americas and spans more than a century, including a bolero from Panama, a  bossa nova from Brazil, and an elegiac ballad from the Southwest United States. The album features a duet with Jackson Browne and an art cover designed by Klaus Voormann (who designed The Beatles’ Revolver cover). Gaby was also chosen to sing the theme song and voice a character (Marlena) on the multi-Emmy Award-winning Disney children’s television series, “Elena of Avalor,” which features Disney's first Latina princess. More recently, she composed all the music for the movie “Language Lessons”, directed by Natalie Morales and co-written/starring Morales and Mark Duplass.

In 2020 she produced, co-wrote, and sang the duet “Bolero a La Vida” with legendary Cuban singer Omara Portuondo from Buena Vista Social Club fame and received a Latin Grammy nomination in the “Best Tropical Song” category. In 2022, Moreno released her 7th album, Alegoría, produced by herself, featuring among others her guitar heroes Marc Ribot and Davíd Garza. The album comprises 11 songs both in English and Spanish, exploring themes of hope, love, nostalgia, and desolation.

In addition to her dynamic work within entertainment, Moreno has cemented a long trajectory as a champion for immigration rights and social issues dear to her. She was recently named the first Unicef Goodwill Ambassador from Guatemala. She is focused on mentoring young female artists and creatives.

Add Director Biography
Director Statement

Gaby Moreno and Oscar Isaac’s “Luna de Xelajú” was filmed and performed live and captured with a single-take camera move on Steadicam.

We were pressed for time, with only about an hour to film with Oscar and Gaby, so that meant everything had to be perfectly lit and choreographed to be in sync once the camera was rolling.

Ernesto Abrego (co-director) and I blocked the camera move and positioning on an iPhone the day prior in my backyard and arrived early on the shoot day to pre-light the set with DP Jon Chema. We did a few rough rehearsals with Gaby and once Oscar came on set, it was go time.

They’re both incredible performers and nailed the song and movement every single time, making our jobs much easier.

We were very happy by the 3rd take but went for a bonus one which is what ended up in the final film.

“Luna de Xelajú” is a very iconic Guatemalan song known as the unofficial anthem of our country. It was a truly magical experience to have been able to be a part of this meaningful project alongside awe-inspiring artists such as Gaby and Oscar.