The Gri Gri Project, in partnership with the St. John Film Society, will host a special screening of Freeing Juanita, an award-winning documentary directed by the late Sebastián Lasaosa Rogers, on Saturday, Feb. 21 at 6 p.m. at Bajo el Sol Gallery in Mongoose Junction. There is a suggested donation of $5.
Freeing Juanita is an intimate and powerful documentary that follows Ana and Pedro, a Maya Chuj couple from the highlands of Guatemala, as they journey across Mexico to free their niece, Juanita, who was wrongfully imprisoned for more than seven years after being forced to confess to a crime she did not commit in a language she did not understand. The film sheds light on migrant criminalization, language justice, and the power of community-led activism across borders. The following link features the film’s trailer: https://www.freejuanitafilm.com
Sebastián Lasaosa Rogers, a Spanish-American filmmaker based in Brooklyn, had deep personal ties to St. John and was a regular visitor to the island. His aunt, Dr. Caroline S. Rogers, is a longtime St. John resident. Sebastián’s life was cut short in an unfortunate surfing accident, making this screening both a celebration of his work and a tribute to his legacy as a filmmaker committed to social justice. The screening will be hosted by Raven Philips, Program Director, and all St. John film screening contributions will be donated to St. John KATS (Kids And The Sea) to support their youth sailing and ocean education program.
Freeing Juanita is Sebastián Lasaosa Rogers’ feature-length directorial debut and premiered in Mexico at the DocsMX Film Festival in 2024. It was awarded “Best Documentary Film” at the 2025 New Jersey International Film Festival and has screened throughout the USA and Europe. Drawing from his background in anthropology and grassroots advocacy filmmaking, Sebastián’s work centers migrant rights, solidarity, and the belief that collective action can dismantle injustice. Sebastián’s art can be viewed on his website sebastianlr.com and also on Prime and Apple TV with the documentary “The Art of Making It” which won the Audience Award at the SXSW Film Festival in 2023. This community screening invites audiences to honor Sebastián’s life, engage with a globally relevant human rights story, and support local youth through KATS.
Bajo El Sol Gallery & Art Bar is home to thought-provoking monthly exhibitions, readings by award winning V.I. writers & poets, documentary screenings on some of the Caribbean’s most respected thinkers, as well as talks by local academics and visiting curators. The Gri Gri Project’s mission is to create and support interpretive art exhibitions, artist-centered events, archives, and writing related to the cultural patrimony of the U.S. Virgin Islands and the broader Caribbean region.
The screening is supported by the Community Foundation of the Virgin Islands and funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, & the Virgin Islands Council on the Arts & the National Endowment for the Arts in Washington, DC.
