Why so quiet, lately? It’s been the pursuit of knowledge, new experiences and adventures that has pulled my attention away from my blog temporarily. I’ve been working on a bunch of very disparate projects that I will one day shed some light on, but for now some of them will have to wait… and one will get the spotlight.

There’s nothing I love more than to work with passionate people… So, when director, Carlos Avila asked me to score his passion project, TALES OF MASKED MEN, I couldn’t resist. Carlos and I first worked together on his short film, JUNKYARD SAINTS, which aired on PBS as part of their Independent Lens series. We always looked forward to another collaboration, but neither of us would have guessed that it would be on a documentary about masked Mexican wrestlers.

Carlos channeled his enthusiasm from childhood and set out to give us, the greater audience, a glimpse into the history of lucha libre and its cultural importance from its inception in the early 1900’s to today. Carlos’ respect for all luchadores including the featured wrestlers, El Santo, Mascarita Sagrada and Solar and his attention to detail, made the look and feel of this documentary an even more inspiring journey for me… and the team efforts of editor, Thom Calderon and the excellent graphics created by Todd Brunelle and Rachel K. Simanjuntak make this documentary a visual feast. Have a look and listen to this clip including narration by Miguel Sandoval.

Tales of Masked Men airs on PBS, this Friday at 10pm, September 28th in most cities. Please check your local listings for the time in your market. Also check the official TALES OF MASKED MEN facebook page for both local and festival screenings in Southern Cali and beyond, to see it on the big screen.