“Yo Soy Mariachero”

directed by Steven Wade Adams

editing and sound design by Manuel Fernandez Lorea

As a boy in Jalisco, Mexico, Rosalío Chavarín wanted to be a mariachi. His mother forbade it. He immigrated to the United States, raised a family, and carried the music with him. Decades later, nearing 80, Rosalío finally stepped onto the stage as a mariachi — performing alongside his daughter, Veri, and granddaughter, Lucía.

Yo Soy Mariachero is a story of music, immigration, family, and a dream deferred for a lifetime.

This is the dream his mother said he couldn't have.

"Someone who has a very strong work ethic and believed in the power of education and community, and who was very compassionate and cared about the well-being of everybody."

Veri Chavarín
on how she hopes her father is remembered
San Diego Union-Tribune, Sept. 18, 2026

PRESS & RECOGNITION

SAN DIEGO INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Official Selection · San Diego Scene

World Premiere · October 2026

SAN DIEGO UNION-TRIBUNE

From forbidden to fruition, he finally became a mariachi

Lisa Deaderick · September 18, 2026

Read the story →

KPBS

Yo Soy Mariachero

"YO SOY MARIACHERO" is an intimate documentary portrait of Rosalío Chavarín and his journey to keep the music of Mariachi alive in himself and his family. Through the lens of family memory the film explores the weight of immigration and the "beautiful things of life" that remain when the dust settles.

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OTHER INDEPENDENT REFLECTION

"He simply outlived the need for her blessing and granted himself his own."

From "What We Owe the Unlived Version of Ourselves", written after reading Rosalío's story in the Union-Tribune; Notes From a Death Doula