Little Manila: Filipinos in California's Heartland (2008)

Filled with chop suey houses, gambling dens, and dance halls, Little Manila was the area in Stockton notoriously called, "Skid Row," but it was also the closest thing Filipinos had to a hometown. In its heyday in the 30s, this lively area had the largest population of Filipinos outside of the Philippines. We tell the story of Jimmy Ente, Jr., a longtime Stockton resident recruited to work in the asparagus fields. Jimmy, and many other like him, faced backbreaking work, low wages, and at times extreme racism to fulfill their dreams. Narrated by famed Filipino-American producer, Dean Devlin (Independence Day, The Patriot) this documentary tells the immigrant story as Filipinos experienced it.