Erick Arredondo is a Director of Photography with seven years of experience—though he jokes he's only been good at it for two weeks. He is passionate about capturing stories that highlight community, healing, and new opportunities, always seeking to depict joy and authenticity in his work.

The Cultural Leadership Fellowship (CLF), founded by Alejandra Pérez and Yuriana Garcia Tellez in 2022 at Scholar Fund, is an educational and cultural leadership initiative. Its mission is to offer DACA recipients the opportunity to participate in culturally sustaining programming through Advance Parole. In just two years, the program has made a significant impact, accepting over 250 DACA recipients living across 30 states and hailing originally from over 20 countries with opportunities to travel to Japan, South Korea, Philippines, Portugal, France, Brazil, Peru, South Africa, Guatemala, and Mexico.

Thank you to the DACA recipients who embarked on this journey to Japan: Allen Lusuegro, Alliyah Lusuegro, Cristhian Benitez, Divine Otico, Erick Carvajal, Erick Arredondo, Escarleth Fernandez, Fatima Cabrera, Jose Pérez, Karla Pinzon, Katia Lopez, Light Estrada, Mariale Robles Morales, and Sergio Mejia. A heartfelt thank you to all our past fellows and ambassadors. We are deeply grateful to our amazing team at Scholar Fund, especially the incredible group of undocumented women who lead our trips: Alejandra Pérez, Cindy Marquina Negrete, Victoria Matey, and Yuriana Garcia Tellez, as well as the incredible support of Renata Zometa and Rossio Zometa. Lastly, a special thank you to Erick Arredondo for the passion and heart you put into creating this documentary.