Documentary filmmaker has always watched out for the underdog

Daniel Herrera COURTESY PHOTO Looking out for the interests of those in need seems to come naturally to Daniel Herrera. The documentary filmmaker and co-creator of “Immokalee USA” has been protective of others since he was a kid. Now, as a director and producer, he hopes to use his professional talents to make positive impact on the lives of at-risk individuals.

“Immokalee USA” is about the daily experiences of six individuals who live and work in the migrant farming community of Immokalee. An observational documentary, the work provides an intimate look at family life in the town, while paying particular attention to Immokalee’s fathers and husbands.

“So many of the men there have endured tremendous personal danger and hardship in order to come to the U.S. to earn money for their families,” Mr. Herrera says. “I believe their sacrifice goes far beyond what most people really understand or would choose to bear if they were in similar circumstances.”

Earning accolades at film festival across the country, “Immokalee USA” has been described by the National Media Museum (a museum in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, dedicated to film, television and radio) as “a powerfully provocative depiction chronicled with intelligence, sensitivity and restraint.”

Even though he’s recently been described as Florida’s most promising nonfiction filmmaker, Mr. Herrera is no stranger to hard times.

“I always refer to myself as Tex-Mex,” he says. He was born in Mexico City but grew up in a trailer park in El Paso, Texas, in a neighborhood rife with gang fighting and poverty. It was in this difficult environment, he says, that his instincts to look out for people who were vulnerable first became evident. “Where we lived, it was impossible to even go to the food store without passing through tough gang territory,” he says. “I was a big kid, and fairly street wise, so I used to protect the other kids from our park whenever they had to walk through there.”

A middle child with three brothers and a sister, he worked in the area’s onion fields to earn extra money for his family. “Keeping the family together was the most important thing to my parents, and we all pitched in,” he says, adding he and his brothers usually earned about $10 per day working in the fields.

Their father worked two jobs, which eventually enabled the family to move to a better part of town. Daniel became a high school football hero, lettering and starting in his sophomore year and designated All City, All District by the time he was a junior.

“Excelling at football taught me that I could do anything,” he says. He used to walk miles to his games and practices because his parents were still too busy working to drive him. “It made me realize that anyone from anywhere can achieve whatever they set their mind to.”

Mr. Herrera — now the father of Daniel, 9, Joseph Hernando 7, and Gianna, 4, and a resident of Cape Coral — began his film career as an actor with Southwest Florida Models in Fort Myers, performing in industrial films for KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken) Saks Fifth Avenue and other retailers. These led to his first TV role, as a Latino drug lord on “America’s Most Wanted.” Although he enjoyed the experience, he says it made him realize his true desire was to use his talents to do something more substantive and meaningful, something that ultimately would make a positive difference in the lives of others.

In 2007, he established la Razza Films, a production company dedicated to the development of documentary films. “la Razza means ‘the people’ in Spanish,” he says, adding it represents his desire to create films that both aid and celebrate “hard-working, every day people.”

Prior to “Immokalee USA,” Mr. Herrera helped to create “Cracker Crazy,” a documentary of Florida history from an unusual. Blending archival images and original footage, the film traces 1,200 years of Sunshine State history, beginning with Florida’s ancient Indians, through the Civil War, the KKK and Walt Disney.

Mr. Herrera resolutely describes himself as a true independent filmmaker. “I am devoted to making films that I am passionate about and to documenting reality as it unfolds,” he says. He particularly enjoys giving the viewer a real and rare glimpse of a world that they might not otherwise ever see, or have an opportunity to appreciate or understand. His work as director of outreach for the Naples International Film Festival is a natural extension of his professional ambitions as well as his personal aspirations.

“In my life as well as in my work, I do my best to represent any human condition which needs to be noted, or which requires action. My hope is that my work will help to improve people’s lives. That is the goal that I work toward with every project.” 