Street vending has a culture that many of us have only had surface-level encounters with, stopping for a moment for a transactional interaction, then moving on to the day’s next task. But oftentimes, street vendors are working hard and taking risks in order to make ends meet. That struggle can be insurmountable when any misfortune occurs, and the short film El Carrito explores the ups and downs that come with the film’s main character, Nelly, trying to work towards a better life for herself.

The synopsis goes as follows: Nelly lives alone with her elderly father, making ends meet by working as a street vendor from dawn to dusk. She has learned not to trust anyone until the day she is forced to take a leap of faith or to be resigned in her position forever.

Zahida Pirani is the writer and director of El Carrito, and in this interview, I talk with her about the culture surrounding Nelly and street vendors - a world that Zahida is familiar with through her own work with her community. We also discuss the process of making this movie and how community played a vital role in the film's development.

El Carrito had its world premiere at AFI Fest last year. It was a part of SXSW’s Short Program 2, and will also be screening at the Seattle International Film Festival as part of the International Relations program online beginning April 15th with an in-person screening April 17th.

You can read Marty Millman’s review of El Carrito here, and listen to my full interview with Zahida below: