In California’s farmlands, immigrant workers share their stories of toil and hope

In the United States, a large share of fruit and vegetable production comes from California, where the agricultural industry relies heavily on immigrant labour. Many of these workers arrive from Mexico and Central America, and a significant number are undocumented. Directed by the Mexican American filmmaker Andrés Lira, who has Indigenous Purépecha roots and a family history of farm work, Primero, Sueño (‘First, I dream’) is a stirring portrait of a group often rendered invisible – or worse, demonised – in US society.

Covering their work from dawn to dusk, the film unfolds with quiet attentiveness, capturing the physical demands of the job while also drawing out the everyday beauty of California’s farmland. The workers’ voices guide the narrative as they speak of border crossings, life back home, the weight of labour and the hopes they carry – if not for themselves, then for their families. In doing so, Lira presents a nuanced portrait of these immigrants’ lives, raising questions about the complexities and contradictions of the ‘American Dream’ in the process.