Cousin’s suicide changed filmmaker’s life

“Through my films, I’d like to support non-profit organizations and bring attention to certain causes. Because I lost someone to suicide, mental health and suicide prevention are really important to me.

“Mario Arturo Valverde was my cousin. We were born a month apart. I’ve never been privy to the details. It’s just too much to unpack. To open that wound would be too painful. It broke me down. I was lost for a very long time. I delved into everything I could to cope. I felt a lot of complicated emotions, like ’it should have been me.’ His suicide affected our family profoundly.

“He was only 15 when it happened. I vividly remember hearing the news and driving to his house, where there were sirens and lights from the ambulance and cop cars. It felt unreal then, and it still does.

“I wasn’t as close to him when we entered high school. Our families drifted apart, and we grew apart. I regret that I wasn’t there for him. Even if it was always going to happen, I just would have wanted more time to spend with him.

“It’s affected everything in my life — who I want to be, and how I want to help others in need through films and stories. That’s what helped me understand and convey those really complex emotions, and deal with my personal mental health struggles.

“‘For You’ was the only way I really knew how to remember him and honor his memory. It will be the most important and meaningful film I will ever make.”

— Sergio Valverde

“For You,” a short film produced by Pink-Eye Pictures, features Sergio and several of his cousins.

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