Using a medium format film camera and engaging her subjects in long, slow, collaborative shoots, Star Montana creates sensitive portraits of her neighbors in the Latino community of Boyle Heights, Los Angeles. Her images convey not only the rough façade her sitters often present to the world but also the sensitive characters lurking beneath, with hopes and dreams that extend beyond their concrete environment. “It’s my idea of Los Angeles. Because I grew up in Boyle Heights, I want people to understand the narrative of Boyle Heights. These people, they are individuals. And their stories are important too.”