Country: United States, United Kingdom
Language: English, Spanish

About the film:
A young father in the Bronx struggles to balance responsibility, ambition, and survival as the pressures of work, family, and self-worth collide. Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) is an intimate, naturalistic portrait of manhood and identity shaped by love, expectation, and the weight of growing up too fast.

About the filmmaker:
Joel Alfonso Vargas is an American filmmaker and photographer known for his naturalistic, character-driven storytelling rooted in working-class communities. He gained recognition for his documentary work and visual photography before transitioning to narrative filmmaking. Vargas made his feature debut with Mad Bills to Pay (or Destiny, dile que no soy malo) (2024), which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and earned critical acclaim for its intimate portrait of a young father navigating responsibility and identity. His work is marked by a documentary sensibility, nonprofessional performances, and a focus on lived experience, establishing him as a compelling new voice in independent cinema.

GATEWAY FILM FOUNDATION RECEIVES MAJOR SUPPORT FROM
Ohio Arts Council
Greater Columbus Arts Council
The Columbus Foundation
Campus Partners

WITH HELP FROM
G&J Pepsi
WOSU Public Media