Did you know that August is Romance Awareness Month? We’re guessing that, even if you didn’t, you probably felt it in your gut – and that’s what led you here. To get into the spirit of things, we’ve put together a list of ten latino rom-coms for you to watch through the dying days of summer. Just don’t blame us if you end up on a movie binge, babes.

1. Maid in Manhattan

Jennifer Lopez captures our hearts in this 2002 fairytale-like movie that would put the original Cinderella story to shame. Lopez stars as a hard-working single mom stuck balancing parenting duties with her long hours at a ritzy hotel in, you guessed it, Manhattan. Ralph Fiennes – the guy who is actually Voldemort in the Harry Potter films – plays JLo’s rich, handsome, and effortlessly charming love interest. 

2. Doña Herlinda y Su Hijo (Dona Herlinda and Her Son)

Would it be possible to have a list of Latino rom-coms without a movie about a mother overly invested in her child’s love life? Welcome to the kitsch 1985 film, Doña Herlinda y Su Hijo. Dona is determined to see her son give her the grandchild she so desperately wants. The catch? He’s gay. And, not only that – he’s head over heels for a student in Guadalajara. So what happens when Dona arranges a marriage, to a woman, for her son? Guess you’ll just have to watch to find out.

3. Hitch

If you haven’t had the pleasure of watching this one before, then don’t be surprised to find out that Will Smith hasn’t even aged since this 2005 banger of a romance. Smith plays Alex “Hitch” Hitchens, who’s basically a dating coach crossed with every sleazy pick up artist you’ve feared swiping right on. His smooth game is disrupted when he meets Eva Mendes’ Sara, a career-driven, sassy Latina. Hijinks ensue as both of them eventually discover the value of a real, connected relationship.

4. Tan de repente (Suddenly)

This 2002 black and white film begins with what seems like the start of just another workday for salesgirl Marcia. Of course, it’s anything but. She somehow ends up propositioned by two aggressive, dagger-wielding lesbians – Mao and Lenin. Even though Marcia isn’t interested, she’s abducted by the two, and is spirited away to the Lenin’s estranged aunt’s house. It’s there that Marcia learns that the two women aren’t as tough as they originally seemed.

5. From Prada to Nada

Loosely based on Jane Austen’s classic novel, Sense and Sensibility, From Prada to Nada revolves around the trials and tribulations of two spoiled sisters left penniless from their father’s sudden death, who are forced to live with their estranged aunt in East Los Angeles. The two girls figure out pretty quickly that they’re going to have to work hard to get their standing back – whether it be by chasing careers, or chasing boys. 

6. Chasing Papi

This 2003 rom-com, starring Roselyn Sánchez, Sofía Vergara, and Jaci Velasquez, centers around three women who discover that they’ve all been dating the same man. Surprise surprise, they’ve all affectionately nicknamed him “Papi”. The movie twists and turns into not only chasing Papi, but also avoiding the cops and some shady criminals.

7. Elura, Te Daría Mi Vida Pero Lo Estoy Usando (Elvira, I would give you my life but I am using it)

Released in 2014, this film follows 40 year old mother of two, Elvira, in her quest to find her husband, Gustavo. Even though all signs point to the likelihood of Gustavo having an illicit affair, Elvira doesn’t rest until her husband is found.

8. ¿Qué Culpa Tiene el Niño? (Don’t Blame The Kid)

Our fave Karla Souza from How to Get Away With Murder stars as Maru in this Mexican film about a one-night stand that goes awry. After discovering she’s pregnant after a drunken night of fun, Maru decides the only way to move forward is by moving in with the father of her soon-to-be child. Naturally, things ramp up after she decides to move in with a complete stranger – but isn’t that the beauty of a classic rom-com?

9. Fresa y chocolate (Strawberry and Chocolate)

Considering this was the first Cuban film to be nominated for an Oscar for the best foreign language film, this 1994 gem begins with hints of a cute gay rom-com, before transforming into something else. The romance in this film is set against the political complexities of the Castro regime.

10. Corazón de Leon (Heart of a Lion)

This 2017 rom-com starts with the protagonist, León, discovering a lost cell phone. Naturally, he decides to call the owner, Ivana. Feeling their mutual attraction, León asks her out on a whim. But, he’s left out an important detail: he’s 4.4 feet tall. From there, Corazón de Leon explores how their mutual attraction could overcome shallow societal expectations.

So which movie are you going to watch first? Or, have you already seen them all? Tell us about it on our Facebook page – you can find it by clicking on the logo at the top of the page.

Even since 2008, search engine Google has dedicated a contest to aspiring young artists around the world. With a yearly theme, the company challenges these young people with the task of creating a specialized Google Doodle. This year’s theme was announced to be “When I grow up, I hope… ;” a hopeful look at the future of our society. Each year, thousands of entries are submitted and one is selected as a winner for each age group. Of those winners, only one is declared the overall winner of the Doodle for Google contest. 

This year’s winner is Georgia teen, Arantza Peña Popo.

Entitled “Once you get it, give it back,” the doodle depicts a representation of a real picture of Peña Popo and her mother when the artist was a baby. In front of this display is the artist and her mother imagined in the future when Peña Popo will repay her mother’s devotion and care for her in her old age. 

According to a press release from Google, Peña Popo describes her mother, who is from Colombia, as a person who lights up any room she’s in. Also, the teen hopes to one day be able to help her mother to travel around the world and do all the other things in life that she hopes to do.

According to Peña Popo, she has been interested in art since she was three but was suffering from a major artist block while working on this piece. 

“I came up with the idea at the last minute, actually the day of the deadline,” she shared. “I looked at the photograph of my mother [the real version that inspired the drawing] and thought, ‘Hey, why don’t I reverse it?’ I wanted to focus more on a message of helping out my awesome mother more than anything else.” 

This is just the start of Peña Popo’s promising art career. Last Spring, the Colombiana graduated valedictorian of Arabia Mountain High School. In the Fall, she plans to attend the University of Southern California and wants to publish alternative graphic novels and comics in the future.  

The win also comes with some amazing perks for the artistic teen. 

As an aspiring artist, Peña Popo will get some of the best exposure in the world. Google.com will display her winning doodle for the entire day and it will appear whenever the search engine is used. The teen artist will also receive a $30,000 college scholarship to help with her as she attends the University of Southern California. Finally, Peña Popo will go on a trip to Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California.

Reactions to Peña Popo’s beautiful illustration and the story behind it have been incredibly supportive.

Most people can relate to the story of sacrifice and love told by Peña Popo’s Google Doodle. Basically, it makes us all think about our own mothers. No wonder her entry won; it tugs at all of our heartstrings. We can’t help but want to support this young artist. 

This tweet credits Peña Popo’s win to #BlackGirlMagic and we have to agree with this based on her undeniable excellence.

We always love to see a woman of color succeed but we are especially proud of this Afro-Latina and her accomplishments. It just goes to show that brilliance and talent can’t be contained by bigotry, bias or colorism. We have to label this win with #AfroLatinaExcellence.

While Peña Popo was both the winner in her age group and the national champion of this year’s Doodle for Google, she wasn’t the only one to win. 

Natalia Pepe of Connecticut won the K-3 grade group with a doodle that honors the farmers of America. Amadys López Velásquez of Puerto Rico won the 4-5 grade group with a doodle that celebrates the power of imagination. Texas student Christelle Matildo won first place in the 6-7 grade group with an entry that hopes for a better tomorrow. New Jersey native Jeremy Henskens won the 8-9 grade group with a comic book-inspired doodle. 

Congrats to Peño Popo and all the other winners. We hope the real future is half as beautiful as the one they’ve doodled.