Tr3s: MTV, Música y Más, the fastest growing bilingual/bicultural cable network among the coveted Hispanic millennial generation, continues to boost its original programming slate in 2012. New content in development includes the aspirational series Amigas, Inc. under executive producer Jennifer Lopez, producing partner Simon Fields and veteran film and television producer Jane Startz. The network’s new originals in production include the wildly-entertaining docu-series starring Mexican-American BMX champ Ricardo Laguna, a thriving Hispanic millennial discovered by executive producer Wilmer Valderrama, and Dulce Maria: Extranjera which documents the American Life of the former RBD star as she faces the cultural barriers and challenges of Hollywood stardom. The announcement was made today by Charlie Singer, SVP of Content & Creative for Tr3s.

Tr3s will also acquire Mexico’s innovative novela Bienvenida Realidad from Argos Communications, and will renew top-rated originals Quiero Mis Quinces, Quiero Mi Boda, Rock Dinner and La Escalera as part of its stellar new programming slate.

“I’m so excited to bring the Amigas series to television and to share the rich cultural experiences of being a Latino that are universal to us all,” said Jennifer Lopez. “I hope that this series will entertain audiences and inspire my fans to pursue their own dreams.”

“When I met Ricardo, I immediately discovered a disarming, charming and inspiring young man with a vision larger than even his whole family expected. I related to him on so many levels. Ricardo and his family remind me and all of us the reason why we move away from our countries and come to America to embark in the search of the American dream,” said Wilmer Valderrama.

“Tr3s has become a strong creative content engine, and we take pride in knowing that we have established a credible and valuable space that allows producers to create innovative and compelling content,” said Singer. “Our audience is more invested and engaged in our original programming than ever before and we look forward to continuing to deliver hit content.”

Fox International Channels and the RCN Television Group (RCN), headquartered in Colombia, jointly announced the formation of joint venture which will launch MundoFox, a new Spanish-language television network catering to the U.S. Hispanic market. The network, scheduled to launch during the Fall season of 2012 in Hispanic homes nationwide, will aim to bring a similar sensibility as the Fox Network to Latino audiences.

“Our partnership with RCN is a key step in the launch of MundoFox,” said Hernan Lopez, President & CEO of Fox International Channels. “There is an increasing demand for quality Spanish-language content in the U.S. from both viewers and advertisers. FOX saw similar dynamics in play 25 years ago when it launched the Fox network, and it would be a missed opportunity not to provide an alternative for the 50 plus million Latino viewers who currently have limited options in Spanish-language broadcast television. Our partnership with RCN will help us do this and we aim do it in a big way.”

“RCN has provided the main Hispanic networks in the US with much of their prime-time content for over two decades. We now plan to maximize our capabilities and bring an increasing variety of fresh and innovative productions directly to Spanish-speaking viewers. I am certain that FOX is the best partner to make this a successful network,” said Gabriel Reyes, CEO of RCN.

From 360i Digital Connections

Today, we’re launching the first in a series of reports exploring the role social media plays in the lives of Hispanics living in the United States. Reaching and engaging this population has become increasingly important to marketers over the past decade. The growth of this population presents both the promise of reaching a dynamic and engaged audience – armed with ever-increasing purchasing power – and the challenge of understanding the cultural nuances of a demographic with unique digital behaviors.

» Download 360i’s Report on Hispanic Digital Influencers

Why a POV series?

According to the 2010 US Census, the Hispanic population rose by 15.2 million between 2000 and 2010, , accounting for more than half of the nation’s population increase. Furthermore, in sheer dollar power, Hispanics’ economic influence rose from $212 billion in 1990 to $489 billion in 2000, to $978 billion in 2009, and is estimated to rise to roughly $1.3 trillion in 2014 (Selig Center for Economic Growth, Dec. 2010).

Beyond the amplification of their economic clout, Hispanics are also taking on a more critical role within the digital landscape. Hispanics have long prided themselves on living extremely social lives filled with family and friends; the fluidity of digital media serves as an effortless extension of centuries-old cultural habits.

Currently, there are roughly 32.2 million US Hispanics online, which represents 14 percent of the total online population. This number is expected to increase to 42 million by 2015 (Interactive Advertising Bureau). Hispanics are spending, on average, 16 hours a week browsing the Internet, comparable to the 18 hours spent by the total US online population (Forrester). In the past year alone, the number of Hispanics using social media grew 38 percent versus 16 percent for the general population (comScore). Additionally, higher mobile device penetration enables Hispanics to stay connected on the go, both through traditional text and phone calls, as well as through mobile social media. While utility and information-seeking play a big role in motivating their digital behaviors, social networking and content creation form the centerpiece of Hispanics’ online lives.

Our first report in the series is about Hispanic Digital Influencers – their motivations, passions and behaviors. .Through our research, we identify trends that will help brands craft an outreach strategy to better engage and build relationships with US Hispanics online.

By S.J. Main (HuffPost Latino Voices)

Aurora Guerrero won’t claim she represents every Latino:

“I don’t want the film industry to label me as the ‘one’ Chicana filmmaker and expect me to be the only voice for our communities…No, no, no!”

It is undeniable that Latino voices are largely underrepresented and/or distressingly clichéd through the current perspective of American media, therefore it is rare that a filmmaker like Guerrero has the opportunity to share her voice through moviemaking, and perhaps more profound is that her voice is getting the recognition it deserves.

Sundance Institute strives to serve as the premiere forum for unique voices in independent film: “[A] discovery festival that is committed to representing the wide spectrum of independent cinematic work being made today.” The Institute’s featured event, the Sundance Film Festival, opens today in Park City, Utah, to an expected snow flurry of celebrities, filmmakers, filmgoers, industry professionals and more.

Mosquita y Mari is Latina director Aurora Guerrero’s first feature film and it will premiere in the “Next” category of the Sundance Film Festival 2012, a non-competitive program the festival defines as “films [that] stretch limited resources to create impactful art.”Guerrero’s acceptance to the festival is an accomplishment; of the nearly 12,000 films submitted to the festival this year, less than 2% were accepted.

This won’t be Guerrero’s first time walking the Sundance red carpet; her short film Pura Lengua screened at Park City in 2005, and the filmmaker was accordingly snatched up by the prestigious Sundance Institute to participate in the Sundance Native/Indigenous Lab. Mosquita y Mari soon thereafter earned the Sundance/Ford Fellowship and the Sundance Institute/Time Warner Foundation Fellowship for Post Production.

In addition to receiving the abundant support of the Sundance,Mosquita y Mari has garnered the attention of prestigious film organizations including the Tribeca All Access Filmmaker Program, Film Independent’s Producers Lab, the National Association of Latino Independent Producers (NALIP) Latino Media Market, and the film project was the recipient of the Paul Robeson Development Grant, the SFFS/KRF Grant and the LG Cinema 3D Fellowship. The film was recently a Nominee for the Film Independent Piaget Producers Award for the work of the film’s producer Chad Burris.

The film Mosquita y Mari explores the complexities of a budding friendship between two Chicana high schoolers in Los Angeles’ Huntington Park as they struggle to recognize the sexual undercurrent in their relationship. The film stars rising teen talents Fenessa Pineda and Venecia Troncoso, and features supporting talent Joaquín Garrido, Laura Patalano and Dulce Maria Solis. The film was intimately photographed by Uruguayan cinematographer Magela Crosignani and both creatively and culturally designed by Production Designer Dalila Paola Mendez. The film was edited by Augie Robles and scored by composer Ryan Beveridge.

The themes presented in the film are hot button topics for not only Latinos but society at large: Undocumented families and same-sex romance. Guerrero is not afraid to talk about these issues–

“I think immigrant Latinos and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) people have been portrayed in [film in] ways that aren’t accessible to people largely because they have been written from a place of fear and hate.”

Having worked with a group of mothers in Boyle Heights, film director Guerrero has firsthand knowledge of the desire of the Latino community to address the issue of same-sex couples with their children, but they don’t know how:

“I feel that the Latino community is hungry for films that address LGBT issues…I hope to provide…an opportunity for Latino families to engage in dialogue about issues of desire and sex, not just the same sex, but desire in general. This is a theme that is constantly brushed under the rug and silenced in our communities and have a long-term impact on our lives.”

Guerrero’s voice represents the complexity of the immigrant. Her identity is what she titles “Xicana Urban,” a result of being born in the Mission District of San Francisco, raised in the East Bay Area, and maintaining a tight connection with her Mexican heritage, specifically to her indigenous grandmother and the town of Ayutla, Jalisco, where Aurora spent much of her youth. Add on top of that being a queer filmmaker:

“As a queer Xicana raised in the working class, I always felt invisible. It wasn’t until I started readingCherrie Moraga and Gloria Anzaldua that I saw myself–a beautiful, smart, complex image of myself written in literature. Well, it’s 2012 and that representation doesn’t exist in American cinema today. We are nowhere to be found. And by ‘we’ I mean the queer, the female, and the undocumented.”

Guerrero’s online plea for support for the film via a Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign in 2011 was a success, raising upwards of 80k in funding that allowed for the completion of post-production: “[I thought]: ‘The gente has spoken. They want this film and I’m going to work my [expletive] off to make the best film I can.’ Y asi fue.”

Guerrero’s number one goal throughout the screenwriting, production and post-production process was to stay true to her voice and the story of the film:

“We kept it honest and we made sure that all the creative elements worked toward that vision. If anything rang false that’s when I would reevaluate. I’m hoping that by focusing on the universal wonders of feeling love for the first time that my characters feel real to all audiences and that they can see themselves reflected in [the characters]. This could be a step towards dismantling the negative perceptions people have in their minds of what it means to be LGBT and/or undocumented. If Mosquita y Mari can challenge people’s thinking about these issues, then I’ve done something right with this film.”

Aurora Guerrero won’t be alone while bringing Latino themes to the movie screens of Sundance’s film festival, which opens today. Of approximately 200 films that will screen over eleven days, 18 are Latino and/or Hispanic in some aspect. In addition to the Latino powerhouse feature Filly Brown, which premieres tomorrow, January 20th, in the U.S. Dramatic category, and a handful of short films, only six films represent Latino and Hispanic filmmakers and/or Latino/Hispanic themes in the World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary categories:

Award-winning Spanish helmer Rodrigo Cortés will screen his most recent picture Red Lights in the Premieres category. The film stars Cillian Murphy, Sigourney Weaver, Robert De Niro, Elizabeth Olsen,Toby Jones and Leonardo Sbaraglia.

Father’s Chair (Brazil/World Dramatic; Director Luciano Moura; Writer: Elena Soarez; Producers: Fernando Meirelles, Andrea Barata Ribeiro, Bel Berlinck) On the weekend of his 15th birthday, Pedro takes a trip and disappears. His father goes in pursuit, and in the process of tracking him down, is he himself transformed.

The Last Elvis (Argentina/World Dramatic; Director Armando Bo; Writers Nicolas Giacobone & Bo; Producers Steve Golin, Hugo Sigman, Patricio Alvarez Casado & Victor Bo) In the unique world of the Buenos Aires celebrity-impersonator scene, Carlos has always lived his life as if he was the reincarnation of Elvis Presley. As his forty-second birthday approaches, his future appears empty. However, an unexpected tragedy interrupts Carlos’ plans and forces him to grapple with his real-world responsibilities.

Gypsy Davy (Israel-U.S.A.-Spain/World Documentary; Writer/Director Rachel Leah Jones; Producers Philippe Bellaiche & Jones) This documentary shares the story of David Jones from the perspective of his five women and five children, one of whom is the film’s director, Jones. Shot over a ten-year period in five countries and across three continents, it features some of the finest “old-school” Gypsy Flamenco artists, including Inés Bàcan, Concha Vagas, Miguel Funi, as well as some of the hottest names in American and Spanish alternative rock.

Madrid, 1987 (Spain/World Dramatic; Writer/Director: David Trueba; Producer: Jessica Huppert Berman) On a hot day in July 1987, in the vacant city, Miguel, a feared and respected senior newspaper writer, sets up a meeting in a café with Ángela, a young journalism student. From the first instant, there develops between them an unevenly matched duel that encircles desire, inspiration, talent and professional perspectives. Forced to remain together on a very particular day, both will try to survive the emotional friction.

Violeta Went to Heaven (Chile-Argentina-Brazil/World Dramatic; Director: Andrés Wood; Screenwriter: Eliseo Altunaga; Producer: Patricio Pereira) This film tells the story of famed Chilean singer and folklorist Violeta Parra, tracing her evolution from impoverished child to international sensation and Chile’s national hero, while capturing the swirling intensity of her inner contradictions, fallibilities and passions. The film is a Goya Nominee for Best Foreign Film in the Spanish Language.

Young & Wild (Chile/World Dramatic; Director: Marialy Rivas; Screenwriters: Marialy Rives, Camila Gutiérrez, Pedro Peirano, Sebastián Sepúlveda; Producers: Juan de Dios Larrain & Pablo Larrain) Daniela is a teenager raised in a strict and well-to-do evangelical family in Santiago, Chile. Her raging sexual drive is difficult to reconcile within the orders of her religion. With no outlet for her desire, Daniela taps into an underground network of other horny teenagers through her sexually charged blog.

If you can’t get a hot ticket to see one of the aforementioned films at the festival, catch the work of Los Angeles native and Latino artist Nonny de la Peña, who makes her first visit to Sundance with the New Frontier Artists installation titled Hunger in Los Angeles. New Frontier is a celebration of the“convergence of film, art, and new media technologies as a hotbed for cinematic innovation.” Peña’s project utilizes game-development, a body-tracking system, and a head-mounted google display, along with live audio….to construct a full immersive simulated world.” Think journalism in 3D. Peña, a formerNewsweek correspondent, comments on her relevance as an artist:

“[My goal is] empathy…[As a Latina], my sensitivity to the issue offers me an opportunity to reflect on the circumstance which might otherwise not be as visible to those from less affected communities.”

Sundance Film Festival opens today and runs through January 29th, 2012 in Park City and Salt Lake City, Utah. Learn more about the festival and view the scheduled events at Sundance Film Festival 2012.

Follow S.J. Main on Twitter: www.twitter.com/latinofilmfund

Comcast launched its Hispanic Facebook page XFINITY Latino targeting Spanish speakers and bilinguals alike. With On Demand movies and shows in Spanish and English on TV and online catering to the ever so socially connected Latino audience at <http://www.facebook.com/XfinityLatino>.

By Cara O’Flynn, Founder of Perspectiva Research (PerspectivaResearch.com)

David Chitel is a pioneer in the bilingual/bicultural Hispanic media and entertainment space. Preferring the term “New Generation Latino,” or NGL, Chitel has launched several companies targeting this demographic over the last 12 years – including the first Latino social network, the first Latino animated TV series, and an agency dedicated to helping Fortune 500 companies reach young Latinos through live events, magazines, internet, and college campus marketing.

In 2006, Chitel founded the New Generation Latino Consortium (www.NGLC.biz), an organization dedicated to hosting business conferences and fielding research studies focused on the NGL audience. His new company, NGL Media (www.NGLMedia.com), specializes in producing, aggregating and distributing in-culture and in-language video content for today’s digitally-connected Latinos.

In this interview, Chitel and I discussed how the market has changed over the last decade, advice for content creators wanting to attract young Latino viewers, and where he sees the market going over the next five years.

You’ve been working within the bicultural/“New Generation Latino” demographic since 1999, when the focus in the industry was almost exclusively on Spanish media and the foreign-born segment. What inspired you to get involved in this market?

To start, I worked at a Hispanic ad agency, SiboneyUSA, for many years. There, I got a terrific foundation for everything I’m doing today. Though it mostly focused on Spanish-dominant Hispanics, it’s where I realized there was uncharted territory with respect to the bilingual/bicultural majority.

What struck me was that NGLs were not only underserved, they were the majority of U.S. Hispanics. Even 10 years ago when the 2000 Census came out, U.S.-born Hispanics represented 60% of the total population.  Nowadays, people are awake to the fact that this market exists and that it represents a big opportunity.

What are the most important changes you’ve seen in this segment over the last decade?

There’s been the most change in media.   The market itself has existed for many years but the biggest hurdle has always been aggregating and defining it from a media perspective. Now, there are more media vehicles dedicated to NGLs, and we’re seeing them portrayed in mainstream media and entertainment as well. And of course, they’re a trendsetting group that’s part of the fabric of mainstream America.  Among Latinos, it’s becoming very popular to retro-acculturate. They’re openly embracing their heritage in a more overt and visible way … which should be the case.

Young Hispanics are increasingly watching English cable – especially networks like Nickelodeon, Disney, MTV, and Adult Swim. What advice do you have for English networks to attract a greater share of Hispanic viewers?

Great content is what attracts people to these networks. But then a deeper connection through the casting, the theme of the show, or other lifestyle touch-points could attract or engage NGL viewers. Don’t start with an idea that’s trying too hard to single out this demographic. If the content is solid, the rest falls out of that.

Latinos, especially younger ones, really don’t like to be marginalized by “this is a show for Latinos.” It has to be balanced.  When mainstream networks try too hard to be overtly Latino, they tend to get it wrong. A more subtle, nuanced approach is most effective.

Being linguistically relevant is less important than being culturally in tune with the NGL lifestyle and mindset. There are things that may not be “Latino” but that speak to the 18-24 demographic as a whole that are just as important as cultural or linguistic cues.

Do you have any examples of media companies doing a great job of targeting this demo?

All of the NGL TV networks – mun2, nuvoTV, Tr3s — are doing a great job. Each does something unique. Those who also get it tend to be the vertical websites/blogs and content that is NGL lifestyle driven – there’s a lot of good content in the mid- and long-tail outlets.

Also, magazines – there’s been no shortage of them over the years. Print is a tough business, but the NGL content from pioneers like Urban Latino and Latina magazine set the bar for their respective audiences.

What are your predictions for the Hispanic marketing field 5 years from now?

I think digital will play a much larger role. We currently have less than 1% of the total market digital spend, so we are not getting our fair share when you look at the number of Hispanics online. We’re going to see a much more fragmented US Hispanic TV market — and that will include Spanish, NGL and mainstream networks.

I hope we’ll see marketers planning Hispanic media from a more holistic total market perspective, not solely a linguistic one. Today’s U.S. Hispanic media buyers are getting budgets predominantly based on language.  To get anywhere close to our fair share, marketers will need to feel comfortable targeting Latinos in a non-endemic environment. A great example of this would be the way Hispanics at NBCU is positioned.

Are there any ways you see the Hispanic market starting to look like the general market 5 years from now?

I’m not a fan of the term “general market” – there is no general market. Hispanics are a significant part of the general market today. If you mean, do I think there will be a downswing in Spanish media – no. That’s where the bulk of the Hispanic media spending takes place today, and there’s plenty of room for growth. The question is how we are going to target, reach, and speak to the NGL majority using all means possible and not limiting ourselves to language.

Perspectiva Research was founded by Cara O’Flynn in 2011. Cara is a 14-year research veteran of the Hispanic media and advertising industry, working directly for Univision, Azteca America, and SiboneyUSA. For 10 years, she was a consultant with Franco Research Group, where her clients included MTV Tr3s, the Cable Advertising Bureau, Comcast Spotlight, Discovery en Español, V-me, GolTV, Mexicanal, and numerous others.

A couple of days ago, I was reading a very interesting op-ed article in The New York Times by Dowell Myers: “The Next Immigration Challenge.” His piece is a great recap of the evolution of Hispanics in American society and addresses how immigration policies need to shift from keeping newcomers out to encouraging migrants to integrate into the social fabric of American society. In a very peculiar way, the University of Southern California professor says “Show me your papers” should be replaced with “Welcome to English class.”

Myers, also author of “Immigrants and Boomers,” has a very optimistic view, presenting the education and integration of (Latino) immigrants as in the best interest of aging baby boomers. As Hispanics continue to grow in the ranks of work, tax payment, and homeownership, older generations will benefit from the role Latinos play in the economy.

To Be or Not to Be, That Is the Question

Traditionally, acculturation was seen as a linear and hierarchical process. Latinos who came to the United States were supposed to gradually adopt the American way of life – especially considering the external pressure to follow the mainstream and blend in, as well as Latino growth being driven by U.S. born versus foreign born. It was simply a matter of time.

In reality, the impact of a new (host) culture on a primary culture is a complex, dynamic process. And Latinos – who accounted for more than half of the population growth in the past decade – are a great example of this.

As Hispanic growth spreads out more rapidly across the country, there’s no longer a need (or pressure) to acculturate.

Take a look at language, for example. Although bilingualism – as well as English dominance – continues to grow among Latinos, Spanish still plays an important role at home. A total of 77.2 percent of Hispanics said they speak Spanish at home in 2010 versus 78.9 percent in 1990 (Source: Geoscape, 2010). That small decline is pretty telling.

Culture plays an important role: 66 percent of Latinos agree that is important to respect their customs and beliefs. And this is trending up. Nine in 10 Latinos agree that their roots and heritage are more important today than five years ago, according to Experian Simmons.

The Importance of Being Authentic

Rather than follow, Latinos today want to influence American culture. It’s that creativity that is a very important part of Latinos’ DNA. Seven in 10 Latinos consider themselves a creative person and say that they like to put things together in new ways. Of course, anyone is familiar with the likes of George Lopez, Sofia Vergara, Salma Hayek, or Selena Gomez to name a few. But you might also want to check the following: Mr.Cartoon (urban street artist), Pepe Aguilar (shoes), and Paul Rodriguez Jr. (skateboarder).

One great example of this creative spirit is Richard Montañez. Originally a janitor at Pepsico, he is now a senior sales and marketing executive at the same firm thanks to being the creator of Cheetos Flamin’ Hot.

Latinos, especially younger generations, are all about authenticity. They live through the tension of trying to preserve their values and traditions of their roots but at the same time trying to realize their aspirations of creating something new and better. This creates a new reality for younger Latinos: they see the world with a different set of eyes.

The Role of Latinos in Advertising

Latinos want to adopt American culture. But, for them, culture is something dynamic. American culture isn’t what it used to be, but an evolution of it in which Latinos want to play an influential role. Surprisingly, when it comes to advertising, brands are not necessarily aligned with this expectation.

According to Ethnodynamics, a recent study by Yahoo, Mindshare, and Added Value, 60 percent of Latinos believe advertising does not depict their ethnic values at a deep level. The same research also demonstrates the paradox where Hispanics want to be portrayed as both mainstream and unique when it comes to advertising.

This is one of the biggest marketing challenges when it comes to Latinos. Traditional Hispanic agencies previously focused on the need of doing specific (sometimes isolated) marketing efforts. Some clients focused solely on half of the equation: if Latinos want to be part of the mainstream, why should I do specific Hispanic communication efforts?

As I mentioned in my inaugural contribution to this column, marketing to Latinos requires an inclusive approach. Marketers must understand and leverage this tension between wanting to be talked to but not being considered as part of a silo.

Latinos want to be reflected in advertising. But value when they are shown surrounded not only by Latinos.

Latinos appreciate being targeted by brands and see that companies are fighting for their dollars. But you need to be authentic too. It’s critical to gain “community approval,” either for their real community or the social ones.

Hispanics value when marketing becomes more real. They value that their problems are represented in a realistic, yet positive manner. Stereotypes don’t help. Trying to show that they are living the American dream doesn’t either. Most of the time, it adds more of a burden on their shoulders.

Latinos must be represented as creators and innovators rather than simply doers. For them, there’s a great future ahead, though the path might seem hard sometimes. For marketing to Latinos, there’s also a great future ahead. And believe me, the challenge is not impossible. Think of the Argentinean Lalo Schifrin, the Latino composer of many Hollywood movies. For him, although the score creator, there is no Mission Impossible.

By Nina Terrero (NBCLatino.com)

Selena Gomez – Tech Investor?

Mexican-American Selena Gomez is known across the globe thanks to her acting and singing chops, but her latest business venture is of a decidedly different stripe: she’ll be diving headfirst into the world of tech start-ups as an investor.

Gomez, who has 9 million Twitter followers and 25 million Facebook “Likes” to date, has decided to invest in the “Postcard on the Run” mobile device application company. The application allows users to send e-postcards and personalized photos from their mobile phone. “I’ve always loved the old-fashioned touch of sending real postcards, but I never have time anymore with my busy travel schedule,” said Gomez in a company press release. “In just seconds, I can send personalized photo postcards to my family and friends right from my phone.” In addition to being an investor in the fledging app, the 19 year-old UNICEF ambassador has been named the tech company’s creative advisor.

Ricky Martin Begins Filming “Glee” Episode

Spoiler alert:there’s a new teacher at McKinley High! Ricky Martin has officially begun taping a guest role on the hit show “Glee” that’s slated to air later this month. The Puerto Rican heartthrob will guest star as a Spanish teacher who quickly becomes a favorite of the New Directions glee club. As a result, vocal coach William Schuster (played by Matthew Morrison) will challenge the “Livin’ La Vida Loca” singer to a sing-off.

“So he does a song, I do a song,” Morrison told Access Hollywood about the episode.” “His will be an LMFAO song and mine will be an Elvis Presley song – in Spanish.”

Martin’s guest spot will be followed by an episode starring fellow music superstar Gloria Estefan. Estefan will play the mom of cheerleader Santana Lopez (played by Puerto Rican-American actress Naya Rivera) in an upcoming episode of the musical comedy.

Alexa Vega takes on Teen Pregnancy Project

Adorable “Spy Kids” star Alexa Vega is all grown up and will star in an upcoming film “The Pregnancy Project.” The movie, which will air on Lifetime Television on Jan. 28th, chronicles the real story of Gaby Rodriguez, a Washington state high school student who decided to tackle the stereotypes surrounding teenage pregnancy as her senior project. With a fake baby bump and a journal to record the reactions of her friends and teachers, Rodriguez reveals her mission and the valuable lessons learned by her escapade.  The movie is based on the book “The Pregnancy Project: A Memoir,” written by the real-life Gaby Rodriguez.

By Nellie Andreeva (Deadline.com)

Gina Rodriguez, who is garnering a lot of buzz for her starring role in the Sundance entryFilly Brown, has signed a talent holding deal with ABC and ABC Studios to star in a pilot targeted for next season. She is yet to be attached to a project as ABC has just started picking up its pilots. One possibility is Marc Cherry’s Devious Maids, which revolves around four Latina women who are maids in Beverly Hills. Rodriguez first got the attention of ABC executives last year when she guest starred on the network’s comedy Happy Endings. Her series’ credits also include an arc onArmy Wives. The deal comes on the eve of the Friday world premiere of Rodriguez’s movie Filly Brown at the 2012 Sundance Film Festival. Already identified as a film buyers are watching for, Filly Brown, co-directed by Youssef Delara and Michael Olmos, centers on a young hip-hop artist from Los Angeles (Rodriguez) whose budding career comes to a crossroads when she’s offered a crack at stardom by a shady producer. Here is a scene from the movie posted earlier today by my colleague Mike Fleming. Rodriguez is with Paradigm and Intellectual Artists.

By Mireya Navarro (NY Times)