ORU's Co-produced Film "Yo Traidor" Opens in Argentina
Yo, Traidor, a modern-day adaptation of the Biblical story of the prodigal son, filmed partly in Tulsa, recently opened in theaters across Argentina. ORU film students worked alongside international industry professionals to make this production. The project became part of a class assignment that provided students with professional firsthand experience producing a full-length feature film. Movie locations included Córdoba and Patagonia, both in Argentina and Tulsa.
“It was a top-level learning experience for our students,” said Rafael Barreiro, ORU’s Cinema, Television, and Digital Media Professor, “ and seeing the quality achieved in the film reflects the passion and knowledge of our film students!”
While in Tulsa, the film was shot for six full days at fifteen locations and cast
more than ten local actors. It stars top-list Argentine actors, including Mariano
Martinez, Arturo Puig, Osvaldo Santoro, Mercedes Lambre, and Sergio Surraco. In addition
to the Argentina premiere, the film has been sold to an undisclosed streaming platform.
“We are always on the lookout for ways to enhance our students’ learning experiences,” said ORU Professor and Associate Dean, Dr. Norman Mintle, “ and in this case, the opportunity to work with a professional film crew—and an international crew, especially, made their work on Yo Traidor more relevant and meaningful. Much gratitude goes to our own international filmmaker, Professor Barreiro, for making this opportunity possible.”
The Argentine crew worked alongside ORU students filming scenes at the Tulsa Airport, Woodward Park, downtown Tulsa, and other local sites. With blockbuster movies more routinely being produced in Oklahoma, including Martin Scorsese’s Killers of the Flower Moon and Erwin’s brothers’ American Underdog: The Kurt Warner Story, Tulsa’s reputation is growing as a hospitable home for filmmakers. ORU envisions graduates who will thrive in this growing industry, evidenced by the launch of the construction of a new Media Arts Center (MAC).
With 72,000 square feet of space, this new building will be home to ORU’s theatre,
dance, music, and media departments. The MAC will showcase a 450-seat proscenium arched
auditorium, along with a 144-seat music performance hall and a 150-seat Black Box
Theater. Film and media students will study in state-of-the-art technology spaces,
including a new digital production studio and control room along with film sound stages.
“With the new MAC, ORU’s film program will continue growing, establishing itself as a prominent film program in the nation,” Professor Barreiro said. “With Oklahoma becoming a film hotspot, ORU students have more opportunities to work on high budget films. And it’s not just national films but international films like Yo Traidor that are calling Oklahoma home.”
ABOUT ORAL ROBERTS UNIVERSITY
ORU is a Christian, Spirit-empowered, interdenominational university in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with over a decade of consecutive enrollment growth. Regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, ORU offers over 150 majors, minors, concentrations, and pre-professional programs at the bachelor’s level, ranging from business and engineering to nursing, ministry, and more. Under the leadership of President Dr. William Wilson, ORU is preparing students from all 50 states and 126 nations to be whole leaders for the whole world.
The Wall Street Journal ranked ORU as the #4 university in the nation for student engagement. This ranking is based upon faculty interactions, collaborative learning, critical thinking, real-world applications of student learning, the extent to which classes challenge students, and whether students would recommend a university to others.
ORU is ranked by U.S. News & World Report as
- #1 in Undergraduate Teaching
- #2 in Most International Students
- #3 in Best Value
- #6 in Best College for Veterans
- #7 in Best Regional Colleges in the West
For more information, visit www.oru.edu.