Plot

Inspired by a true story, City of Dreams chronicles the journey of a Mexican boy whose dreams of becoming a soccer star are shattered when he's smuggled across the border and sold to a sweatshop in downtown Los Angeles.

City of Dreams follows Jesús, a young farmer in rural Mexico who dreams of playing for Club Puebla, his local soccer team. With the promise of training at a soccer camp in Los Angeles, Jesús is convinced by his father to leave home, but he soon discovers that he's been sold to a sweatshop run out of a decrepit mansion in downtown Los Angeles. Jesús is then subjected to the grueling 18-hour work schedule dictated by El Jefe, a boss who promises freedom for those who complete their quotas, and whose brutality is motivated by his own desperation to provide for his family back in Mexico. Despite all, Jesús finds solace in Elena, a girl who was similarly betrayed and sent to America under the guise of attending a fashion school. When Elena goes missing and another co-worker, Carlitos, is severely beaten for confronting El Jefe, Jesús realizes his only way out is a daring escape.

"City of Dreams" is an inspiring story about a boy's courageous battle to free himself and others from the brutal grasp of slavery. Inspired by true events, "City of Dreams" chronicles the journey of Jesús, a young Mexican boy whose dreams of becoming a soccer star are shattered when he's kidnapped, trafficked across the border, and sold into slavery to a sweatshop in downtown Los Angeles. Jesús is thrown into the underworld of captivity, where survival hinges on enduring grueling work schedules and navigating the brutality of his captors. Living in servitude to ruthless traffickers, under the threat of the powerful El Jefe (Alfredo Castro), alongside fellow victims including the resilient Elena (Renata Vaca) and Carlitos (Golden Globe Nominee Diego Calva), Jesús navigates a world of exploitation and despair with the determination to escape the brutal grasp of slavery. Realizing that his only hope for freedom is to make a daring escape, this is the story of one boy who fought back.—Anonymous