A new Starz series is bringing the queer Latinx experience to life: Vida, created by queer Mexican-American writer Tanya Saracho (Looking, How to Get Away With Murder), follows estranged sisters Emma (Mishel Prada) and Lyn (Melissa Barrera), who return to East L.A. and learn a surprising truth about their mother.
Emma’s tumultuous history with Cruz (Maria Elena Laas), a lesbian, is a major plot point and Vida’s cast also includes Eddy, a queer woman played by gender-nonbinary actor Ser Anzoategui.

It’s a timely story, says Barrera, especially in an age where Americans with dual identities are “reminded that they are not home.”
Saracho, who’s also written for Devious Maids and HBO’s Girls, admits its rare to get such creative freedom, especially for a double minority. “We don’t get to do this… [Tell stories about] brown, queer femaleness,” she said at a Television Critics Association panel last month.

Vida premieres May 6 on Starz.