TV Writer & Filmmaker | Crafting Chicano Myths through Psychological Truth | From CBS’s Matlock & S.W.A.T. to Award-Winning Cinema
For David Aguilar, the most profound stories aren’t found in the cold facts of a police report or the dry history books of a Gold Rush town; they are found in the “psychological truth” that lies beneath. It is a philosophy he inherited from his mentor, the legendary filmmaker Robert M. Young, and one he has spent a lifetime refining. From the halls of an East Los Angeles high school to the surveillance vans of a private investigator, and finally to the writers’ rooms of major network television, Aguilar’s journey has been defined by a singular pursuit: the reclamation of the Chicano narrative.
The Shadows of “Hangtown”
The roots of David Aguilar’s creative vision were planted in the complex soil of Placerville, California—a town famously known as “Hangtown” for its vigilante history. Moving there at age four, Aguilar was one of the few students of color in a predominantly white landscape during the 1980s. The isolation of those years created a quiet, internal friction. He faced a brand of systemic and social pressure that he, like many children in his position, initially internalized as an inferiority complex.
“The leadership lesson from my youth that has stuck with me over the years is that the first step to moving forward in life and embarking on greater achievements, most of the time starts with unlearning a belief system that hasn’t served you,” Aguilar reflects.
This early necessity to deconstruct his surroundings became the cornerstone of his leadership style. It wasn’t enough to simply succeed in the industry; he had to redefine the parameters of what success looked like for a Chicano artist. His formal education at UCLA Film School provided the technical vocabulary for this deconstruction. As the Co-Chair of the Chicano/Latino Film Festival and a columnist for the Daily Bruin, Aguilar began to find his voice.
Noir, Resistance, and the Writer’s Room
Before Aguilar was a staple in Hollywood, his life read like a high-stakes screenplay. He spent his days teaching at an East LA high school, fostering the next generation of voices, while his nights were spent moonlighting as a private investigator. This duality—the educator and the observer of the underworld—honed his ability to spot the “psychological truth” in every character. It gave him a visceral understanding of stakes, secrets, and the human condition that no textbook could provide.
His trajectory shifted toward the global stage when he traveled to Chiapas, Mexico, to teach filmmaking to the Zapatista guerrilla army. This masterclass in art as resistance reinforced his belief that film is a tool for liberation—a concept he applied to every script he touched.
This grit eventually led him to the prestigious Paramount Writers Mentoring Program, catapulting him into the writers’ rooms of network television. Aguilar’s pen has since shaped narratives for CBS’s S.W.A.T., the legal drama Matlock, and the History Channel’s FDR. Whether exploring the tactical pressures of law enforcement or the historical weight of a presidency, Aguilar looks for the moment that defines a character’s soul.
Building a Modern Chicano Mythos
Today, Aguilar is transitioning from the collaborative world of TV to the singular vision of feature filmmaking. His short film, Hangtown, serves as both a homecoming and a reckoning. The story of a 12-year-old Latino boy who finds a father figure in a fleeing immigrant has become a festival phenomenon, winning the Visionary Spirit Award and Outstanding Cine Latino Long Form at the Sacramento International Film Festival.
His current work continues this trend of reclaiming history. By dramatizing the 1967 New Mexico Courthouse Raid in his screenplay Trespassers, Aguilar is reaching back into the past to pull forward the heroes and rebels who have been sidelined for too long. He is no longer just writing scripts; he is building a modern mythos.
On the Horizon: Witness the Movement
As Aguilar springboards from the momentum of his award-winning short toward a full-length feature, audiences can catch screenings of Hangtown at the following upcoming festivals:
- Pasadena International Film Festival – April 10th
- SacTown Film Festival – April 11th
- Mexican American Film & Television Festival – April 25th
For David Aguilar, the ultimate goal is the collective empowerment of his community. By embracing the psychological truths of his past and the cinematic possibilities of the future, he is ensuring that the Chicano story is no longer a footnote, but a feature.
Editorial Note
David Aguilar’s journey is a testament to the power of “unlearning” the limitations placed upon us. His transition from the classroom and the detective’s van to the director’s chair serves as a blueprint for anyone looking to turn their unique lived experience into a professional legacy. As he embarks on his first feature film, we are reminded that the most important stories are often the ones we were told not to tell.
