Blue Agave plants, specifically, Blue Tequilana Weber, which is the only agave that can be used to make Tequila, are farmed by hand. Their life cycle is anywhere from 5 to 8 years, and the farmers who harvest them are called “Jimadores”.

For the last 12 years, Don Manuel has been the head “Jimador” at Tequila Patrón. He has been in charge not only for harvesting the fields, but also for training new generations of Jimadores, as well as for showing the work of the Jimadores to the selected visitors at the Hacienda Patrón, in Atotonilco Jalisco.

After 25 years of working as a Jimador, Don Manuel is retiring, and Tequila Patrón, who has been his employer for  more than a decade, decided to throw a faraway party in his honor.

We were commissioned with the task of recording this party, and creating a video that honors his work, and his impact on the company.

There were 2 parts of the shoot:

The first part was all done in one day, and consisted on getting a record of the homage that Tequila Patrón offered Don Manuel for his retirement. It was a formal event, and a toast. Per his wish, Don Manuel gave a final Jima demonstration on the Hacienda corridors for his friends, family and collaborators.

Afterwards, we interviewed him on an upper terrace. All the emotion of the day can be heard on his voice and seen on his eyes.

The second part was the B roll of the agave fields, which we have previously shot for another Patrón Project, and wi color graded and applied VFX such as the rain, to math the narrative.