Vista L.A.: 'Soy Nero' star has personal tie to film role

"Soy Nero," starring young actor Johnny Ortiz, is a film about an immigrant who joins the military in hopes of becoming an American citizen.

The story highlights the plight of many "green-card soldiers" who fight for the United States, yet often struggle to gain acceptance as true Americans.

Vista L.A. spoke to the film's star and director at a recent screening of the film at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood.

"It's actually about a young kid, that he's trying to just tell the government that he belongs there and they don't want to give him that," said Ortiz. "He's lived there his whole life, and how he has to join the military to get citizenship and how he's lost in a war and how he's left abandoned by a country he fought for."

"There's been people that have been deported since the Vietnam War," Ortiz said. "People that served here that are green-card soldiers that got deported for evictions, for DUIs."

Ortiz said the film resonated with him because he has lived in the U.S. for his entire life.

"You know, a person that lived here their whole life, that fought for this country, deserves to be here and be with their whole family," Ortiz said.

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