City Of Dreams continues the recent spat of films detailing the horrendous horrors experienced by people around the world when they’re trafficked, whether it is for sex or labor. There’s a growing awareness of what’s happening. In movies such as City Of Dreams or the recent Sound Of Freedom, filmmakers make people even more aware.
And once you know what’s happening in the world, it’s hard to turn a blind eye to it.
In City Of Dreams, the story focuses on the young Jesús (Ari Lopez). He’s a young boy with big dreams. He fantasizes about becoming a world-class football (American soccer) player.
Jesús thinks his dream is about to come true. A smarmy man, Rodrigo (Francisco Denis), promises Jesús and his father (Jorge Antonio Guerrero) to take him to America, where Jesús can attend a local soccer camp.
Jesús soon realizes Rodrigo isn’t taking him to a soccer camp. Rodrigo has drugged the boy’s drink. He continues to drive him not to the camp but to a fast fashion factory where Jesús will be forced to make cheap clothing.
The story of Jesús will pain you to watch. But it will also move you to action. It may even drive you to be a better leader.
Let’s check out those leadership lessons in City Of Dreams.
Quotes And Leadership Lessons From City Of Dreams
1. Leaders dream big:
The film opens with Jesús playing soccer with a group of other boys. He pauses, and he begins to dream.
Jesús sees himself on the pitch of a large stadium. He’s moving the ball downfield. He’s now a star soccer player.
While Jesús doesn’t get there, his dreams are big.
What dreams are you dreaming? Are they big? Small? Inconsequential? Mountain-moving?
Great leaders don’t dream small. They look at the world, see what’s possible, and imagine the possibilities.
Be a leader who dreams big.
2. Leaders can miss signs something is wrong:
Rodrigo is driving Jesús to the fashion factory. He rolls through a stop sign. That’s when a cop, Officer Stevens (Jason Patric), pulls Rodrigo and Jesús over.
Officer Stevens begins to question Rodrigo. He asks what he’s doing, where he’s going, and if the boy is his. Rodrigo presents a fake US passport for Jesús.
Things didn’t seem right to Officer Stevens, but he let the pair go. He missed the signs that Jesús was not Rodrigo’s.
Even the best leaders can miss the warning signs something isn’t right. We must be aware, pay attention, and be ready to move when things aren’t right.
But don’t beat yourself up if you miss the signs. You can always fix what you missed (as Officer Stevens eventually did).
3. Elena (Renata Vaca):
Are you okay?
Elena is another child who has been trafficked. She was promised a role in the fashion industry. In a sense, she got what she was promised. Just not what she was expecting.
After Jesús is severely beaten and burned with an iron by another child, Carlitos (Diego Calva), in the trafficking ring, Elena comes to Jesús’ side. She asks him if he’s okay.
Elena took the action of a leader. She sees someone hurt and goes to them to check in on them.
Who’s hurting in your organization? Who might be struggling with an issue, whether at home or in the office? Have you checked in on them?
Take the time to go to your people and ask them if they’re okay. Seek to understand how they’re feeling and if there’s anything you can do to assist them.
Asking “Are you okay?” can change the direction of their day.
4. Investigate when you feel something isn’t right:
Rodrigo gave Officer Stevens a business card for a celebrity travel agency. He claimed to be working with big-named celebrities.
Officer Stevens felt something was off. Rodrigo wasn’t being forthright with him. He had to dig deeper into the story.
After releasing the pair, Officer Stevens goes back to the police station. He begins to research the business on the business card.
Something didn’t add up.
It’s okay to dig into the stories people give you. You have a right to make sure things are on the up and up. Especially if your gut tells you something is going on.
Investigate your suspicions. They may be nothing… Or they may be precisely what you’re feeling in your gut.
5. Trafficked girl:
He taught me to love my neighbor… And my enemies.
One of the trafficking pimps asks one of the kidnapped girls what’s so important about the cross she wears. The girl tells the woman about Jesus Christ, not the boy.
What did Jesus teach her? To love others. Even enemies.
This is a powerful scene in City Of Dreams. You see a young girl standing up for what she believes in. She shares her faith boldly.
Leaders can take two things away from this scene and quote.
The first is to be bold about your faith. You have a reason to believe in God. Don’t be shy about it.
The second is to love those you lead. Show them you care, you’re there for them, even when things aren’t going right.
Love your neighbors (employees) and enemies (people who use you).
6. Your dreams can make difficult situations easier to deal with:
Whenever Jesús faced a difficult circumstance, he would picture himself on the pitch of a football field. He’d see himself playing the game, being cheered on, and having a good time.
These visions helped him get through the abuse he faced. He knew how to picture himself in a better place.
What do you do when you face a challenging situation? Do you freeze up? Do you retreat? Or do you envision the future you desire?
When challenging times come, picture a better future. Play your dreams in your mind. They can get you through difficult circumstances.
7. Bad leaders make promises they don’t intend to keep:
The female pimp sees the scars on Elena’s face. She then shows Elena the scars on her arms. The two have similar disfigurations.
What happens next? The female pimp promises Elena she can make sure it never happens again. Elena would never be hurt.
But that’s not true. The female pimp was promising what she knew wasn’t true.
We have to be careful as leaders. We can have the desire to make promises to our people. We want them to be happy, whole, and productive. We also want them to be safe.
However, we can’t always follow through on what we promise. For that, we must be careful about what we tell our people.
8. Leaders take chances:
Jesús escapes from the fast fashion factory. He races through the streets of Los Angeles and the buildings nearby. Through all of his running, a man, Nazarian (Samm Levine), is chasing him.
Eventually, Jesús climbs multiple flights of stairs to the top of a building. There, he has a choice. And one Nazarian makes clear.
Nazarian sees Jesús is at the end of the line. Jesús could come back to him or he could jump off the fire escape. What would Jesús do?
He chose to jump. He believed this was his best route to safety.
Jesús took a chance in jumping off and down the fire escape.
What chances are you taking? Taking chances can be scary, but they can get you to where you need to be.
Don’t fail to take chances because they’re scary. Move through the fear and to the other side. You’ll be glad you did.
