Latin American Film Festival

This is the inspiring story of a long fight by peasant farmers, south of Acapulco, to prevent the Mexican government building a hydroelectric dam that would flood their lands. The campesinos, themselves, show us their lives, work and love for the land.

Jafet, an art teacher, visits the most cruelly deprived communities in Nicaragua, inviting the children to express their dreams through their drawings. The documentary focuses on four of these children who, in the face poverty and illiteracy, still look to the future with laughter and with hope.

The ultimate example of unregulated, amoral, globalised commodity trading? The sheer human cost inflicted by the cocaine business, the charade of the US “War on Drugs”, and the ignorance of the average Western end user are all spelled out compellingly as the documentary follows the trail of blood from the producer countries, through Mexico, the S tates and the UK.

Director María Paz Gonzáles embarks on a thousand mile road trip across Chile, in the course of which she, and her mother try to piece together the truth about both their pasts from the fragments of fantasy and obfuscation they have always accepted as their real history . María wants to find her biological father, her mother hopes to be reunited with her sister. An assured piece of drama- documentary making, involving and beautiful.

Three stories from the Sierra Maestra unravel on the day of the 52nd anniversary of the Cuban revolution. With no interviews or voice-overs, the image speaks eloquently for itself as scenes of celebration on TV contrast starkly with the experiences of the local people.

The astonishing, new rising stars of the Cuban National Ballet School are identical 11-year-old triplets, Angel, Cesar and Marco, who are almost indistinguishable in their talent, as well as their appearance. This is an unmissable documentary insight into the children’s own response to the rigorous discipline demanded of them, as well as a rumination on the amazing success story of Cuban ballet.

Under President Alvaro Uribe Velez, the Colombian government offered soldiers a bounty for every guerrilla fighter they killed. Most of the bodies presented for payment turned out to be those of innocent peasants (known, euphemistically , as “Falsos Positivos”). The enormity of these crimes is revealed through testimonies from the families of the victims, whose murders remain unpunished.

This documentary by Cuban director Luis Ernesto Donas is a tribute paid by ICAIC (Cuban Film Institute) to the Cuban National Ballet on the occasion of its 60th anniversary. However, most of all it is a tribute to its Founder and Director world-famous dancer Alicia Alonso. Now in her nineties and almost blind she continues to run her company with an
incredible spirit.

Her old body cannot dance anymore but Alicia Alonso is still dancing with her hands and her words. In a way when her students dance, she does. A Dream Comes True portrays Alonso during rehearsals for “The Sleeping Beauty”, a classic ballet, part of traditional repertoire, but also one of the most important pieces choreographed by her during her amazingly long career. The film explores the various processes of preparation (choreography, scenery, costumes, lights) interviewing not only Alonso but also a new generation of young talented dancers and all the people involved in staging the performance, stressing how important is the work of the whole team.

There are many beautiful ballet sequences from both the stage and the rehearsals interwoven to build a compelling picture of the discipline and sacrifice that goes into staging the final production. A visual treat, not only for ballet aficionados.

This excellent documentary deals with the high art of savouring cigars, the position of women smokers, the history and tradition of cigar production, and the economic issues revolving around Cuba, the USA and the latter’s embargo on Cuban products.

What once was the most important hospital in Colombia is now crumbling while its inhabitants, as observed in their daily routines, become muted phantasmagoric beings wandering in solitude through the silence and the dusty memories preserved within its bounds.La Hortua

The film documents the life of Herlinda Augustine, a shaman from the Peruvian Amazon. It offers an intimate insight into the world of shamanism, the ancestral knowledge of indigenous people, their sacred songs, plants and rituals, and the way they tackle disease.

This classic film from the BBC Arena strand must be ranked one of the most magnificent examples of the art of observational documentary making ever committed to celluloid.

Bahia of all the Saints was Brazil’s major port for nearly three centuries and it still maintains its legacy of African traditions, with a Black population of over eighty percent, descended mainly from the slaves brought over by
the Portuguese, from West Africa. Presenting a portrait of the Bahian people, this documentary captures their spirit, music, culture and religion, Candomble, which combines Catholic and African beliefs. The everyday
life of the port city and its hinterlands is alive with rhythm, ceremony and spirituality, an atmosphere that has been captured on film with an intimacy and attention to detail that is sometimes overwhelming: as well as gathering amazing footage of local religious festivals and carnivals, the production team gained permission, which is rarely granted, to film the
most sacred of Candomble ceremonies.

The film explores, with breadth and power, the effect of this unifying culture and religion, its ability to maintain social cohesion in a region where institutional racism and poverty have ruled for centuries. This one of the top highlights of the Festival: Superb and thoroughly recommended.

Simon Bolivar is one of the biggest, if not the biggest hero in Latin America: his name is on everyone’s lips, today, and his life story has become a founding myth of the independent continent, used for divers political purposes.

Venezuelan filmmakers Raiza Andrade and Edmundo Aray have tried to dispense with the clichés and look at this immense figure from slightly different perspective. Their animated “Liberator” loses some of his gravitas and, even though he’s made of clay, appears much more human than he does in the history books. Absorbing and a delight to watch.

“Simon Bolivar, ese Soy Yo” was the first part of Edmundo Aray’s trilogy based on lives of iconic Latin American heroes, followed by “Jose Marti, ese Soy Yo” and “Simon Rodriguez, ese Soy Yo”

“Another Carmen” is a documentary by Cuban filmmaker Rolando Almirante, inspired by the new “gay version” version of the classic dance, choreographed by Tania Vergara, head of the Endedans, Contemporary Ballet Company from Camaguey. A bold, provocative and intelligent take on the well-known French novella by Prosper Merimee (which became the basis of Bizet’s opera in 1875) covers the delicate subject of sexual diversity. By assigning the role of the sensual and seductive gypsy Carmen to a young, openly homosexual boy that is alluring other men, the drama explores the complex world of human relationships, love, jealousy, marginalisation, violence and society intolerance.

Yet “Another Carmen” goes beyond a simple “making of” piece. Almirante tries to explore how the dancers, actors and actresses, see the phenomenon that Tania’s ballet illustrates. He wants to see what is behind the thinking of people who embody the characters of “La Carmen”. The revelation of the sincere feelings of young members of the dance company proves that old prejudices still exist today, not only in general in Cuban society, but also among the artistic community. In response to questions raised by Almirante some of them, especially boys, are unable to escape the influence of homophobia and sexism. Casting a man as Carmen, throws into sharp focus the need Cuban society still has to process those issues, to face up to them. Perhaps one of the most important outcomes of the production is that the girls and boys interviewed at last share the understanding that sexual diversity is a fact that must be accepted in any harmonious society.

Both “La Carmen’ by Tania Vergara, and “Another Carmen” by Rolando Almirante promote reflection and debate on the issues of sexual diversity. They are bold and commendable efforts to open up minds trammelled by narrow concepts. They both help eradicate prejudice and myths that stigmatize and diminish people who do not fall into the rigid patterns
historically set for gender roles and sexualities. Fascinating and provocative viewing.

Through intense imagery and a taut soundtrack, Rene Ballesteros tells the story of his own disrupted childhood, abandoned by his mother whose disembodied voice on the phone is the structuring absence at the heart of the film. Powerful human drama.

Documentary about an exuberant Cuban community with world famous ceramics artist, Fuster, at its centre. His great, vivid, Gaudiesque artworks form the visual core of this delightful and inspiring film, encapsulating all the colour and vigour of Cuban society today.

Fascinated by the legend of Che Guevara, Iranian businessman Alireza Rofougaran spent four years in Latin America following Che’s footsteps, armed with a handicam. What results is a highly entertaining, true one-off documentary examining an extraordinary and profound cultural cross-fertilisation.

A community near Santiago de Cuba, built around a now defunct copper mine, today makes a living from pilgrims to the nearby shrine to the Madonna. The paradox of materialism versus spirituality is explored in this beautiful and sensitive documentary.

A gripping, terrifying documentary following three women from Central America trying to cross Mexico in their desperation to reach the USA, forced to travel illegally, prey to paramilitary gangsters who systematically rob, rape and kill the poor migrants with impunity.

After being held hostage by guerrillas in Colombia, Mark Henderson began a remarkable five year email correspondence with one of his former captors. This compelling film documents his return to Colombia, an in attempt to make sense of his ordeal.