The 1960s and ‘70s were a period of revolution, anti-imperialist struggle, and nation-building. Two films which represent and analyse this period in Latin America are Yawar Mallku (Blood of the Condor) and De cierta manera (One Way or Another).
The documentary Mothers of the Land is as an eye-opening report on the threats to Quechua culture posed by capitalism and climate change. The film expresses these risks and challenges through patiently focusing on the everyday, traditional way... Read Article
In the 1990s, more than 270,000 women and 22,000 men were sterilised in Peru as part of a massive family planning campaign launched by the President of Peru, Alberto Fujimori. Twenty years later, these people are still trying... Read Article
Feriado (Holiday) explores the sexuality of Juan Pablo, an upper class Quito teenager. The title is a play on words, as the film is set during Ecuador’s 1999 banking crisis, also known as the “Feriado Bancario”. Juan Pablo... Read Article
Storm In The Andes (Tempestad En Los Andes) marks the final instalment of director Mikael Wiström’s “Peruvian trilogy”. The documentary intertwines two very distinct lives, that of Swedish born Josefin Ekermann whose aunt Augusta La Torre was second... Read Article
When I realized that I’d picked a bad café to interview the ‘ maestro’ of Colombian art (it was far too noisy), and that we’d have to relocate my heart sank, but as soon as Carlos Jacanamijoy appeared, his... Read Article
If there’s one thing I can recall from the classic Disney movies I watched as a child, it’s this: all fairytale princesses can sing impeccably. Whether it was Snow White creating melodies with the birds in the forest,... Read Article
The stereotypes abound: fiestas, siestas, and mañana. Searching for information on the cultural differences among the twelve countries of South America is a surprisingly challenging task. Culture is complex. What we see on the surface – language, clothing,... Read Article
Known as “the roof top of the world” due to its high elevation in the Andes mountains, Bolivia is a melting pot of indigenous and hybrid forms of music and cultural values. Although sixty percent of the country’s... Read Article
