The Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies at UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University
Filmed over nearly three years, WASTE LAND follows renowned artist Vik Muniz as he journeys from his home base in Brooklyn to his native Brazil and the world’s largest garbage dump, Jardim Gramacho, located on the outskirts of Rio de … Read more
Raca tackles racial inequality in Brazil, via the lives of three black Brazilians: Paulo Paim, the only black senator of the republic; Netinho Paula, singer and TV presenter, and Tiny dos Santos, Maroon activist and granddaughter of slaves. The filmmakers … Read more
A film on the lives of three women who live in contemporary Cuba. Copies: 1 (DVD+R); Length: 106 minutes
In the film, Esteban returns home due to his father’s illness. Existential conflicts come back to life because little has changed since his departure. Copies: 1 (DVD+R); Length: About 100 minutes
Habanastation is a 2011 Cuban drama film directed by Ian Padron. Filmed in a slum in western Havana, the film addresses inequalities in Cuba through the relationship between two children of different social strata. The film was selected as the … Read more
Cuba, 1993. Eunice, a motherless teenager, seeks to escape her father’s sexual harassment. So, she seeks out her sister who lives in a town near the capital. Alejandro, a young rock ‘n’ roll singer, is tired of being discriminated against. … Read more
Title: WHICH WAY HOME Description: A heart-wrenching exploration of a lesser-known dimension of Central American migration to the United States. Every year tens of thousands of unaccompanied children, attempt to migrate through Mexico to the United States. Some as young … Read more
Title: WE DON’T PLAY GOLF HERE! Description: Mexico serves as a Third World example of how “free market” economics distorts culture and environment. The construction of a golf course is more than the military trying to replace the democratic sport, … Read more
Title: THOSE I LEFT BEHIND Description: Those I Left Behind is a documentary that explores the transnational ties that bind Cuban-Americans in the United States to their families still living on the Island. The film also speaks to the controversial … Read more
Title: TENGO VAMOS A VER Description: Tengo Vamos a Ver is a short documentary and tribute to 50 years of UNEAC, with testimonies by several contributors and through poems by Nicolas Guillen. The director provides a brief tour of the … Read more
Title: SIN DEJAR HUELLA (WITHOUT A TRACE) Description: Sin Dejar Huella uses drama and comedy in equal measure to tell the story of two women–one Spanish and the other Mexican–fleeing from their respective pasts. Ana, a con artist, and Aurelia, … Read more
Title: SHOVELING WATER Description: Journey to the heart of coca country where United States tax dollars have financed the aerial fumigation of 2.6 million acres of land in Colombia – the world’s second most biodiverse country. See crop-duster’s target coca … Read more
Title: Presumed Guilty Description: In December, 2005, Tono Zuniga was picked up off the street of Mexico City, Mexico, and sentenced to 20 years for a murder he knew nothing about. A friend of Tono’s contacted two young lawyers, Robert … Read more
Title: ORFEU Description: The legend of Orpheus and Eurydice is retold against the madness of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. The story is enhanced by brilliant performances, thrilling music, and magnificent color photography. Type: Feature Film Year: 1999 Director: Carlos … Read more
Title: NOSTALGIA FOR THE LIGHT Description: For his new film director Patricio Guzmán, famed for his political documentaries (The Battle of Chile, The Pinochet Case), travels 10,000 feet above sea level to the driest place on earth, the Atacama Desert, … Read more
Title: NOAM CHOMSKY: NEW WORLD ORDER Description: A talk by Noam Chompsky on the negative effects of U.S. policy in Latin America and the Middle East. Type: Year: Country: Film ID: 765 Comments: Created: 1/17/2012 Copy: 1m Language: Subtitles: … Read more
Title: NEW WORLD BORDER Description: New World Border documents the rise in human rights abuses along the U.S.-Mexico border since the implementation of border blockades, which have been erected in populated areas throughout the border region during the last decade. … Read more
Title: MOMIAS, LAS Description: This film documents “The Accidental Mummies of Guanajuato” exhibition which appeared at the Natural Science Center of Greensboro, NC in 2012. The history of the city of Guanajuato, Mexico, through the lens of its “accidental mummies”, … Read more
Title: MAYAS U SU’UT KA’ANSAH Description: Filmed in the states of Quintana Roo and Yucatán, “U Su’us Ka’ansah (The Cycle of Teaching) depicts the living ancestral science within Mayan communities. We are given the opportunity to partake in their cultural … Read more
Title: LIVING JUAREZ Description: After Mexican President Felipe Calderón declared war on drug cartels in December 2006, thousands of people have died in Mexico. Juarez is now considered the deadliest city in the world and where most of the casualties … Read more
Title: LA PRISION INSOMNE Description: This documentary gives the viewer the unfortunate important facets of life and the controversial work of the poet Gabriel de la Concepción Valdés, Plácido, during the first half of the turbulent and contradictory colonial nineteenth … Read more
Title: LA CONJURA DE APONTE Description: With the help of two important Cuban historians, La Conjura de Aponte describes the social context at the time of Jose Antonio Aponte’s rebellion against Spanish rule in Cuba. Aponte, a free black, sought … Read more
Title: JOGO DE CENA (PLAYING) Description: In this film, ordinary Brazilian women who have responded to a newspaper ad tell part of their life stories to director Eduardo Coutinho. In September of the same year, actresses interpret, in their own … Read more
Title: 6 HISTORIAS BRASILEIRAS Description: ‘6 Brazilian Histories: Santa Cruz’ shows the development of an evangelical church in the Santa Cruz suburb of Rio de Janeiro Brazil and the transformations that the church has made in the lives its congregation. … Read more
Title: HISTORY OF A COMMITTED CINEMA Description: This is a short fast-paced film displaying the work of the Nicaraguan Film Institute, INCINE, which is a part of the Sandinistan government in Nicaragua. It outlines the difficult technical, cinematic and political … Read more
Title: HARVEST OF LONELINESS Description: In today’s weak economy, current immigration laws in different states of the country show hostility towards undocumented immigrants. This was not the case during and after World War II where the United States was in … Read more
Title: GRINGO NEXT DOOR Description: When Jack sees that his chickens are missing, he turns on the only people he thinks to blame – his Hispanic neighbors. The solution? Hire immigrant labor to build a wall between the two homes. … Read more
Title: ENTRE LOS MUERTOS Description: Entre Los Muertos is a documentary by Jorge Dalton which examines the way San Salvador’s citizens cope with the violence of devastating street crime, constant earthquakes and the ripple effects of decades long war. The … Read more
Title: EN EL CAMINO DE NUESTRAS ANTEPASADOS Description: This film uses puppets to deliver lessons about Yucatec Maya language, culture, and history. It deals with issues of contemporary and ancient Maya heritage. The main characters travel to different sites including … Read more
Title: EL HOMBRE ILLUSTRANDO Description: Manuel Mendive is known as one of the most important contemporary Cuban painters. Medive was born in 1944 in Havana, Cuba. Mendive integrates materials such as paint, fabric, and shells to create costumes, and decorate … Read more
Title: DENYING BRAZIL Description: A documentary film about the taboos, stereotypes, and struggles of Black actors in Brazilian television “soaps.” Based on his own memories and on a sturdy body of research evidence, the director analyzes race relations in Brazilian … Read more
Title: CUBA: AN AFRICAN ODYSSEY Description: Cuba : an African Odyssey is a documentary of Cuba’s central, yet little known, role in supporting African national liberation during the Cold War. This two-part DVD firsts deals mainly with Cuba’s involvement in … Read more
Title: CRISE FINANCEIRA: O QUE PENSAM A JUVENTUDE BRASILEIRA E AS TRABALHADORAS DOMÉSTICAS…? Description: “Financial Crisis: Latin American Youth and Women Domestic Workers’ Views” interviews young people and domestic workers about the global financial crisis of 2008-present. Interviewees offer their … Read more
Title: BROTHER TOWNS Description: Brother Towns/Pueblos Hermanos describes the lives of immigrants from Jacaltenango, Guatemala who currently work and reside in Jupiter, Florida. The documentary explores the motives of migration to the United States and the hardships that the Mayan … Read more
Title: BETTY & PANCHO Description: A portrait of the 50 year marriage of Elizabeth Catlett, the renowned African American sculptor, and the Mexican painter, Francisco Mora. Now in their eighties, the couple share the same studio in Cuernavaca, and exhibit … Read more
Title: BAJO EL TACANA Description: Bajo el Tecana is a short documentary about a group of women migrants, who are interviewed by a group of researchers, before heading to the north. The film takes place in the village of Soconusco, … Read more
Title: AL OTRO LADO Description: An aspiring corrido composer from the drug capital of Mexico faces two choices to better his life: to traffic drugs or to cross the border illegally into the United States. From Sinaloa, Mexico, to the … Read more
Title: JOGO DE CENA (PLAYING) Description: In this film, ordinary Brazilian women who have responded to a newspaper ad tell part of their life stories to director Eduardo Coutinho. In September of the same year, actresses interpret, in their own … Read more
Title: MOMIAS, LAS Description: This film documents “The Accidental Mummies of Guanajuato” exhibition which appeared at the Natural Science Center of Greensboro, NC in 2012. The history of the city of Guanajuato, Mexico, through the lens of its “accidental mummies”, … Read more
Title: PUEBLOS INDIGENAS, LOS Description: Los Pueblos Indigenas Hoy is a ten part series that is an educational resource about the indigenous peoples of Mexico. Sponsored by the Mexican government, the series aired on Mexican national television in 2010 in … Read more
Title: WHEN THE DRUM IS BEATING Description: This documentary explores the music of the famous Haitian orchestra “Septentrional” along with the violent history of Haiti. Through Septentrional’s powerful musical pieces, accompanied with brutal scenes, viewers are taken on a graphic … Read more
About mothers who are fighting for justice surrounding the murders of their children by police in Rio. The film looks at three massacres in particular, exploring these mothers’ stories and how they provide support to one another.
The Guestworker tells the story of Don Candelario “Don Cande” Gonzales Moreno, a 66-year old farmer from Durango, Mexico. He has been coming to the United States in a regular basis to work the tobacco and other agricultural fields since … Read more
Part 2 of a series of shorts from the 2004 Geografias Suaves regional film festival which feature Maya speaking peoples from Yucatan and Chiapas. The shorts include a video postcard documenting the lives and everyday experiences of children and their … Read more
Description: In the 70’s and 80’s , Cuba had overcome the crises of the first decade of the revolution and had settled into realizing a new identity, creating the new man Che had envisioned.Despite the lask of many material comforts, … Read more
Description: The Virgin Appears in La Maldita Vecinidad is a documentary about the Virgen of Guadalupe and the celebrations that occur on December 11th and 12th in her honor. These celebrations occur outside an apartment complex knows as “la Maldita … Read more
Description: Los 50 Vividos offers insight into the intellectual and cultural side of Cuba. The Union de Escritores y Artistas de Cuba (UNEAC) or the Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba was founded by Nicolas Guillen, the national poet … Read more
Description: Zé is a very poor man from the Brazilian countryside. His most prized possession is his donkey. When his donkey falls terminally ill, Zé makes a promise to Saint Bárbara: If his donkey recovers, he will carry a cross … Read more
“Fuera de Liga,” a documentary that has circulated the Havana streets, raises the problems that exist in Cuban baseball, those hidden behind the passions that are awoken by the stadiums of Cuba’s national sport. Directed by Ian Padrón and produced … Read more
In February 2011, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill hosted His Eminence Cardinal Roger Mahony. Cardinal Mahony heads the nation’s largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, the 5-million member Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which is 70% Latino. In his … Read more
Description: This documentary combines social commentary with surrealism to explore the Cuban soul. The filmmakers take the viewer on a trip through the heart of twenty-first-century Cuba, making stops in Pinar del Río, los Acuáticos, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, and Guaraabuya. In … Read more
Description: A documentary about the Brazilian sex trade, Cinderelas, Lobos, e Principe Encantado explores how poor Brazilian women, mostly black, are lured by middle-aged European men into traveling to Europe with them. European, American, or Canadian men feel that European, … Read more
Description: Chigualeros is a documentary about one of the most famous orchestras in Ecuador. Chigualeros, founded almost three decades agos , fuses different sounds like son, marimba, guaracha, currulao, bolero, and the chigualo. Like many parts of Latin America, Ecuador … Read more
Description: In 1910 a revolution erupted in Mexico, among its rallying cries "the right to vote." Nearly a century later "Sufragio Efectivo" is heard again as thousands take to the streets. Through the legacy that filmmaker Natalia Almada inherited as … Read more
Description: An award-winning and discerning depiction of the impact of migration on Mexican families and villages left behind by loved ones who have traveled north for work. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 96 Minutes
Description: “Different skin tones, individual and collective stories. This is the content of the documentary, ‘The Americas Have Color: Afro-Descendants in 21st-Century Censuses.’ This documentary reconstructs the African Diaspora’s ties to the Americas and reveals the censuses’ strategic role … Read more
Description: "Domestic Work, Decent Work" portrays the reality of African descendants and indigenous women domestic workers in Bolivia, Brazil, Guatemala, and Paraguay in their quest for rights, respect, and dignity. The documentary highlights opportunities and challenges for these countries in … Read more
Description: “Looking For You, Havana” is a documentary that follows a group of undocumented Cubans from the eastern province of Oriente looking for a better life in Havana. Without proper documents allowing them to legally live there, they often set … Read more
Description: This feature-length film deals with 24 hours in the life of Santiago de Cuba, one of the main supply cities of the rebels led by Fidel Castro and of underground urban action perpetrated by the rebel and clandestine … Read more
Description: Laura, a professor, conducts research for a PhD dissertation that delves into the Havana underworld in search of Albert Yanini, the most famous Cuban pimp from the turn of the twentieth century. Shot to death by his French … Read more
Description: Over the course of the 1960s, the revolutionary government in Cuba confronted active and violent opposition from armed counter-revolutionary groups operating on the island. This film dramatizes this confrontation through the story of Alberto Delgado, a Cuban agent who … Read more
Description: Milka has known Alexis since they were children, and loved him for as long as she can remember. When Alexis falls in love with and decides to marry another woman, Milka makes a deal with a mysterious stranger with … Read more
Description: “The Situation of Afro-descendant Women in Latin America” examines the correlation between race and poverty across the Americas with particular focus on the experiences of Latin American women. This UNIFEM-produced documentary features interviews with experts and activists from … Read more
Description: In Mexico, the voices of the woman who have chosen to have an abortion are virtually absent from public debate. Aborto Sin Pena will introduce you to three of these women, from distinct cultural backgrounds. What they say will … Read more
Description: Eugenia Ramírez, a young dentist, returns home from a congress, only to find that her apartment has been ransacked. Furious, she tries to recover her childhood photo album at any cost, demanding that justice be done. However, she is … Read more
Description: “Continent on the Move” This program examines the causes and effects of one of the most important forces transforming the Americas: the migration of vast numbers of people within the region. The program is set in Mexico, where migration … Read more
Description:This film is a bold, intensely emotional, and ambitious story of lives that collide in a Mexico City car crash. Inventively structured as a triptych of overlapping and intersecting narratives, Amores Perros explores the lives of disparate characters who are … Read more
Description: A tragic urban story about the unfortunate life of a 13-year old circus girl in Mexico City. She is expelled from her job when the official of the circus finds out she is pregnant. She meets a troupe of … Read more
Description: A collection of mostly hand drawn animation, this film brings to reality a life of toling for the cartoonist. Includes: Why Cybraceros?, Dia de la Independencia, Sign of the Times, Latinos on TV, Mysterious, and Apparitions on Tortillas Copies: … Read more
Description: Part I is a documentary dealing with the art of the Mexican revolution as a political movement and a revolution in art. Text by Octavio Paz. Part II examines these monumental creations not only for their great aesthetic value, … Read more
Description: The documentary is about Jacques Monard/Ramón Mercader, the KGB agent who assassinated León Trotsky in Mexico. It is an account from the people who knew him during his childhood, and up to and after the crime. This film reconstructs … Read more
Description: This documentary is not only a chronological description of the controversy between the town and the group KS but a much more complex and critical description. It is a contrast between modernity and backwardness, richness and poverty, and what … Read more
Description: This documentary introduces us to the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Mexico, home to an indigenous Zapotec society where gender and sexual preference are a fluid concept. The women dominate the home and businesses, while the men do much of … Read more
Description: You are invited to the wedding of Elizabeth and Artemio in Nuevo León, Mexico. The video introduces a young couple whose lives and community have roots in Mexico while they encounter the challenges of migrant life in the United … Read more
Description: The acclaimed performance artist Guillermo Gómez-Peña directs himself in this video focusing on issues of cross-culturalism along the U.S.-Mexico border. In his performance he switches in and out of various characters reflecting different aspects of border culture. Copies: 1 … Read more
Description: Nearly 2000 maquiladoras have been built in Mexico by companies from the US, Asia and Europe. As a result, the border has become a 2000 mile-long open sewer, a vast toxic waste dump. Filmed in three border regions, (Matamoros … Read more
Description: Freely adopted from the book Naufragios by Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca (written in 1542). The film portrays the saga of the adventures of a group of Spanish soldiers in Mexico. Their leader, Cabeza de Vaca, is considered to … Read more
Description: Film adaptation of the Naguib Mahfouz novel. Set in downtown Mexico City, the film portrays three neighbors: Rutilio, whose emerging homosexual orientation destroys his marriage; Susanita, an old maid who falls prey to a thief; and Alma, a virgin … Read more
Description: This is a celebration of the death of the Aguascalientes and the birth of the Caracoles and the Good Government Assemblies. Zapatista leaders discuss how changes will affect internal political and economic processes, gender relations, and their relationship to … Read more
Description: An interview with the renowned Mexican novelist for World Monitor–a television presentation of the Christian Science Monitor. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 7 minutes
Description: This film interweaves video letters carried across the U.S./Mexico border by the film’s director with the personal stories of women left behind in post-NAFTA Mexico, giving voice to 4 amazing women who feel the effects of failed immigration and … Read more
Description: An educated man tries to keep his family closed off from the outside world while he goes mad from the ideologies contained in books. The film is based on a true story related to the suppression of the student … Read more
Description: Part of the series "Races and Expressions of the Yucatán" produced by the Autonomous University of the Yucatán. This film portrays Yucatan culture through the paintings of Fernando Castro Pacheco, the Yucatán’s most celebrated painter. Copies: 1(VHS) Length: 25 … Read more
Description: This film, based on ritual and legends from the Popul Vuh, as well as Tzeltal and Mayan stories, and shot in the Chiapas region of Mexico, focuses on a small Tzeltal village during a terrible draught. Desperate for relief, … Read more
Description: This video describes Chiapas through the eye of Subcomandante I. Marcos from the Selva la Candona, August 1992. It is a journey into the region where 3.5 million Chapanescos live, describing their living conditions, and their movement for peace … Read more
Description: Made by Sylvia Morales. Chicana traces the history of Chicana and Mexican women from pre-Columbian times to the present. It covers women’s role in Aztec society, their participation in the 1810 struggle for Mexican independence, their involvement in the … Read more
Description: Documentary films of the borderland between Texas and Mexico. Norteña music filled with the poetry of daily life-love songs, passion, death, humor, and loss is explored from dancehalls, small towns, and family gatherings. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: … Read more
Description: One could never admit to having seen enough of Mexico City." This innovative documentary is a collection of photographic images from Mexico City newspapers of the last ten years which people who travel through Mexico City daily identify as … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Corto metraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Corto metraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Corto metraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Corto metraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Cortometraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch on … Read more
Description: This collection of short films is part of the series Corto metraje, más que un instante from IMCINE and CinemaFilms. This original series showcases 51 short films by up and coming Mexican directors, cinematographers and actors. The films touch … Read more
Description: This video is part of a series that seeks to provide developmental and educational materials that engage the cultural heritage of Latin America. Los Colores de Rufino teaches about colors while exploring the work and words of Mexican artist … Read more
Description: From the literary world of magic realism, this award-winning film adapted from the book by the same title chronicles life in Mexico near the Texas border in the early twentieth century. Unrequited passions, changing political situations and even madness … Read more
Description: This informative piece begins with a presentation of the struggle of Mexican men crossing the U.S. border in search for better economic opportunities. It narrates the crossing of U.S. border in search for better opportunities. It narrates the creation … Read more
Description: Part of a video series of the Taller Miradas Antroplogicas, which seeks to recognize the indigenous peoples of Mexico and their participation in Mexican society. This episode documents the presence of indigenous youth in university life. Copies: 1 (VHS) … Read more
Description: Corazon Sangrante is a short film that uses various mythic elements of gender – the sacred heart, saints, la china poblana – all set to the music of an old Mexican ballad. Cuerpos de Papel, also set to music, … Read more
Description: This documentary tells the story of how, after centuries of inaccessibility, the Mayan hieroglyphics were finally decoded by archaeologists. Through many discoveries by people of all ages, including Michael Coe and David Stuart, the Mayan Civilization is brought to … Read more
Description: Father Amaro is a new priest assigned to the small rural town of Los Reyes, Mexico. He soon discovers that a conspiracy of corruption, sex, and lies has consumed the local parishes. Though he tries to resist falling into … Read more
Description: In 1995, the U.S. Border Patrol instituted Operation Gatekeeper, which has caused the death of about 1800 migrants since its implementation. CROSSES documents the efforts of artists and activists to bring the disastrous effects of Operation Gatekeeper to the … Read more
Description: This very first three-color, live action film production is a comic short about a volatile tempered cantina girl trying to regain the love of a fellow dancer. The piece has lots of dancing and music, marking the debut of … Read more
Description: Experience the ancestral rituals of the Day of the Dead as it takes place in the mystic atmosphere of Jantzio. Watch as the people prepare themselves to receive their dead relatives as they clean and decorate graves and they … Read more
Description: “A Day Without a Mexican” is a “mocumentary” – a real documentary about a false event! California is shocked. One third of its population has disappeared and they are all Hispanics. Reporters take to the streets to capture the … Read more
Description: This documentary tells the remarkable story of a rebel people – the Mascogos, known in the United States as the Black Seminoles. This exceptional community is descended from escaped slaves who made common cause with the Seminole Indians of … Read more
Description: Diana is a ‘Devoradora,’ a man-eater. Men who fall in love with her get chewed up and spit out without any regard for their feelings. Diana an ambitious and frivolous woman, committed a crime and tried to blame some … Read more
Description: When Lourdes Portillo receives a phone call informing her that her uncle was found dead she returns to Mexico. Her investigation of the circumstances of her uncle’s death takes us deep into the land of Northern Mexico, inside the … Read more
Description: Parts 1-3 of the made-for-television Tom Brokaw report. Copies: 1(VHS)
Description: The great Soviet filmmaker, Sergei Eisenstein went to Mexico in 1929 to shoot the film Qué vive México using surrealist and muralist influence. The project was never finished. However this documentary film follows the work of Eisenstein including stills … Read more
Description: This rare example of classic Mexican cinema examines the corrupted ideals of the Revolution in the story of an opportunistic landowner who faces the choice of remaining loyal to a general in Zapata’s army and being financially ruined or … Read more
Description: El Prisonero 13 (Prisoner 13) is part of the trilogy of films made by Fernando Fuentes concerning the Mexican Revolution. The film centers on the drunkard Colonel Carrasco, whose wife Marta leaves him taking his young son. Copies: 1 … Read more
Description: In Mexico City, a second layer is being built atop the Periférico freeway, which inscribes a massive circle on the metropolis. Despite the project’s enormity, the workers who are building the freeway are barely noticed by drivers who roll … Read more
Description: The story of five women’s lives interwoven with festivities, music, poetry, and art in the historically matrifocal Zapotec region of Tehuantepec, Oaxaca. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 15 minutes
Description: Based on a fragment from his novel Love in the Time of Cholera, this film was conceived and co-written by Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez. It tells the story of Orestes, a wealthy factory owner who falls madly … Read more
Description: This two-part video depicts a young Mexican-American woman’s fifteenth birthday celebration. Set in Dallas, Texas and Reynosa, Mexico, the first part consists of a discussion of the preparations, planning, and logistics that have to be considered in planning this … Read more
Description: Patricia Amlin, the extraordinary animator who created Popol Vuh has taken authentic images from ancient Maya ceramics and turned them into a riveting retelling of the Maya creation myth. The story tells how Quetzalcoatl and Tezcatlipoca create heaven and … Read more
Description: This film documents the weeklong Mexican celebration known as Days of the Dead. This festival honors the memories of loved ones who have died. Food for the Ancestors explores this festival as it takes place in the culturally rich … Read more
Description: “An artist must be the conscience of his age.” In this way Diego Rivera, a leader of the Mexican mural renaissance movement of the 1920’s and 1030’s expressed the philosophy behind his work; in particular the spectacular series of … Read more
Description: Visually depicts the life of Frida Kahlo through her own paintings and the surroundings of her home in Coyoacán, Mexico City. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 16 minutes
Description: A documentary about Frida Kahlo’s painful life and creative process. Part of the series “Portraits of an Artist.” Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 62 minutes
Description: On her deathbed artist Frida Kahlo (played by Ofelia Medina) conjures up images and memories of her life as a painter, revolutionary and woman of the world. Her stormy relationship with muralist Diego Rivera, her tender hospitality for exiled … Read more
Description: Based on a story by Juan Rulfo. A poor man is given a near-dead fighting cock and he nurses him back to life. While this brings him life, he finds that when he forgets his roots and he soon … Read more
Description: A series of shorts from the 2004 Geografias Suaves regional film festival which feature Maya speaking peoples from Yucatan and Chiapas. The shorts include a video postcard documenting the lives and everyday experiences of children and their communities as … Read more
Description: Gertrudis Bocanegra Lazo de la Vega–played by award winning actress Ofelia Medina–a criollo woman who participated in the Mexican war of independence, is the central character of this film. Gertrudis becomes acutely aware of the social injustice prevalent in … Read more
Description: A tragicomedy about the foibles of a petty Government official, who becomes a casualty of consolidation under the Salinas administration. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 108 minutes
Description: The director narrates this pseudo-documentary, fantasizing an invasion of mojados (wetbacks) who reconquer lost Mexican territory to create the “U.S. of Aztlán.” This new regime propagandizes by portraying Anglos with the same stereotypes employed against Latinos. Directed by Gustavo … Read more
Description: During the invasion of Iraq in 2003, a misplaced gringo in Mexico City helplessly watches the atrocities through Mexican television news. Taking a tip from his local neighbors, he begins to sell chewing gum and wash car windows in … Read more
Description: Coerced into rebellion against the tyrannical regime of a ruthless landowner, the laborers of a sugar plantation form the first union in the country. The whole town faces the brutal repression of the ruling power headed by a young … Read more
Description: Since 1986, thousands of Mexican men have entered the United States to work under the auspices of the H-2A guestworker program. These men are given temporary visas to come to the United States for several months a year and … Read more
Description: Based on the research of Felipe Vázquez Palacios and his team in the state of Veracruz. This documentary depicts the daily life of those whom society considers to be old. The testimonies of these men and women teach us … Read more
Description: Six short documentaries about the protests and populist movement taking place in Oaxaca. Interviews, photographs, and documentation of particular events, like the attempted takeover of Benito Juarez Autonomous University by the Federal Police on November 2nd 2006 are included. … Read more
Description: Based on a short story El Gallo de Oro by Juan Rulfo, this film tells the story of Dionosio Pinzon, a Mexican peasant living with his mother. Born with a deformed hand, and living a very meager life, Dionosio’s … Read more
Description: Deep in the rainforest of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula are the lost Mayan Cities of Chichen Itzá and Palenque. Discover their magic and learn about the Mayan culture while exploring some of the region’s most exquisite examples of pre-Hispanic American … Read more
Description: This oringinal ethnographic video depicts how New Agers, the Mexican state, tourists, and 1920s archeologists all contend to “clear” the site of the antique Maya city of Chiché Itzá in order to produce their own idealized and unobstructed visions … Read more
Description: This feature film tells the story of the life of Jesus in Yucatec Maya language. It is a great resource for those who want to practice and master the language. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 120 Minutes
Description: An eight-year-old boy tired of living in an orphanage and working in a tortilla factory decides to search for the guardian angel his mother promised to send. The angel appears to him as a grumpy old Mexican man who … Read more
Type: Documentary, Director: Dinamu-SNV, Country: Ecuador, Format: DVD-R, Language: Spanish, Subtitles: None
Description: This documentary retraces the decipherment of the ancient Mayan codices by an unknown Russian scholar, Yuri Valentinovich Knorosov. Due to the political tensions of the Cold War, Western scholars ignored his linguistic breakthrough. This film recounts the personal and … Read more
Type: Documentary, Year: 1998, Director: Bran Taylor, Country: Mexico, Format: DVD-R, Language: English and Spanish, Subtitles: English
Type: Documentary, Year: 2005, Director: Chiapas Media Project, Country: Mexico, Format: DVD, Language: Spanish and Tzeltal, Subtitles: English
Description: La Ley de Herodes is a hilarious, outrageous satire set in a tiny Mexican town in 1949. Damián Alcázar stars as Juan Vargas, a junkyard operator is recruited as a temporary mayor following the demise of the latest corrupt … Read more
Description: This Masterpiece Series provides a triple treat – a close-up look at the lives and works of the worlds most famous artists plus three art lessons that focus on the style of each. These lessons reinforce the techniques and … Read more
Description: This is a series of short film clips that tell stories about people who, in one way or another, are affected by the Olympics. These 11 short stories bring out a lot of different emotions in the viewer; they … Read more
Description: The mystical story of the Virgen of Guadalupe unfolds as Huan Francisco Urrusti identifies and explores an important aspect of Mexican culture. Through interviews with historians, priests, anthropologists, and psychologists, the role of religious syncretism in Mexican culture is … Read more
Description: A collection of video shorts that examine the history of Mexican cinema. This volume examines recent movies that have addressed issues concerning power, analyzing particularly the movie Morir en el Golfo (1989). Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 60 minutes
Description: A collection of short videos (los orígenes del cinematógrafico, cine mundo, Eisenstein en México, etc.) that examine the history of Mexican cinema–from the Lumière brothers’ first screenings in Mexico City at the turn of the century, to the development … Read more
Description: The talents of top director Roberto Gavaldon, novelist B. Traven (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre) and cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa combined to produce this gentle, moving fable on human morality. Macario is a young peasant, despondent over his inability … Read more
Description: This film examines the impact of corporate globalization on Mexico, focusing on the maquiladoras, U.S.-owned factories employing cheap Mexican labor. Archival footage and interviews provide historical background to the present crisis. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 55 minutes
Description: This classic of Mexican cinema begins when a young woman reporter interviewing a world-famous artist, asks him about a painting of a nude Indian girl he had done years before and which he never revealed. The painter replies that … Read more
Description: The critically-acclaimed film debut from Robert Rodríguez, shot with no second takes using borrowed equipment and a talented cast of unknowns. A case of deadly mistaken identity leads the protagonist, who aspires only to be a mariachi, to trade … Read more
Description: This documentary goes on location to rarely seen gatherings in remote villages where masks are still an essential part of festivals such as Day of the Dead, Corpus Christi and Winter Clebrations. This video traces the ritual use of … Read more
Description: This great exhibit shows the expressive aesthetic language and historical testimony of an admirable civilization. This is the first presentation of the maya civilization that has covered all the regions of their geographical extension, all the periods of its … Read more
Description: The pioneer film maker Salvador Toscano portrayed the key events and figures of the Mexican Revolution from 1904 to 1924. Capturing the flavor and reality of war-torn Mexico, the film presents the political and military upheaval that shaped present … Read more
Description: Made by Raul Ferrera-Balanquet. An exceptionally lyrical and visual video about the encounter of two young gay Mexican men in the city of Mérida, Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 7 minutes
Description: This film takes a look at the cultural wealth of prehispanic Mexico: the civilizations of the Toltecs, the Aztecs, the Mayas, and their legacies are explored. Intended for younger audiences. An Educational Video Network film. Copies: 2 (DVD and … Read more
Description: This volume focuses on the rich cultural heritage of Mexico and how it affects the daily lives of its citizens. Students will find that Mexicos indigenous people and Spanish rule have influenced the ceremonial dress, folktales, foods and holidays … Read more
Description: This volume focuses on how Mexicos geography has shaped its history, society and culture. Travel through a variety of land formations and regions from the desert in Sonora to the lush rainforests of Chiapas, and see how location and … Read more
Description: This volume focuses on the obstacles that Mexico has overcome throughout history to become an independent, self-governing nation. Explore history topics from the time of the Olmec through the time of independence fights as well as other more contemporary … Read more
Description: Based in Mexico, a poor man struggles to make ends meet while facing the adversity of socioeconomic prejudice. Finances become worse once his ten-year-old son becomes seriously ill, and the man must find the means to heal his son. … Read more
Description: Gerardo, a gay teenager, roams the streets of Mexico City in search of someone able to reveal the secret, hidden between the lines of a goodbye letter from his ex-lover. In his journey through barren alleys and roadways, he … Read more
Description: Released in 1917, this silent film focuses on the apparitions of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Mexico. Lupita, a young woman in Mexico is concerned about her fiancée’s trip to Europe because of the war. The woman asks for … Read more
Description: This film is the working classes’ response to globalization. It engages the audience in the issues of immigration, factory flight, and the organized demand for economic justice. Filmed over an 8-year period in the mountains of east Tennessee, interior … Read more
Description: Seventeen-year old Natividad is bored with her life in her village. Meanwhile Benjamin, fifty something, fat, and the fool of the village, is in love with Natividad. Incited by his friends, Benjamin decides to kidnap her. Leandro, Natividad’s boyfriend, … Read more
Description: An intriguing documentary on the life of the renowned and vibrant filmmaker. Landeta is seen in her 70’s remembering her productive years. Includes interview with filmmaker Marcela Fernandez Violante. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 30 minutes
Description: This film depicts the disturbing increase in racism, violence and intolerance along the US-Mexican border in recent years. NATIVES examines the concerns of some of the individuals involved in San Diego’s anti-immigrant movement. Relying principally on a cinema vérité … Read more
Description: Daughter of a rebel, Angustias is ostracized for her refusal to marry, her independence, and her scorn for men. She falls in love, only to be rejected because of her race and class which cause her to return to … Read more
Description: A three-part documentary. Part I describes the phenomenon of banda dance music sweeping the Unites States and Mexico. Part II provides a history of mariachi music and its fusions with country-western and other styles, while Part III profiles Tejano … Read more
Description: A documentary about the Zapatista National Liberation Army’s struggle to attain justice for the Maya Indians of Chiapas. The film includes footage of various figures in the movement, including the elusive subcomandante Marcos. Produced by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. … Read more
Description: This is a story based on real testimonies about women and AIDS. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 40 minutes
Description: Two young Jewish girls, born Mexican, shape their lives under the pressures of the early sixties and their own awareness of conflicting loyalties. The subject of the life of the Jewish community within the ethnic complexity of modern urban … Read more
Description: The video collection that takes you on a trip to Oaxaca to see the sites of the immensely beautiful country of Mexico. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 60 Minutes
Description: This 1950 masterpiece, directed by Luis Buñuel, portrays the misery of poverty with an astounding starkness. Poor children of Mexican slums are the primary subjects of this unconstrained vision of poverty. In many big cities, behind the large buildings … Read more
Description: A historical discussion among North American and Mexican historians about the diary and life of Rosalie Evans, a disgruntled North American property owner who lost her land during the Mexican Revolution Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 60 minutes
Description: The synthetic cultural identities resulting from the forcible conversion of Mexicos indigenous people by the Spanish are explored through the eyes of Cortezs mistress Tecuíchpo and a fictional half-brother, the illegitimate son of Montezuma II. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: … Read more
Description: Americans simply pass through the turnstiles for cheap thrills in Tijuana. Mexicans on the other side, however, face endless barriers of barbed wire, attack dogs, and armed border patrols. Alex Webb captures the odd panorama of the border. Copies: … Read more
Description: The story of the Henequen plant and its practical uses, including fiber for clothing. The documentary begins with the incidental discovery of the Henequen and moves forward in time to the development of factories for mass production of fiber. … Read more
Description: Based on one of the masterpieces of Spanish American literature, the novel by Juan Rulfo was adapted for the screen by Carlos Fuentes. Juan Preciado travels to the town of Comala to find his father, Pedro Páramo (John Gavin); … Read more
Description: This film portrays the true story of Yessica and Miriam, two teens from Mexico city that start a profound friendship in middle school. The friends share notebooks, games, likes, make-up, and perfume until Jorge and El Topi, two violent … Read more
Description: Five short documentaries created by the the Indigenous Video Makers Project of the Southern (Mexican) Border: "Te xa wuil a va (Que tengas el poder de mirarte a ti mismo)," directed by Linda Lothe, Cecilia Monroy Cuevas and Roberto … Read more
Description: This is a silent film that focuses on opium addiction in early twentieth century Mexico. It is combined with stories of bandits and a poor detective who strives to be like the then famous Nick Carter. EL PUÑO DE … Read more
Description: Sergei Eisenstein’s lost masterpiece documents the history of Mexico and its people. With sequences devoted to the Edenic land of Tehuantepec, the savage majesty of the bullfight, the struggles of the noble peon and the hypnotic imagery of the … Read more
Description: Shot in Cuba and the US over a period of three years, this film features remarkable cinematography by first time director Carlos Marcovich. Winner of the Latin American Cinema Prize. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 91 minutes
Description: From the heart of the Altos in the Chiapaneco province of Chenalho, this community and indigenous oriented radio station broadcasts in Tzotzil and Tzeltal. The radio is an effort to strengthen their fight for justice and defend their culture … Read more
Description: A dramatization on John Reeds newspaper account of the Mexican Revolution. This film explores the young journalists adventures with Pancho Villas army in 1913-1914. Through encounters with Generals Villa and Urbina as well as ordinary soldiers, Reed sheds his … Read more
Description: Fictionalized biography about life of Mexican singer Lucha Reyes. Lucha Reyes was an unconventional and sexually liberated woman, most famous for her "cancion ranchera" style singing. Her story begins in 1939, when at 33 she still lived at home … Read more
Description: A depiction of the Aztec myth of the creation of the Fifth Sun. It also explains why the Aztecs were cast out of their "Eden" resulting in their eventual conquest. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 91 minutes
Description: The cruelty of one Mexican cacique has left his village completely without water, and the population is living in misery. The people of Rio Escondido will have to struggle for justice, and a newly arrived schoolteacher will help them … Read more
Description: Every November the Mexican people clean and decorate the graves of their loved ones, set beautiful tables or altars in which they place offerings so the visiting dead enjoy them. Experience these and other ancestral rituals of the Day … Read more
Description: A film about October 2, 1968, Mexico City -the day of the massacre of students in Tlatelolco–the Plaza of the Three Cultures. The story begins with two students returning to their apartment carrying a wounded friend. From that point, … Read more
Description: A journey by US citizens to Oaxaca, Mexico reveals the global forces that have pushed millions of people to migrate to the United States. Learn first-hand why people make the journey north, why they wish they didn’t have to, … Read more
Description: Alicia returns to the pueblo where she spent her childhood and adolescence after an absence of 15 years. Despite the many changes that her pueblo has undergone, she finds that everyday life remains much the same as it was … Read more
Description: Every year in San Juan Chamula, Chiapas, in Southern Mexico, thousands of Maya Indians gather to celebrate Carnival, which they call “Festival of Games”. This award winning film, which merges Catholicism and ancient Maya rights, beautifully captures the passion … Read more
Description: This documentary narrates the story of Los San Patricios, a Irish battalion in the war against Mexico in 1843 that deserted the United States army and joined the Mexican side. They are celebrated every year in Mexico, Ireland, and … Read more
Description: The crew of a converted French traveler studies ancient Mayan civilization and strives to acquire the science and mathematics expertise to understand it. Adventures develop observation, hypothesis formation, data collection, and analysis skills. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 24 15-minute … Read more
Description: Three generations of women reflect the spiritual and social differences among traditional Mexico, the period of the Lázaro Cárdenas regime, and Mexico today. Based on Rosario Castellanos’ short story El Viudo Román. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 100 minutes
Description: This documentary investigates the kidnapping, rape and murder of over 230 young women in Juarez, Mexico. Using the testimonies of the families of the victims, the film boldly reveals a web of complicity that has contributed to the persistence … Read more
Description: Filmed almost entirely from a helicopter, this film presents spectacular views of seven of the most important archaeological sites in Mexico: Teotihuacán, Monte Albán, Mitla, Tulum, Palenque, Chichen Itzá and Uxmal. Narrated by Orson Welles. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: … Read more
Description: This drama centers around the friendship of two young wealthy provincial girls of the 1950s to depict a tale of seduction and infidelity, intimacy and melancholy. Through the classic Mexican game of "chance and destiny," this film by the … Read more
Description: This chronicle of NAFTA and the Zapatista uprising includes interviews with key figured and grounds the conflict in questions of democracy and social change. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 56 minutes
Description: Sleep Dealer is a futuristic science fiction story set in a world not much different from our own, in which borders are closed, and a global, high speed network ties distant people and places together. The story centers on … Read more
Description: Tomás loves women and they love him. However, Tomás has problems -he lives in the times of DC-10’s, microwave ovens and AIDS, and this modern Don Juan doesn’t use condoms! A wonderfully funny comedy faintly reminiscent of Almodóvar. Copies: … Read more
Description: Music is an important expression of Mexico’s cultural richness, and has always accompanied mostly all the activities of the Mexican people. Get to know through this program the most representative music, complemented with typical handicrafts and regional dresses of … Read more
Description: The moving account of the people of Matamoros, Mexico after the Chicago-based Stepan plant dumped zylene, a toxic solvent linked to birth defects, into open canals near their homes. The Sanchez family and their community, with the help of … Read more
Description: In this mix of live action and comic book style animation, five masked activists fight against corruption, homophobia, animal rights, pollution and poverty in Mexico City. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 70 minutes
Description: A UNICEF style documentary showing the hardships of the Tarahumara Indians and how a local hospital attempts to remedy them. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 25 minutes
Description: When the Aztecs arrived in the Valley of Mexico 600 years ago, they found a mysterious city of great pyramids. With this video students will examine some of the theories and legends surrounding the mysterious civilization of Teotihuacán, see … Read more
Description:The most highly praised and awarded Mexican documentary in many years, THE INHERITORS by Eugenio Polgovsky immerses us in the daily lives of children who, with their families, survive only by their unrelenting labor. The film takes us into the … Read more
Description: This documentary represents the culmination of four years of investigation into the military operations behind the October 1968 massacre of students at the Plaza de las Tres Culturas in Tlateloco, Mexico. It incorporates all known film footage related to … Read more
Description: A documentary about Subcomandante Marcos of the Zapatistas. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 45 minutes
Description: Ruled by a tough grandma (Sara García), the Garcías (Infante, Salazar and Mendoza) are three charro cousins who fall in love with young American-born Lupita (Marga López) and fight for her love until grandma quiets them. It is a … Read more
Description: When someone makes a brief visit in the Yucatan Peninsula, it is called a visit of a “turix.” When one sees a dragonfly, it is considered good luck. The video-magazine Turix is like the dragonfly; it is an open … Read more
Description: This is a film about Mayan communities and the languages spoken in them. This movie shows the journey children make to become fluent in both Mayan and Spanish. True to its Mayan title, this move is about a community’s … Read more
Description: The Mexican Revolution is on its way when six brave peasants, known as "Los Leones de San Pablo", decide to join Pancho Villa’s army and help end the suffering in their community by assisting in the struggle. Copies: 1 … Read more
Description: This documentary narrated by three small children examines different aspects of indigenous communities within México. The indigenous groups portrayed are the Lancadones, Maxahuas and Otomies. In each community the children narrate their surroundings, traditional ways of making a living … Read more
Description: Written by Nobel Prize winning Gabriel García Márquez, this is a wickedly black comedy about two children plotting to kill their authoritarian nanny, reminiscent of the work of the legendary film maker Luis Buñuel. Directed by Humberto Hermosillo. Part … Read more
Description: This documentary explores from the beginnings of the Zapatista uprising until the National Democratic Convention that took place in Aguascalientes, Chiapas in 1994. This journalistic documentary attempts to capture, from the middle of the jungle, a moment of contemporary … Read more
Description: A docudrama originally produced for Mexican television. Based on true stories this beautiful film traces the life of a Mexican woman in a small town faced with the realization that she has AIDS. The film deals with the stigma … Read more
Description: Humans have always been narrators of stories, legends, fables and in places where there were no books or novels, stories have been passed down through word of mouth from one generation to the next. This social function is still … Read more
Description: Released in 2001 in Mexico, where it broke box-office records, director Alfonso Cuarón’s sexy comedy follows two teenage boys who go out on the road with an older Spanish woman they both lust after. Sumptuous cinematography, wonderful performances by … Read more
Description: An EVA film intended for younger audiences. Short documentary traces the career of a young Mexican man trying for a career as a torero in the ring. Copies: 1 (DVD)
Description: A fascinating travel view of the legendary ruins of Chichen Itza, Tulum, Uxmal and many other ancient Mayan sites, including visits to Merida, a city of contrasting sights, cultural blends and people. Copies: 1 (DVD)
Description: In 1994 the Zapatistas reclaimed land in Chiapas’ Lacandon jungle in southern Mexico to found the Autonomous Municipality of Emiliano Zapata. Since then, they have been building a new society in which there are neither servants nor bosses. Members … Read more
Description: The Brazilian badlands, April 1910. Tonho is ordered by his father to avenge the death of his older brother. The young man knows that if he commits this crime, his life will be divided in two: the 20 years … Read more
Description: “Capital Sins” Part of a 10-part PBS series on the western hemisphere, this program examines the trajectory of Brazil’s economy from the mid 1960s through the 1980s, spotlighting the methods Brazil’s rulers chose to develop that country and how … Read more
Description: “Miracles are Not Enough” This program travels to Brazil and Nicaragua to observe the explosion of theological debate, social activism and spiritual revival that is changing a region where religion has long played an important role in society and … Read more
Description: This is a documentary allows the viewer a glimpse into a Brazilian art symposium which celebrates the art and poetry of Elizabeth Bishop. The symposium occurs in Ouro Preto in Minas Gerais. Literary discussions and some presentation material included. … Read more
Description: The lively João Grilo and the sly Chicó are poor guys living in the hinterland who cheat a bunch of people in a small Northeast Brazil town. But when they die, they have to be judged by Christ, the … Read more
Description: The inhospitable backlands, or sertão, of northeastern Brazil was home to a fearsome group of social bandits – the cangaceiros. Among the most infamous of these outlaws, known by their hats covered with mystic talismans, was the bespectacled Lampião … Read more
Description: A profile of the first black woman ever to be elected city councilor and member of the Brazilian Parliament from the favelas of Rio de Janeiro. Bene, as she prefers to be called, has lived her entire life in … Read more
Description: This docudrama about the life and art of the Brazilian artist Arthur Bispo do Rosário takes the artist’s imagination as its viewpoint. Bispo spent 50 years in a psychiatric hospital in Rio and his art was almost completely unknown … Read more
Description: A small-time traveling sideshow plays over 9,000 miles of backcountry Brazil, a mixture of primitivism and progress. One of the most original and entertaining films of recent years, it is an exotic, entertaining, exuberant, and often very moving film … Read more
Description: Produced by Ricardo Gaspar and Selma Santos under the auspices of the University of Bahia and the Brazilian Ministry of Culture, this video depicts the history of the 1897 massacre of thousands of followers of a millenarian movement in … Read more
Description: Based on the real life experiences of Doctor Drauzio Varella as a social worker inside the Carandiru state penitentiary in Sao Paulo, the largest correctional facility in Brazil. Hundreds of prisoners live in degrading conditions while an elite group … Read more
Description: This film relates the intimate saga of the star who captured the world’s heart and imagination. It reveals the lasting image of Latin American women she created and serves as a celebration of her glorious talents. Using active footage, … Read more
Description: A discussion of the 1933 text Casa Grande & Senzala(Masters and Slaves) by Brazilian anthropologist and historian, Gilberto Freyre, this documentary consists of four 1-hour segments. The camera follows Prof. Edson Nery, friend and biographer of Freyre, on an … Read more
Description: One of Brazils most acclaimed films and winner of a Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. Inside Rio de Janeiros Central Station, two very unlikely souls are about to become inextricably linked. When a young boy witnesses his … Read more
Description: Back in the 1960s, Carolina María de Jesus became famous in Brazil after publishing her diary Child of the Dark. In this video, the director Robert Levine introduces this book about the daily life of poor people in Brazil, … Read more
Description: Deco and Naldinho are best friends in a constant struggle to earn an honest living in the gritty world of Salvador de Bahias Lower City. When a beautiful prostitute named Karina asks to hitch a ride, the twosome quickly … Read more
Description: In the midst of the streets of the world’s most notorious slum, Rio de Janeiro’s “City of God,” a frail and scared young boy will grow up to discover that he can view the harsh realities of his surroundings … Read more
Description: A pair of filmmakers journey to the interior of Brazil, screening short films to audiences in town squares. From Bahía to the Amazon, they discover a vast country going to the movies, seeing themselves on the big screen for … Read more
Description: In 1942, Johann, a lonely German, travels through the Northeast of Brazil in his truck selling aspirins in small villages, using advertisement movies to promote the medicine. He meets and befriends a drifter but later must make a life … Read more
Description: This delicious black comedy, set in the jungles of Brazil, tells the story of a French explorer who in vain tries to be accepted by the tribe of cannibals who has captured him. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 80 minutes
Description: This richly allegorical film, set amid bandits and prophets in arid Northeastern Brazil of the early twentieth century, is a classic work of cinema novo by one of Brazil’s premier directors, Gláuber Rocha. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 120 minutes
Description: The Motorcycle Diaries is an adaptation of a journal written by Ernesto Che Guevara when he was 23 years old. He and his friend, Alberto Granado are typical college students who, seeking fun and adventure before graduation, decide to … Read more
Description: Funny, sexy, and intoxicating. A ribald folktale about a young widow, her respectable new husband, and her dynamic but dead first husband who refuses to stay buried, featuring the sensual Sonia Braga as Dona Flor. Copies: 2 (DVD and … Read more
Description: Based on a true story, this film is set in the beautifully majestic landscape of rural Brazil. Darlene, a determined woman, abruptly uproots herself from her small town to find a man who can fulfill her desires. Three years … Read more
Description: Favela Rising documents a man and a movement, a city divided and a favela (Brazilian squatter settlement) united. Haunted by the murders of his family and many friends, Anderson Sá is a former drug-trafficker who turns social revolutionary in … Read more
Description: Two sisters from the state of Minas Gerais are reunited after several years apart when their father dies and are forced to confront each other about the ill feelings generated by the hurts of the distant past. Copies: 1 … Read more
Description: Made by Lia de Souza, Brazil. Portugese. 1.CUL GERAI-Historias da Pedra Furada 2.Especial Ianomami 3.Wareté 4.Antártida 5.Alcatrazes Copies: 1 (DVD)
Description: This thriller is based on the true-life events. In 1969, the MR-8 urban guerrillas kidnap the US Ambassador to Brazil (Alan Arkin) to demand the release of prisoners held by the military junta. The dictatorship’s secret police close in … Read more
Description: The story of two Brazilian families who put everything at risk to cross the border into the United States from Mexico, in search of a better life. Having gotten over the first leg of their journey, they all confront … Read more
Description: This documentary challenges the popular understanding that the Wright brothers were the “first in flight.” It treats the life of Brazilian aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont and his mission to create “heavier than air” flying technology. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) … Read more
Description: In this film based on the book by Clarice Lispector, Macabea is a young woman from the countryside of northeast Brazil who lives in the sprawling city of Sao Paulo. The mixture of bitter reality and gentle, humorous fantasy … Read more
Description: This film recounts the remarkable life of Benedita da Silva, the first Afro-Brazilian woman to be elected to Brazil’s senate. Her long history of struggle in the shantytowns, the women’s movement and the black movement created the base for … Read more
Description: This is a hilarious but devastating film about values, the food chain, and the human condition. Ultimately, a Brazilian island where pigs eat first, and the people are fed what the pigs leave over provides an example of how … Read more
Description: Political prisoner Valentín Arregui and homosexual pederast Luis Molina share a Brazilian prison cell in this fantastical drama from Manuel Puigs book by the same title. Molina helps pass time by recounting memories from one of his favorite films, … Read more
Description: An examination of corruption and class warfare in Brazil as told through the stories of a wealthy businessman, a plastic surgeon who assists kidnapping victims and a politician whose income relies on a frog farm. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: … Read more
Description: "O Massacre de Corumbiara" advocates the need for radical agrarian reform in Brazil through an emotional examination of a massacre of peaceful, landless rural laborers by the military police in the Amazonian state of Rondônia in August 1995. It … Read more
Description: This film is a musical road trip deep into the heart of Brazil. Along the trip, the director showcases the diversity and richness of the Brazilian Music. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 105 minutes
Description: A poetic documentary exploration of efforts by members of the Afro-Brazilian communities in São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, and Salvador, Bahia, Brazil to combat the spread of AIDS by drawing from their own cultural and religious traditions. Copies: 1 … Read more
Description: This is a comedy drama that captures the joy and sadness of life in much of South America. It is based on the true story of four friends who decide to install a communal pirate radio station. Called Rádio … Read more
Description: The legend of Orpheus and Eurydice is retold against the madness of Carnival in Rio de Janeiro. The story is enhanced by brilliant performances, thrilling music, and magnificent color photography. Copies: 2(DVD) Length: 107 minutes
Description: A documentary about the mixture of Catholic and Afro-Brazilian religious traditions. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 30 minutes
Description: The Xavante of central Brazil and the Wayuu of Venezuela are two indigenous groups who both face considerable challenges in their efforts to maintain control over and access to one of the most basic of natural resources, fresh water. … Read more
Description: This film by a young Brazilian woman deals with racism as it impacts and is expressed through the daily lives of black Brazilians. It demystifies the idea that Brazilian society is without racial prejudices. Bronze medal winner at the … Read more
Description: A handsome tale of revolution and conflict, set in the mid-1600s. Disgruntled slaves in northeastern Brazil leave their plantations and form Quilombo de Palmares-their own democratic nation in the jungle. This doesn’t sit well with the Portuguese landowners, who … Read more
Description: Quilombo Country examines the communities established by runaway slaves in 19th century Brazil as they navigate the hazards of the modern world, observing the daily activities that allow the quilombolas to survive in relative isolation. This film also offers … Read more
Description: Fantastic documentary about black communities in the State of Bahia. The Brazilian concept of Quilombos has come to mean the communities that were constituted out of the struggle of rebel slaves during the centuries of slavery, as territories of … Read more
Description: This video contains six segments in Portuguese with no subtitles. "Turning Sadness Inside Out" (1985, 18 minutes) is about Rio’s Carnival. It is basically a musical where the lyrics somehow cements the images. "From Brazil by Brazilians" (1993, 20 … Read more
Description: Betty Faria stars as Fausta, a quirky cleaning lady whose sexy swinging hips open the door to a more comfortable life. When an old widower breaks the ice and buys Fausta perfume and a drink, she sees a way … Read more
Description: A poet from the shadows, a filmmaker with no films and an enigmatic muse. Inspired by the work of Brazilian writer and poet Rodrigo Garcia Lopes, it is a sort of “false documentary” about the poet’s time in the … Read more
Description: This blockbuster Brazilian feature uses soap-opera melodrama to tell the story of a beautiful romance between a reporter and a mining company executive. But the romance crumbles when the executive’s wife, long presumed dead, returns and drives the couple, … Read more
Description: This film tells the story of two Sertanejos, the inhabitants of Sertão. Maria is the female reincarnation of Jesus, representing the strength of the Sartanejo women. She invites the Beatas (holy women) on a mission of prayer for which … Read more
Description: Shot in streets of Sao Paulo, THE SHOESHINE PRESIDENT asks Brazilians what they think about their new president, Luiz Inacio "Lula" da Silva. From the heart of the celebrations, this film captures the heady atmosphere of history in the … Read more
Description: A musical documentary about choro, the first genuinely urban Brazilian music, which blended European, Afro-Brazilian and indigenous elements and formed the basis for popular musical styles such as Samba and Bossa Nova. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 90 minutes
Description: The Stories of My Grandparents is a long-term project that brings to life the Mayan legends that are such an important part of the Yucatec Maya oral tradition. The project is inspired in Ana Rosa Suarte’s first attempts to … Read more
Description: The story of a Brazilian monk’s quest to be ordained as a priest against a backdrop of personal crises, war, and social collapse. Brother Sebastian confronts numerous obstacles, including his guilt at being raped as a child, his attraction … Read more
Description: One of the great art films of the Brazilian Cinema Novo, director Rocha’s 1967 work is a meditation on the ambiguities of political power, revolutionary ideologies, and the transformative potential of art. It is a satirical film, based on … Read more
Description: A story about a young girl, Tieta thrown out of her house for sexual indiscretions, only to return 26 years later triumphantly as the rich and powerful widow of an industrialist. Tieta and Leonora, whom she introduces as her … Read more
Description: A young musician from the poor suburbs of Rio searches for his lost love. From Guadalupe to the cosmopolitan south zone, Vinicius embarks on an almost mythic urban odyssey. Vinicius’ journey, both tragic and comic leads ultimately to redemption. … Read more
Description: After having spent part of her life in an orphanage/reform school (where she learned that this is a man’s world), Vera attempts assimilation into polite Brazilian society. However, by the time she leaves the orphanage she is convinced that … Read more
Description: This film takes place in the years 1940 to 1942, between the two great droughts that devastated the Brazilian Nordeste (Northeast). The movie, based on a novel by Graciliano Ramos, is a meditation about the agrarian question and the … Read more
Description:A project organized by the Centro de Trabalho Indigenista in which different indigenous groups in the Amazon have been provided with video training and equipment. Uses include recording ceremonies for future generations, taping political discussions, recording the promises of government … Read more
Description: Documenting the most important ritual of the Enauêne-Nawê Indians, the seven months every year that the spirits of the dead are venerated with offerings of food, song, and dance so they will protect the community and bless it with … Read more
Description: This documentary examines a Colombian musical tradition that has emerged to become an internationally popular music genre. Its rural sentiment, straightforward message, and danceable rhythms now appeal to millions of fans around the world. In Colombia’s northern Magdalena Valley, … Read more
Description: “Get Up, Stand Up” This program addresses internal and external challenges to sovereignty in the Americas and examines the ways in which the nations of the Americas cope with the dilemma of maintaining economic and cultural sovereignty in the … Read more
Description: The actor, Santiago Miranda, abandons the set of a soap opera that he thinks fails to illustrate the real vision and dream of Bolívar. Miranda is determined to finish Bolívars dream of creating the Great Colombia. Wrapped in his … Read more
Description: In the late 1990s and early 2000s the internal conflict in Colombia between the government, military groups and armed forces displaced many communities, mainly made up of peasant farmers. These farmers were forced to leave their homes. This documentary … Read more
Description: An emotionally gut-wrenching drama from Colombia set during a violent civil war which occurred after the assassination of liberal leader Jorge Gaitán in 1948. Three people are trapped in Laura’s house during the Bogotazo riots, setting the scene for … Read more
Description: This riveting documentary about the controversial and very important Colombian author and sometime filmmaker, Fernando Vallejo, begins with a powerful talk he gave to a crowd of youth in which he realistically told them that they were born into … Read more
Description: Includes thirty-five interesting scenes and situations from a love story where the heartbeat ups and downs of a couple; Diastole and Cistole is a creative sample of couples relations; their happy moments, misfortunes and the games we play. Humor, … Read more
Description: The title of this film is a play on words. By adding an "i" to the expression for coup d’etat in Spanish, its meaning has now been changed to stadium over throw. The film is full of satire that … Read more
Description: As one of the most prominent Afro-Colombian figures of the 20th century, Manuel Zapata Olivella did many things to promote Colombian culture and the history of African-descended peoples in Colombia. This documentary deals with various aspects of his versatile … Read more
Description: When María Cano (Maria Eugenia Dávila) was recruited into the labor movement in Colombia in 1925 she was prepared for the revolution to come. She worked strenuously to organize workers becoming something of a folk hero. What she was … Read more
Description: Maria Alvarez, a bright, spirited 17-year-old Colombian is desperate to leave her job stripping thorns from flowers. Maria accepts a lucrative offer to transport packets of heroin – which she must swallow – to the United States. The ruthless … Read more
Description: In Colombia’s Cauca region, the Nasa (Paez) people’s movement known as “Freedom for Mother Earth” has long fought to recover their lands. This video documents the group’s recent protest, which resulted in harsh reprisals and suffering for the community. … Read more
Description: The brutal tale of a teenager making a go of it in one of the world’s toughest town’s: Medellin, Colombia. Rodrigo dreams of playing rock and roll. He rallies his friends into a punk band. From a web of … Read more
Description: In May 2006, indigenous and social organizations in Colombia were concentrated in the National Summit Traveling with sectoral actions. They demanded a national referendum against the Free Trade Agreement and the fulfillment of agreements signed with the Government for … Read more
Description: Ex-cop turned private eye Fernando Solórzano gets roped into investigating the murder of unidentified hooker Flora Martínez at a cheap Bogotá hotel; and, as the flashbacks unreel in classic film noir fashion, he starts to piece together her life … Read more
Description: For over four years, three Colombian filmmakers turned their cameras on themselves, using personal stories to expose the tough reality in their violent, war-ravaged country. Their portrayal does not aim to confirm the image the outside world has of … Read more
Description: This film portrays daily life in an underdeveloped and overpopulated city on the Pacific coast of Colombia. Tumaco is a city inhabited mainly by Afro-Colombians which depends on fishing as its principal economic activity, a way of life threatened … Read more
Description: Thirteen year-old Monica survives the urban Colombian streets by selling flowers to couples at local bars and restaurants. She is befriended by 10 year-old Andrea, who left her home to flee from her abusive mother. Together, with other friends, … Read more
Description: A documentary about the effects of IMF and World Bank policies on the economy and society of Nicaragua, and the efforts to counteract the negative results of such policies through cooperative and community development efforts. Based primarily on oral … Read more
Description: Ordinary Nicaraguans narrate the story of 22 turbulent years (1979-2001) in their nation’s history, from the triumph of the Sandinistas, to the day they were voted out of office in 1990, to the tumultuous years since. This film, beautifully … Read more
Description: An allegory about an idealistic ten-year-old peasant who dreams of flying like a condor. He eventually learns to fly when he joins guerrillas fighting in an imaginary Central American country. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 90 minutes
Description: “Fire in the Mind” This program looks at revolutionaries in the region today, with a special emphasis on the former guerrilla fighters in El Salvador and the current movement in Peru, and links these movements to the revolutions in … Read more
Description: Produced by Neighbor to Neighbor. Host Mike Farrell-Organizing Version. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 27 minutes
Description: Photographer-filmmaker Susan Meiselas returns to Nicaragua to find out what happened to the people she photographed years earlier at the height of the civil war. Meiselas and her collaborators capture the shattered lives and broken dreams of people on … Read more
Description: March 16, 1986. Presidential address of President Reagan concerning the controversial issue. Response to the address by Sen. Jim Sasser (D-Tennessee). Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 25 minutes
Description: Enchanting, playful, and outrageous, this film presents two unsuccessful people who each adopt fictional personae in order to escape the doldrums of their daily lives. It is a web of adorable little lies told to brighten their otherwise gray … Read more
Description: Aleida Guevara talks fondly about her father, the world famous Che. Aleida talks about the real Che, separating the myth from the man. This bilingual DVD contains a Spanish language version, and another version in Spanish with English subtitles. … Read more
Description: In this groundbreaking satirical film about the Cuban Revolution, the craziest situations are seen as normal by most of the inhabitants of Wondertown. Alicia, however, struggles to make sense of what is happening around her from the moment she … Read more
Description: This visceral, energizing look at contemporary Cuba is an impassioned love story set against the political and economic tensions of Havana. Gustavo, an idealistic young Communist with a glorified vision of the Castro regime, falls in love with Yolanda, … Read more
Description: The second in a trilogy, Barrio Cuba tells a trio of stories, all dealing with commonplace Cuban social struggles. Solás and his superior cast pay tribute to the authentic slums of the Havana suburbs, stripping away the sheen of … Read more
Description: An impressionistic journey through the music of Cuba, Spain and Mexico from pre-Columbian times to the present, on the occasion of the Fifth Centenary of the Conquest. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 111 minutes
Description: Episodic look at the life of Cuban poet and novelist, Reynaldo Arenas (1943-1990), from his childhood in Oriente province to his death in New York City. By 1964, he is in Havana where his writing and homosexuality get him … Read more
Description: A period musical, based on the novel The Song of Rachel by Miguel Barnet, the film concerns a young woman who uses everyone to attain her dream of being a singer at the Alhambra, Cuba’s top burlesque theatre in … Read more
Description: During a track and field meet a meteor strikes a stadium in Cuba, killing roughly 93 people. A round table of journalists has a discussion on the significance of the event, debating what the most important aspects of the … Read more
Description: The German filmmaker Wim Wenders directs a documentary about the Cuban musicians in the group Buena Vista Social Club. This group has toured the U.S. and their albums have been best sellers for months. The elder members have many … Read more
Description: An introspective look at young Cuban-Americans, the now-adult children of the first wave of Cuban exiles that came to the U.S. This documentary focuses on the fusion of traditional, old world values of yesteryear and modern, American culture, as … Read more
Description: Avant-garde performance art / plays performed by the Buendía theatre group in 1992 Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 106 minutes
Description: This educational video aimed at children is separated into three sections. The first section explains what Cinco de Maya is, why it is celebrated and its importance. The second section talks about the history of Cinco de Mayo. The … Read more
Description: Based on Ernesto “Che” Guevara’s memoir Reminiscences of the Cuban Revolutionary War, this film constitutes part 1 of the two part series directed by Steven Soderbergh on the life of this iconic hero of the Cuban revolution. While focusing … Read more
Description: Part two of Stephen Soderbergh’s chronicle of the revolutionary activities of Ernesto “Che” Guevara examines Guevara’s attempts to start a revolutionary guerrilla movement in the jungles of Bolivia. Beginning with his arrival in Bolivia under a false identity, the … Read more
Description: With passion and uncertainty, Tzunami, a small-town Cuban girl prepares for her quinceañera. The celebration is for her fifteen birthday –the official crossroads between innocence and maturity. This short film won nine international film awards, including the 1998 Berlin … Read more
Description: A fast paced weaving of sound bites and interviews that lets young Cubans speak and argue for themselves. What they have to say or sing or rap suggests that everyone born after the revolution has an opinion. Directors/Producers: Gail … Read more
Description: Experience a tour through mountains, beaches, and the colorful panorama Cuba has to offer. This video provides pieces of folklore, music, architecture, history, as it shows the major cities of the island. Video Visits. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 52 … Read more
Description: This program gathers together the most representative of exiled Cuban filmmakers, who recount their personal experiences of having to abandon their work and start a new life away from their country, culture and natural environment. The program features clips … Read more
Description: This documentary follows two Cuban exiles, Bay of Pigs invasion veterans, upon their return to their native island. As attendees of a conference discussing the invasion, they interact and attempt to reconcile the past with former battlefield adversaries, including … Read more
Description: This short film explores the work of several Cuban artists who collaborate with Vígia Press, a unique publishing house in Matanzas which makes beautifully crafted books by hand. The interviewed artists discuss their imaginative modes of contemplating what constitutes … Read more
Description: This is a collection of five short experimental videos made by Cuban directors. Here is a brief description of each film: DeMoler (12 min) is a short documentary directed by Angel González about a small sugar mill and its … Read more
Description: An exploration of the experience of Cubans living in the United States, focusing especially on the nature of the community since 1959. The film avoids explicit discussions of politics and instead focuses on the maintenance of community, culture and … Read more
Description: Identical Twins, Margarita and Ramona de Saá, grew up to become acclaimed ballerinas with the National Ballet of Cuba. Once inseparable, their relationship deteriorated as one sister left for America and the other embraced the Cuban Revolution. Mirror Dance … Read more
Description: A fascinating cinematic mix of documentary and fiction, Gómez (who died just before completing work on the film) looks at the marginal neighborhoods of Havana shortly after the triumph of the 1959 Revolution. With Mario Balmaseda and Yolanda Cuellar. … Read more
Description: A provocative artistic film about a Cuban woman, Antoñica, possessed by a deity, or orisha. Set in Pinar del Río in 1936, first the local clergy and doctors conspire to remove her and her followers. A politician comes to … Read more
Description: Elpidio Valdés is an animated film which deals with the risky mission of bringing from Tampa, Florida, a shipment of arms for the freedom fighters of the Ejército Libertador. With Captain María Silva, his horse Palmiche, and his compatriots … Read more
Description: Compilation of short animated films not meant for younger audience because of their political propaganda upholding socialist ideals. These films were produced for the Cuban government to educate people on the values of the Revolution and/or to educate on … Read more
Description: Two of Cubas leading hip-hop groups, Obsesion and Doble Filo, have formed the collective La Fabri_K to showcase their art. This film follows the artists from their homes in Havana through their eye-opening concert tour in the United States, … Read more
Description: This documentary is a personal profile of Fidel Castro and a view of the developments since the revolution 10 years before. There are a lot of images of Fidel: listening to complaints, arguing, laughing, and philosophizing. There is beautiful … Read more
Description: This film is an intimate portrait of the Cuban revolutionary leader Fidel Castro. Filmmaker Estela Bravo presents rare interviews with Castro and footage of him swimming with bodyguards, visiting his childhood home and school, and trading jokes with his … Read more
Description: Experience the heartache and uncertainty of the 1960s flight of more than 14,000 unaccompanied Cuban children to the United States. The children of Operation Pedro Pan share their personal stories of the sacrifice, survival, broken hearts and new beginnings … Read more
Description: A single, iconic image of Ernesto Che Guevara has been remembered, revered and reproduced over the years. In this documentary, photographer Alberto Korda recounts his feelings at the moment he snapped the world famous photo. A fast-paced collage of … Read more
Description: This award-winning film raises issues of tolerance and diversity by presenting sexual, artistic, and ultimately political struggles in Cuba through the story of several individuals. Through the touching relationship of a middle-aged gay artist and a young idealistic student, … Read more
Description: While unfolding the story of the Cuba vs. the Baltimore Orioles games, this documentary develops a narrative of the history of baseball as an element of Cuban national identity, and the impact the sport has had on both the … Read more
Description: Tomás Gutiérrez Alea’s last film before his death, Guantanamera is a romantic, fluid road-trip movie set in contemporary Cuba amid economic crisis and crumbling infrastructure. In a tribute to the resilient spirit of Cubans in trying circumstances, and a … Read more
Description: This film presents a revisionist view of the life Ernesto Che Guevara. Various interviews with former comrades of Guevara present a portrait of the man that is a stark contrast to the official mythology of Ches historical role in … Read more
Description: Cuba is a land of music and consequently a land of musicians. Habana Blues is full of lots of extraordinary music, but what makes it so special is the way Zambrano details the lives of the protagonists and the … Read more
Type: Documentary, Year: 2008, Director: Jose Araujo, Country: Brazil, Format: DVD, Language: English, Subtitles: None
Type: Documentary, Year: 1990, Director: Felipe Bernaza, Country: Cuba, Format: DVD-R, Language: Spanish, Subtitles: English
Description: This documentary traces the history and presence of the Jewish community in Cuba. It explores the impact of the 1959 Revolution on the five percent of the original community, the community’s recent resurgence, and the international issues that affect … Read more
Type: Documentary, Year: 2001, Director: Cecilia Ricciarelli and Diego Malquori, Country: Cuba, Format: DVD-R, Language: Spanish, Subtitles: English
Description: Set in pre-revolutionary Cuba (late 1950s), this winner of the 1990 Grand Coral Prize in Havana deals with the inner conflicts of a young girl’s coming of age, her identification with a Hemingway she never meets, and a society … Read more
Description: Documentary including three dramatic stories about the insurrection struggle in Cuba during the 50s. The saga of young people, who lived, loved and fought with the hopes of a better future. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 81 minutes
Description: With César Evora, Jorge Trinchet, and Daisy Granados. A young ambitious man begins climbing the social and political ladder in Cuba in the 1930s. After the fall of Machado in 1933, his political career takes off, his ethics and … Read more
Description: A documentary about the Cuban-Jewish community in South Florida, with interviews from both Cuban-Jewish and Non-Jewish members of the community. Robert Levine began the documentary after realizing the effects of the generation gap between Cuban-Jewish teenagers and their parents … Read more
Description: In a mens bathroom a discussion takes place. One member of a committee votes against a presidential proposal, and suddenly becomes the hero of the democratic process. What seems to him to be a perfectly reasonable and ordinary act … Read more
Description: This film examines the now vibrant hip-hop community that has emerged in Cuba since the onset of the special period, interviewing numerous artists and getting their perspectives on a number of issues, including racism, issues of censorship, economic conditions, … Read more
Description: Cuban boxing legend Kid Chocolate was the first Cuban to win a world boxing title, and is still considered by many as the best Cuban boxer ever. In this documentary produced by the Cuban film institute ICAIC, Chocolate recounts … Read more
Description: CBS Reports with Dan Rather presents a biography of Fidel Castro. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 60 minutes
Type: Documentary, Year: 1992, Country: Latin America, Format: DVD-R, Language: English, Subtitles: None
Description: A diverse group of Cubans finds itself stuck at a remote bus station. Their shared situation brings them together such that they transform the bus station into a kind of socialist utopia, and when they can finally leave, they … Read more
Description: Breaking new ground in the world of Cuban art, this is the first documentary to focus exclusively on the art and artists from Cuba’s easternmost region: Oriente. This film takes the viewer on an insightful journey where one will … Read more
Description: Nominated for best film award and recipient of the Special Jury’s Prize in Havana’s 1994 film festival, this movie tells the story of a Havana University Physics Professor’s torturous relationship with her daughter during the special Period in Cuba. … Read more
Description: A rare view of what day-to-day life is like for the gay and drag community in modern Cuba. This award-winning documentary is the first since the 1959 revolution to examine the issues gays and transvestites face in the context … Read more
Description: In this animated film, a sequel to the original Vampiros en la Habana, multiple scientific discoveries are made that allow vampires to go out into the sun. Many people want control of the substance, and are willing to fight … Read more
Description: This documentary depicts the story of the two Cuban worlds of Miami and Havana, and the social, cultural, and political processes that have created this divide since 1959. It provides many touching moments that portray the difficulties of this … Read more
Description: Taken from Cuba as a child by his father, Roberto returns to the island 32 years later in search of his mother. He soon finds his American customs in conflict with those of his birthplace. Also, he discovers new … Read more
Description: The story of a young man’s attempt to fight the system is an entertaining, hilarious account of galloping bureaucracy and the tyranny of red tape. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 87 minutes
Description: They were the women a man would silence. Robbed of their dignity and hope, they became his anonymous victims. Political prisoners, wives, mothers, writers, artists, children, lost at sea Forgotten over and over. Once deprived of their voices, they now … Read more
Description: On the history in Cuba of an extensive West Indian community (consisting of people from Jamaica, Barbados, & many others) Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 53 minutes
Description: In Oggun, Gloria Rolando relates the mythical story of the Yoruba god Oggun, the tireless warrior who, enamored of his mother, decided as punishment to imprison himself in the mountains: Only Ochun, goddess of love, succeeded in captivating him … Read more
Description: An impassioned exploration of the roots of black rebellion in nineteenth-century Cuba, based on a famous Cuban anti-slavery novel of the period. Copies: 2 (DVD) Length: 98 minutes
Description: A humorous portrayal of romance, this light comedy presents a typical young Cuban couple, sexually liberated, who nonetheless cannot cope with the affair between his mother and her father. A commentary of the generation gap and machismo. Copies: 2 … Read more
Description: Awarded best film in 1990 at the New York Festival Latino. A theater group in crisis is the setting for this story. Its aging actors, on stage as in life, confront their fears and failures. The story takes a … Read more
Description: This documentary offers a look into the practice of santería and people’s opinion of these practices in Cuba. Directed by Adriana Paris. Copies: 1(VHS) Length: 18 minutes
Description: With the fall of the Soviet Union in 1990 Cuba lost half of its oil imports and survived. The economy shifted from large farms or plantations and reliance on fossil-fuel-based pesticides and fertilizers, to small organic farms and urban … Read more
Description: A documentary about the Congo or Bantu religion in Cuba. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 35 minutes
Description: A documentary exploring what Cubans think and believe about race today. The film intersperses opinions expressed by everyday citizens with interviews of prominent Cuban intellectuals and artists to explore the issue of racial discrimination and inequality, a subject that … Read more
Description: Shot in fluid vérité style, the film focuses on the stubborn survival of deeply-ingrained traditions of machismo and sexism in post-revolutionary society. Teresa is a housewife and mother whose involvement in political and cultural groups incurs the displeasure of … Read more
Description: This is a joyous and colorful three-part musical odyssey that follows the powerful flow of Afro-Cuban music from its origin five centuries ago in Africa and Spain to the contemporary sound of such exciting popular artists as Gloria Estefan, … Read more
Description: Beautifully filmed in Cuba, South Africa, Gambia, Honduras and Venezuela, Salud reveals the human dimension of the worldwide health crisis, and the central role of international cooperation in addressing glaring inequalities. The film examines the remarkable case of Cuba, … Read more
Description: The political, social, and international implications of the custody battle over five-year-old Elián González pitted the U.S. Department of Justice, the Miami Cuban exile community and the Cuban government in a new acrimonious struggle. Documentary footage from Miami, and … Read more
Description: A comedy about the politics of exchanging residences, which reveals the practical problems of everyday life and the conflict between traditional and revolutionary values in modern Cuba. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 105 minutes
Description: A film director embarks upon a search for black women actresses to play the central dramatic role in his next project ? a musical comedy. Rather than opt for an experienced actress, he searches for the freshness and spontaneity … Read more
Description: After the revolution of 1959 and the U.S. embargo that followed, the people of Cuba were left to fend for themselves. Deprived of even the most basic goods, many scavenge alleys and scrap heaps, giving new vitality to the … Read more
Description: A visually stunning film that was made in Cuba between 1961 and 1964 by the acclaimed Soviet director Mikhail Kalatozov (The Cranes Are Flying). The camera work is amazing in this propaganda epic that portrays four vignettes of Cuba … Read more
Description: Silent motion picture footage of the Spanish-Cuban-American War and the subsequent Philippine insurrection produced by Edison pictures between 1898 and 1901. The two conflicts were the first in which the motion picture camera played a role. Most footage is … Read more
Description: Dawn breaks in La Habana, and as the day advances we follow the simple lives of ten ordinary Cubans, with only sounds and images accompanied by music. The film documents a day in the life of Cubans who struggle … Read more
Description: This black and white documentary travels to La Tropical, a Cuban dance club just outside of Havana, where dance, passion and music take precedence over the politics of the nation. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 93 minutes
Description: Based on an incident in Cuban colonial history, this masterful film tells the story of a pious 18th century slave owner who reenacts the last supper, portraying himself as Christ, and with twelve slaves selected to play the disciples. … Read more
Description: A critical comedy of the pain and frustration encountered by a mother of a low income family when she attempts to throw a costly party for her daughter’s fifteenth birthday. The father’s objections (he sees such celebrations as antiquated … Read more
Description: This hilarious animated spoof of horror and gangster movies, presented in an outrageously caricatured style reminiscent of Fritz the Cat, features Professor Von Dracula, a vampire scientist who leaves Transylvania for Cuba, where he invents "Vampisol," a potion that … Read more
Description: An absurd, slyly critical film in which Bebe takes us on a taxi ride through Havana on the day of Santa Bárbara/Chango. Set to the music of Bola de Nieve and Benny Moré, the characters of Mariana, a ballerina, … Read more
Description: A raucous home video is the focus of this hilarious film. What begins as a simple taped message to an expatriate son unveils the complexity and often humorous travails of a contemporary Cuban family. On the eve of Raulitos … Read more
Description: The history of Cuba told through a collage of photos and other archival materials. Copies: 1 Length: 100 minutes
Description: This documentary denounces the CIA’s involvement in internal Cuban affairs and its active aggression against the Cuban government. This film offers a straightforward presentation of facts, and contains footage of actual espionage activities as well as a reading of … Read more
Description: A musical phenomenon in 1960’s Cuba, Los Zafiros brilliant mix of American-inspired Doo-Wop and traditional Latin forms caused an international sensation. Music from the Edge of Time explores the memories of Manuel Galban and Miguel Cancio, the two surviving … Read more
Description: Two short documentaries by Asori Soto about life in Cuba. Zona Afectada, illustrates the hard physical work involved in securing water in Havana, Cuba in order to take a bath. Mosquitos tells the story of how the government deals … Read more
Description: Based on the novel of Alfredo Varela, El río oscuro, this film has been called the last great social-folkloric film produced in Argentina before filmmakers turned to nuevo cine, and the cine de liberación in the 1960s. Copies: 2 … Read more
Description: A moving story about growing up in the pampas, based on the famous autobiographical novel of the same title. Through his deep friendship with an old "gaucho," a boy coming of age becomes fascinated with nature and the mysteries … Read more
Description: “The Garden of Forking Paths” This program traces the modern-era development of the nations and national economies of the Americas, with a focus on Argentina that includes the Peron years, the dictatorship of the 1970s and the Malvinas/Falklands War. … Read more
Description: This documentary discusses Argentina’s current economic crisis by focusing on the effects of neoliberal economic policies implemented in the early 1990s. Subjects such as the “corralito”, pesification, devaluation, piqueteros, neighborhood associations, mass movements, occupied factories, and the effects of … Read more
Description: Marcello Mastroianni stars in this film by the late Maria Luisa Bemberg, one of Latin America’s greatest directors. Mastroianni plays Ludovico, a sophisticated world traveler who retires to a small town and is drawn to the most intelligent woman … Read more
Description: El Día que Me Quieras is a meditation on the last picture taken of Che Guevara, as he lay dead on a table surrounded by his captors. Freddy Alborta, the photographer of the famous image, gives an interview as … Read more
Description: A film biography about Evita Perón, the work seeks to portray the political acumen and skill of a consummate politician–"the power behind the throne"–of the populist Argentine, Juan Perón. The film represents an Argentine perspective grounded in history rather … Read more
Description: The generation gap is taken to the extreme by a group of young people. They have decided to exterminate all senior citizens. Isidro Vidal, the protagonist, is a middle-age man thrown in the midst of this absurd and merciless … Read more
Description: After Argentina declared its independence from Spain in the mid-19th century, Spain fought back by sending its armada across the Atlantic to crush the revolution. To repulse the Spanish, a guerrilla movement sprang up among the gauchos, led by … Read more
Description: Rafael Belvedere makes his living running a restaurant and the combination of a stressful job and familial tensions are wearing him down to a frazzle. It’s been almost a year since he last paid a visit to his mother, … Read more
Description: Set in the 1980s, the film follows the sheltered wife of a wealthy businessman who finds herself face to face with a legacy of terror as she begins to discover that her adopted daughter may have been stolen from … Read more
Description: Three people travel along the lonely roads of Patagonia. Don Justo (80), the retired owner of a warehouse, flees to look for his long-missing dog. Roberto (40), a traveling salesman, follows the same road with an awkward load: a … Read more
Description: Argentine director Eliseo Subiela’s stunning and powerful masterpiece. A man named Rantes suddenly appears in a Buenos Aires psychiatric hospital expertly playing the organ. But who is he –this man with no recorded identity? Beatriz, his only visitor, sees … Read more
Type: Feature Film, Year: 1993, Director: Eliseo Subiela, Country: Argentina, Format: DVD-R, Language: Spanish, Subtitles: English
Description: This Academy award-nominated documentary about the Argentinean mothers’ movement to demand to know the fate of 30,000 "disappeared" sons and daughters is extraordinary. As well as giving an understanding of Argentinean history in the 70’s and 80’s, it shows … Read more
Description: Based on a short story by Jorge Luis Borges. This is the anecdote of the inescapable destiny of Benjamín Otálora, a man from the suburbs of Buenos Aires who became a leader of a band of smugglers in the … Read more
Description: This documentary deals with the development of the life of a group of children living in the street. It reflects diverse individual and group stories revealing the codes that exist between them. The film was shot with two cameras, … Read more
Description: After choir rehearsals, two teenage girls, Amalia and Josefina, get together in the parish church to discuss faith, vocation and kissing. Not far from Josefina’s house is the run-down Hotel Termas, owned by Amalia’s family, where she lives with … Read more
Description: A polished, vastly entertaining and elaborate caper film, as well as a sharp character study that examines the question of honor among thieves. Juan is a small-time crook who gets caught conning a convenience store clerk, and Marcos is … Read more
Description: Petty rivalries erupt into a local civil war in this satire of political and human follies. Based on the novel by Osvaldo Soriano. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 80 minutes
Description: The brutal kidnapping, torture, and killing of six out of seven high school students in 1976 is the subject of this powerful docudrama, a highly-charged, emotionally gripping condemnation of Argentina’s military rulers at that time. One of the students … Read more
Description: Towards 1830, during the government of Juan Manuel de Rosas, the head of a Pampan bunker accompanies a group of women destined to his troops. The main character of this classic film is upset at the presence of women … Read more
Description: With the old maestros of the tango on the verge of dying off, a young musician, Ignacio Varchausky, forms the Tango School Orchestra to ensure that the true spirit of the music is passed on to the next generation. … Read more
Description: This film was a major watershed for the New Latin American Cinema, the source of a renovating movement that some years later spread throughout Latin America. With a new documentary style, the film focused on the undeveloped suburbs of … Read more
Description: Every night a special white train makes its way from the Tucumán province to Buenos Aires. Its passengers are an alternative army of workers who make ends meet by collecting paper and cardboard. The directors observe their engaging protagonists … Read more
Description: The most honored Argentine film of 1990, directed by Miguel Pereira won four Silver Condors and a Silver Bear. It is the story of the life of an Indian boy from birth in one of the most remote parts … Read more
Description: Based on the novel by Octavio Paz, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz: Las trampas de la fe, deals with the life of this Mexican nun. Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz remains in many ways an enigma to … Read more
Description: Based on the best-selling novel by Juan De Recacoechea, about a Bolivian high school teacher who is trying to gain entry into the United States to reunite with his son in Miami. Along the way he falls for a … Read more
Description: “Mirrors of the Heart” This program explores shifting ethnic and racial definitions in the region, looking at Bolivia, a nation with a rich Indian tradition, and Hispaniola, an island divided between two nations –Haiti and the Dominican Republic– with … Read more
Description: On October 9, 1967, Che Guevara was executed by the Bolivian army, aided by the CIA. Ches diary, a detailed, personal account of his futile 11-month attempt to spark a revolution in Bolivia, is the basis of this intimate … Read more
Description: An intimate portrait of the historic electoral campaign that made Evo Morales the first indigenous president of Bolivia. Through direct personal access to Morales, the filmmakers document his interactions with the union of Coca growers who formed his initial … Read more
Description: In this lively road picture, three friends are contracted by a notorious gangster to create a carved statue depicting the Virgin Mary for a religious celebration in Bolivia. Domingo is the one commissioned to carve the life-size figure. After … Read more
Description: This film is a portrait of two brothers who work deep in the silver mines of Cerro Rico, Bolivia. Raised without a father and living on the slopes of the mine, 14-year-old Basilio and his 12-year-old brother must work … Read more
Description: Themes of greed and redemption weave through this story of a young man’s obsessive search for gold. His quest takes him deep into the jungle and into fateful encounters with other “beings” in Bolivia’s tropical region of Cochabamba. Copies: … Read more
Description: These are two short animated films set in Bolivia, one made in Bolivia and the other in Switzerland. In “Paulina,” a condor saves an Aymara girl from being obliged to become a maid in La Paz. In “En camino,” … Read more
Description: A documentary about the efforts to bring alpacas, indigenous animals of the Andes who were sacred in Inca culture, to a community in Northern Peru. Populations of alpacas were devastated during the Spanish conquest. The film depicts this cooperative … Read more
Description: La Boca del Lobo is fiction inspired by the Peruvian army’s November 1983 massacre of 47 men, women and children suspected of terrorism. When the news of the massacre came out, the army blamed Shining Path for the atrocities, … Read more
Description: Camino a la Escuela shows the journey of six kids and a teacher to the education center in the one of Perus most highest and iciest points. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 17 minutes
Description: A story about how cadets rebelling against authority in a military academy end up forming a junta with its own hierarchy and rules. Based on the novel by Mario Vargas Llosa. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 135 minutes
Description: Every year on July 16th the town of Paucartambo celebrates the festival of the Virgen del Carmen, Mamacha Carmen. According to tradition, the beauty of this festival arises from the competition between it and the Virgen del Rosario, the … Read more
Description: Explores the mysteries of an advanced civilization’s disappearance. The miracles of the Incas are presented in this engrossing special by award winning filmmaker Luch Jarvis. Suitable for all ages, but excellent for elementary-school students. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 60 … Read more
Description: A young family, determined to escape the pressures of life in Lima, struggles to exist in the exotic, overgrown Peruvian jungle. Godoy’s autobiographical story is perhaps the most honored Peruvian film of all time. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 112 … Read more
Description: The musical panorama of the region of Lambayeque shows the role placed by musical instruments and genres in delineating different cultural spheres, as well as in the conflict between traditional and modern expressions. Two large areas can be distinguished: … Read more
Description: A short documentary made by British TV focusing on the Shining Path movement within the city of Lima and a few villages. There are extensive interviews with members of this guerilla movement. Knowledge of the present situation in Peru … Read more
Description: This is a promotional travel documentary about Peru and its resources. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 10 minutes
Description: This is a wonderful travelogue about Peru. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 8 minutes
Description: From 1979 to the early 1990s, a guerrilla war in Peru took a huge toll on the countrys economy, and an even greater one on its poorest people. This documentary probes the economic and political roots of the conflict … Read more
Description: The dazzling story of two women raised in different worlds — an immigrant folk dancer from the Andes, and a modern dancer from Queens, NY — who return to Peru to reconnect with their cultural heritage through an astonishing … Read more
Description: At the end of the alpaca’s bearing season, the shepherds of Tata Wara-Wara, a highland village in the region of Arequipa, get ready to perform a deeply rooted Andean tradition known as the tinka de alpaca. This ceremony, in … Read more
Description: Textbooks tell the dramatic story of the imprisoned Inca who paid a ransom of a roomful of gold to the Spanish Conquistador Francisco Pizarro and, for most people, this event in 1532 and the subsequent fall of the Inca … Read more
Description: Tour the natural and historical treasures of one of the world’s most diverse continents, including a meeting with two unique creatures of the Galapagos that intrigued Charles Darwin. Viewers will also travel to the ruins of the ancient Inca … Read more
Description: Based on the Peru-based novel “Aunt Julia and the Scriptwriter” by Mario Vargas Llosa. When radio reporter Martin (Keanu Reeves) falls for his sexy aunt Julia (Barbara Hershey), the station’s zany soap opera writer Pedro (Peter Falk) decides to … Read more
Description: “In Women’s Hands” This program set in Chile, examines the changes women of every social class made when they organized during the Pinochet years to create better living conditions for their families. Copies: 1 (DVD and VHS) Length: 60 … Read more
Description: "Builders of Images" This program explores the arts throughout the Americas, celebrating the extraordinary creative ferment that has attracted global acclaim and given rise to a distinct and increasingly influential Latin American and Caribbean artistic voice. Copies: 1 (VHS) … Read more
Description: Two decades after the devastating region-wide political violence of the 1970s and 1980s, Central America now confronts other forms of violence that have proven to be considerably destructive in their own right. These forms include organized crime, gangs, poverty … Read more
Description: The Buenavista Base was produced in 1994 at Duke University Museum of Art for the exhibit Painting the Maya Universe. Dorie Reents Budent, curator of the exhibit and curator at DUMA explains in this video the importance of this … Read more
Description: (five part series) A co-production of Spanish television and the Smithsonian Institute, this Quincentenary series, narrated by the well known Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, is an excellent historical analysis and creatively filmed story of the encounter of two worlds … Read more
Description: (five part series) A co-production of Spanish television and the Smithsonian Institute, this Quincentenary series, narrated by the well known Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, is an excellent historical analysis and creatively filmed story of the encounter of two worlds … Read more
Description: (five part series) A co-production of Spanish television and the Smithsonian Institute, this Quincentenary series, narrated by the well known Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, is an excellent historical analysis and creatively filmed story of the encounter of two worlds … Read more
Description: (five part series) A co-production of Spanish television and the Smithsonian Institute, this Quincentenary series, narrated by the well known Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, is an excellent historical analysis and creatively filmed story of the encounter of two worlds … Read more
Description: (five part series) A co-production of Spanish television and the Smithsonian Institute, this Quincentenary series, narrated by the well known Mexican novelist Carlos Fuentes, is an excellent historical analysis and creatively filmed story of the encounter of two worlds … Read more
Description: Our universal passion for chocolate goes back over 3,000 years. This documentary explores the history of this divine substance through artifacts, ritual, and obsession; and takes the viewer on a journey from ancient Mesoamerica to Europe’s finest chocolate houses. … Read more
Description: This is a documentary by the Educational Video Network about ancient Maya society. This is intended for younger audiences. Copies: 2 (DVD and VHS) Length: 23 minutes
Description: This documentary features interviews with indigenous activists from North, South, and Central America who gathered at the First Contintental Conference of Indigenous Peoples in July of 1990. Native people speak about the impact on their cultures of the Columbus … Read more
Description: The conquest of the New World in less than 50 years is one of history’s most profound events–and remains one of its greatest adventures. British historian Michael Wood captures the bravery, endurance, greed, cruelty, and suffering involved in these … Read more
Description: The conquest of the New World in less than 50 years is one of history’s most profound events–and remains one of its greates adventures. British historian Michael Wood captures the bravery, endurance, greed, cruelty, and suffering involved in these … Read more
Description: A powerful psychological thriller about one woman’s struggle to heal from the effects of torture. Fifteen years after being tortured and imprisoned by a sadistic doctor, Paulina Escobar, played by Sigourney Weaver, faces a man who may have been … Read more
Description: Through a poetic combination of words and paintings, Dedos De Luna tells the story of Toño and his grandfather, Don Gregorio. They enjoy making masks together, until Don Gregorio dies after making his last mask. Toño must come to … Read more
Description: This film is a montage of scenes from travelogues, dramatic films, industrial films, newsreels, military footage, geography textbook illustrations and political cartoons. Together they explore the stereotyped image of Latin America in popular US media during the 20th century. … Read more
Description: Inner Force visualizes the survival strategies that surge from the love and the talent of women. The 1980’s was a decade of extreme poverty, violence, civil wars, state repression, invasions, political crises, and a loss of institutional credibility. Copies: … Read more
Description: In this rare exclusive interview, Nobel Prize-winner Gabriel Garcia Márquez speaks about his best -selling novels, his role in the Latin American cinema, and his recent foray into–of all things–melodramatic soap opera. By mixing material shot in Colombia and … Read more
Description: John Shea, Sissy Spacek, Jack Lemmon. A young American journalist mysteriously disappears during the violent 1973 military coup in Chile. When his wife and father attempt to find him, they are confronted with a deeply disturbing political reality relating … Read more
Description: On a Honduran mountainside overlooking vast fields of sugar cane, a six-year-old boy named Marlon dreams of becoming an artist. Twelve-year-old Inri dreams of attending university. Little Yorleni simply dreams of having a family. Meet the children of the … Read more
Description: Since it was established in 1946, the United States Army School has trained thousands of Latin American and Caribbean soldiers, among them the former dictators of Argentina, Bolivia, Honduras and Panama. This program shows how officers who studied at … Read more
Description: This is a documentary about the religious life in Latin America. Many of the conquerors saw no contradiction between enslaving the Indians and bringing their souls into Paradise. But turning temples into churches was one thing, and transforming native … Read more
Description: An informative and sensitive documentary that tells the story of Mayan women activists and their courageous fight for indigenous rights in Guatemala. Featuring several outstanding women that are playing an important role in this struggle, including 1992 Nobel Peace … Read more
Description: This film contains two episodes from The Children of the Earth Series. GUATEMALA: Natividad Hernández is a 14-year-old Maya girl, called “Nati” by her friends. Her isolated mountain village retains many traditions which strengthen its sense of identity. But … Read more
Description: German colonizers dominated many coffee estates in Guatemala during the early twentieth century. This documentary takes us through the old coffee baron’s plantations, and examines a new generation of entrepreneurs in key posts within the government behind anonymous company … Read more
Description: Part I-Documents religious paintings in the Merced Iglesia, a colonial church in Antigua. Part II-Documents retablos in the Merced Iglesia. Part III-Documents the rich history of the church of Santo Domingo and the feast of the patron in San … Read more
Description: This television documentary provides a brief history of land distribution efforts in Guatemala and follows a threatened priest leading a landless campesino movement. The program shows the dream of some landless families come true, as they obtain land for … Read more
Description: Several Maya women in the Highland community of Comalapa share their insights into the art of weaving and its place and importance in their lives. Directed by Julia Kellman and Phil Miller and filmed on location in Guatemala and … Read more
Description: Produced by Samuel Franco, director of the Casa K’OJM, a private non-profit educational research center in Antigua, Guatemala dedicated to the preservation of Maya culture through music this video shows us live footage of music during daily life and … Read more
Description: This film, narrated by Edward James Olmos, presents a forceful analysis of the possibilities for radical change through Guatemalan student protest. Shot in urban ghettos, rural villages and jungle encampments, this documentary reveals the immediate and personal struggle of … Read more
Description: The first Guatemalan feature film. Neto is the eleven year old son of a Guatemalan official in the mid-fifties, during a period of turmoil when the elected government was threatened by a U.S. backed invasion. While political unrest forms … Read more
Description: A beautiful recorrida of Tikal, Guatemala’s most visited archeological site. There are aerial views of the sites, close-ups and excellent photography of the landscape around the site. Tikal is shown in detail from every direction, and good explanations of … Read more
Description: A young man is in love with the daughter of a local bar owner in a Chilean village. The young man enlists the help of the famous poet Pablo Neruda to woo his beloved. Copies: 2 (DVD) Length: 76 … Read more
Description: The collections of the poet, the world that surrounds his creative work. This film is an intimate tour of the three houses that Neruda built, accompanied by his words and presence Copies: 1(VHS) Length: 60 minutes
Description: This film investigates the origins and development of the international legal prosecution of former Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet. It explores how a small group of people in Madrid laid the groundwork for his arrest. After Pinochets arrest by Scotland … Read more
Description: This film centers around a young and eccentric radio show host who has a successful program on the air. His anonymous callers tell their stories of love, entanglements, misunderstandings and passionate affairs. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 90 minutes
Description: Documentary on the political situation before the Chilean plebiscite made for Chilean TV. Copies: 1(VHS) Length: 53 minutes
Description: Chile, Obstinate Memory visits with Chileans who experienced Augusto Pinochets coup first-hand. Survivors reminisce as they watch Patricio Guzmáns film The Battle of Chile, recognizing lost comrades and recalling their courage, gaiety, and love of life. Those who were … Read more
Description: Critically acclaimed film about a cinema workshop that works with poor children in the slums, many of whom have never seen a film before, to understand cinema as a mode of expression. Copies: 1 (VHS) Length: 60 minutes
Description: A beautifully photographed and haunting tale of obsession and repressed desire played out against the backdrop of a decaying mansion in Santiago. Glum, middle-aged bachelor Don Andres hires Estela, a 17-year old country girl, to care for his wealthy … Read more
Description: To call attention to the absence of their loved ones, "disappeared" during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet, Chilean women perform the cueca, Chile’s national dance of passion and courtship, poignantly and without partners. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 100 minutes
Description: After the coup detat that occurred on September 11, 1973, the Chilean government initiated an atrocious pursuit against former allies of the overthrown Socialist President, Salvador Allende. A series of house raids were conducted and thousands of people were … Read more
Description: During the Pinchet Regime, opposition politicians were often sent into internal exile to small rural towns. This film tells the story of such a relegado in a remote southern fishing village (Puerto Saavedra) where he finds mystery, love, and … Read more
Description: This documentary portrays the lives of Chiles estimated 15 – 20,000 Romanies (Gypsies) by documenting the stories of three families and their everyday struggles to reconcile their traditional culture with the advantages offered by cultural assimilation. The film brings … Read more
Description: This film includes three stories about football, one of the most important twentieth-century rituals. A third division player from Santiago de Chile is bribed, but does not realize that his behavior betrays more than the loyalty of his team-mates. … Read more
Description: How can it be that after Pinochet’s repressive regime the former general can still count on the unconditional support of so many Chileans? Constructed from a series of portraits that reveal the breadth and complexity of Pinochetism in Chile, … Read more
Type: Documentary, Year: 2001, Country: USA/Chile, Format: DVD-R, Language: English, Subtitles: None
Description: Set in 1973, in Santiago, Chile, Machuca is a poignant coming-of-age film, drawn from the filmmakers childhood. Two boys from different economic backgrounds become great friends, while the conflicts on the streets lead Chile to the bloody and repressive … Read more
Description: This successful television series is the story of how the big changes and events of the century have affected our lives. It is a story told from the experiences of the people. It is a story of big people … Read more
Description: This documentary provides an in-depth look at the social, economic, and environmental impact of the Pascua Lama gold mine in the Huasco Valley of northern Chile. By examining the Canadian Barrick Gold Corporation’s management of the mine, this film … Read more
Description: A short drama set in the past tells a story of how the Mapuche dealt with wrongdoing in the community. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 27 minutes
Description: Adaptation of a story by the Venezuelan writer Guillermo Meneses. A sharp portrait of the lives of blacks, mulattoes and zambos in an urban Venezuelan scenery narrated through the story of a black prostitute in love with a sailor. … Read more
Description: In 2004, Aleida Guevara conducted an exclusive interview with Hugo Chavez, president of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, exploring Venezuelas explosive revolutionary terrain post-April 2002 – when Chavez survived a coup attempt instigated by the United States. Featuring an … Read more
Description: A collection of four short films by Venezuelan filmmaker Joseph Fabry. The first, "Tres Encuentros del Arte Hispanoamericano" (30 min.), explores the broader contours of Latin American art by examining three specific forms: the spiritual architecture of Andean Peru, … Read more
Description: This documentary deals with the rich cultural and musical heritage of the people of the province of Yaracuey in Venezuela. It shows local people’s participation in genres as diverse as folklore music and classical and especially emphasizes the strong … Read more
Description: This daring documentary about political muscle and media manipulation captures the short-lived overthrow of Venezuelan president Hugo Chavez. Two independent filmmakers were present in April 2002, when the president’s powerful political enemies forcibly removed him from office, and when … Read more
Description: To Play and To Fight presents the captivating story of the Venezuelan Youth Orchestra System – an incredible network of hundreds of orchestras formed within most of Venezuela’s towns and villages. Once a modest program designed to expose rural … Read more
Description: The grim and bitter detective Ferran decides the murder of a prominent mobster was not a crime of passion but the result of a deeper conspiracy. He sets out on a journey through the strange universe of Latin American … Read more
Description: This documentary seeks to get beyond the cult of personality of Hugo Chavez to gain a deeper understanding of what the Bolivarian Revolution in Venezuela has meant for many citizens at the local level. Through interviews with government officials, … Read more
Description: A Documentary that delves into the history of the banana. The film starts by explaining the globalization of the banana and its effects on the economy of Honduras. It shows the viewer the hardships and difficulties faced by the … Read more
Description: This powerful and personal documentary tells the story of Elvia Alvarado, a peasant woman who has been struggling for years to enforce an agrarian reform law that has been in the books since 1972. The video provides historical background … Read more
Description: An adaptation for ballet by Antonio Gades, Spain’s leading ballet and flamenco star, of Federico Garcia Lorca’s famous folk tragedy, performed in full costume in a bare Madrid rehearsal hall. Copies: 1 Length: 71 minutes
Description: Nena, Rosa and Ludmilla are three Cuban sisters that arrive in Madrid looking for a better life than the one they left behind in Havana. Their aunt, Maria, has lived in Spain for many years and has a business … Read more
Description: Amid the debris of a Colombian cyclone lands an old man with enormous wings, whose seemingly miraculous anatomy attracts the curious and devout from around the world. Silent and disheveled, this fantastical “creature” is housed in a chicken coop … Read more
Description: This film documents the womens movement in Ecuador and womens increased importance in the community and the economy in which they live. This film explores how womens roles have increased by forming organizations and by obtaining jobs previously only … Read more
Description: This film reveals the story of how the Huaorani–known as the fiercest tribe in the Amazon–are attempting to survive in the Petroleum Age on their own terms, and to outwit and outfight the forces of change. Copies: 2 (DVD … Read more
Description: Five stories about the contradictions and ironies of human conduct, combining satire, tragi-comedy and unexpected conclusions. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 126 minutes
Description: Linda Sara is the first Puerto Rican film to be nominated for an Oscar. This film is about a love that transcends time and a family about to lose the only thing they own: the house they have lived … Read more
Description: A song for love and hope. Santiago is retired by the company to which he has dedicated forty years of his life. He is a widower, his children have problems, and he is bothered by materialism and the crisis … Read more
Description: A simple story about complicated people, this movie is about the casual meeting of two friends who have not seen each other in twentysome years. While beginning with humorous satire and irony, the story takes a dramatic turn. Copies: … Read more
Description: This film by Francis Negrón and Peter Biella examines the impact of AIDS within Hispanic-American communities, focusing on the specific economic, social and cultural factors which influence perception of the AIDS crisis. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 29 minutes
Description: “The Americans” The Americans return to the United States to profile California’s Mexican-American population and the Latin American and Caribbean communities of Miami and New York City. This final episode poses questions about assimilation, national identity and how these … Read more
Description: A moving and powerful portrait of the life of a poor Mexican American boy and his migrant farm worker family, as they struggle to adapt to life in American society. Adapted from the novel “…y no se lo trago … Read more
Description: Oscar Chavez, a great Mexican singer and actor is the leading actor of this story about the life of Pedro Gonzalez, the host of a radio show in 1930s Los Angeles. His life was filled with romance and music … Read more
Description: Four fictional stories set in New York City, but common to many other places United States or the world. Filmed in black and white, the program depicts Latin American immigrants living in New York: day laborers paid to gather … Read more
Description: This film documents the traveling performance of Guillermo Gómez-Peña and Coco Fusco, in which they exhibit themselves as caged Amerindians from an imaginary island, providing a vivid and provocative interpretation of cultural encounters. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 30 minutes
Description: Like many communities across the Southeast, the town of Clinton, North Carolina, has become home to a vibrant and growing Spanish-speaking community. This diverse community of newcomers, who are attracted to the area by jobs in the agriculture and … Read more
Description: This documentary traces the tangled paths and multifaceted identity of a black Cuban family in the Bronx. Both working-class and professional, black and Latino, foreign and native, Spanish-speaking and English-speaking, the family is shown in the constant process of … Read more
Description: This film captures the beauty and richness of San Franciscos annual Day of the Dead celebration. Enjoy scenes from this cross-cultural Mexican tradition that honors ancestors and families. People of all ages celebrate with a festival of marvelous costumes, … Read more
Description: The California Dream suddenly becomes a hilarious nightmare when the entire Latin American population of the Golden State vanishes. For most “the disappearance” forces the cracks in their private lives wide open, including news reporter Lila Rodriguez, the state’s … Read more
Description: Despite Americas 30-year war on drugs, the use of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana remains essentially unchanged. This two-part documentary presents a television history of Americas war on drugs from both sides of the battlefield. The first episode examines the … Read more
Description: Despite Americas 30-year war on drugs, the use of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana remains essentially unchanged. This two-part documentary presents a television history of Americas war on drugs from both sides of the battlefield. The first episode examines the … Read more
Description: Documentary tribute to the late Linda Schele, among the leading scholars of Maya civilization, who in January 1998 gave a long, filmed interview in which she talks freely and frankly in her own inimitable style about her life, work, … Read more
Description: There are over 800,000 students enrolled in migrant education programs in the United States and, of those, only 45-50% ever finish high school. “Escuela”, the sequel to Hannah Weyer’s critically acclaimed documentary “La Boda”, personalizes these glaring statistics through … Read more
Description: This work by Luis Valdez and El Teatro Campesino marked the emergence of film as a distinct cultural and aesthetic practice within the Chicano Movement. In the film, Luis Valdez gives a dramatic interpretation of Rudilfo “Corky” Gonzalez’s epic … Read more
Description: Filmed in San Jose, CA, this work by Rick Tejada Flores documents the art and culture of the low riders, and includes an animated title sequence by Chicano artist Rupert Garcia and music by Jorge Santana. Copies: 3 (DVD … Read more
Description: Set in Indiantown, Florida, a small, agricultural town 30 miles west of West Palm Beach, this film illustrates the challenges of a totally alien environment, exploring issues of identity, cultural integration, migration, and social change. It also demonstrated the … Read more
Description: In this comedy, a Dominican widower, Balbuena (Luisito Martí), decides to leave the economic strictures of island life behind for the streets-are-paved-with-gold promise of the Big Apple. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 104 minutes
Description: In this comically-numbered sequel, Balbuena (Luisito Martí) returns to New York, where he must marry an American citizen to remain in the country legally. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 117 minutes
Description: This film documents the personal experiences and work environments of migrant workers living in North Carolina and examines the impact of their arrival on their newly adopted communities. The debate about whether illegal immigrants should be living and working … Read more
Description: Two stories designed to teach children how to identify numbers, colors and figures in Spanish. Copies: 1 (DVD) Length: 20 minutes
Description: Made by Lourdes Portillo and Susana Muñoz. The very young, the old, and the deceased are all represented in this personal and affectionate filmmaker’s relationship to the history, and present-day celebrations of the Day of the Dead. Copies: 2 … Read more
Description: For decades, U.S. strategists-for-hire have been quietly molding the opinions of voters and the messages of candidates in elections around the world. This documentary is an astounding look at one of their campaigns and its earth-shattering aftermath. With flabbergasting … Read more