Category: Bolivia
Ajayu
Death in the Aymara culture is an experience in which the mourners, the community, the souls participate together. Age-old rituals, mixed with Catholic symbols assimilated by the people, frame the story of Andres and his young daughter Leonora. Upon drowning in Lake Titikaka, they must find their way to Korimarca (the Aymara Heaven) with help from the members of the community to which they belonged.
Bolivia, Culture/Festivals/Food, Indigenous Peoples, Social Life and CustomsAmerican Visa
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 beautiful prostitute, while his passion for detective novels encourages him to turn to crime and cross paths with corruption.
Bolivia, Migration/ImmigrationAmericas: Part 4
"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 different cultural heritages and attitudes toward their African roots.
Bolivia, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Indigenous Peoples, Latin America, Social IssuesChe, Part II: Guerrilla
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 film traces the factors which result in ultimate failure, as well Guevara's untimely demise. Efforts to attract the support of Bolivian peasantry ultimately fail as Che's band is unable to convince the peasants that supporting them is in their best interests. The insurgency effort becomes more and more desperate as the Bolivian military, with the support of the United States, steadily gains the upper hand in its attempts to quell the rebellion.
Bolivia, Cuba, Docudrama, HistoryChe: The Bolivian Diary
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 filmed portrait.
Bolivia, History, Social Movements/ResistanceCocalero
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 political base, the day-to-day management of the campaign, and attempts to educate voters about the electoral process. The film also explores connections between Morales and other leaders of the New Left in Latin America, as well as the conflicting views about his candidacy among more affluent Bolivians.
Bolivia, Indigenous Peoples, Politics/Human RightsCuestion De Fe, Una
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 carving it, Joaquin, a gambler manages to procure a truck to transport it. They are also joined by Domingo's only friend Pepelucho. Loading the statue upright in the truck they set off on an incredible adventure.
Bolivia, Drama, ReligionDevil’s Miner, The
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 to support their family and afford supplies vital to their education
Bolivia, Social IssuesLa hija de la laguna / Daughter of the Lake
At the height of the Peruvian gold rush, Nelida, an Andean woman able to communicate with water spirits, uses her powers to prevent a mining corporation from destroying the body of water she considers her mother.
A gold deposit valued at billions of dollars lies just beneath Nelida’s lakes and leads farmers and Latin America’s biggest gold producer into conflict.
Nelida is an Andean woman able to communicate with nature’s spirits. She feels she is the daughter of the lakes that provide water to her village.
But just beneath her lakes, Yanacocha, Latin America’s largest gold mine, has discovered a deposit valued at billions of dollars. They have the Peruvian government’s support to mine it, even though it means drying out the lakes.
Farmers who live downstream oppose the project, because they fear running out of water. It’s a life and death struggle. The police have killed five men during the protests and the farmers not only have to confront the political and economic powers, but also the people in their communities who now depend on the small jobs the mine has given them.
When Nelida joins the march from her homeland to Lima, the country’s capital, over a thousand kilometers away, she realizes she’s not alone. There are thousands of people who want to protect the Andean water sources.
Nelida’s story has parallels in Bolivia too, where a group of women live on dried out land. Their water disappeared after years of incessant mining. Then there is Bibi, a Dutch jeweler who exhibits her pieces on spectacular catwalks in Europe and who decides to visit Peru to discover the origin of the gold she uses.
Back in Peru, again, there is retaliation against the protesters. Marco, an ex-priest and Nelida’s mentor, is brutally detained by police whilst sitting in a public square, demonstrating peacefully.
The conflict goes on. We see how, in front of 150 policemen about to evict a peaceful protest at the lakes, Nelida grabs a phone and communicates with journalists in the city of Cajamarca. Her determination prevents a brutal attack. But her participation in these demonstrations has consequences: Nelida’s father, who works for the mine, loses his job.
But this doesn’t change her determination. She goes back to the lakes and prays to the water spirits. She makes them an offering of flowers and the photos of the five farmers killed during this seemingly endless conflict. Finally, Nelida asks her mother for the strength to keep going in her struggle for justice.
Bolivia, Environment/Geography, Indigenous Peoples, Peru, Women's StudiesOro Maldito
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.
Bolivia, Drama, Indigenous Peoples, Social IssuesPaulina Y El Condor/En Camino
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," a highland family moves to the big city to find a better life, but ultimately settles in the jungle, growing coca. (En camino is a silent film, with the German title Unterwags.)
Animated, Bolivia, Drama, Indigenous Peoples, SwitzerlandQati Qati: Susurros de muerte
This is a fiction film based on a short-story from Bolivian Andean region. Fulo, a man from a small village in Bolivia not believe old traditions regarding the existence of souls and spirits. He has to face his wife's mysterious disappearance as a punishment for challenging these ancient beliefs. Winner of the best scenic production award at the 1999 Latin American Film and Video Festival of Indigenous Communities.
Bolivia, Drama, Indigenous Peoples, Social Issues