Category: Social Issues
¿Quien Diablos Es Juliette? / Who In The Hell Is Juliette?
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.
Cuba, Drama, Mexico, Social Issues, Social Movements/Resistance, USA25KM
This documentary follows sisters María Dolores and María de los Ángeles Domínguez as they walk 25 kilometers each week from their remote village of El Brujo to Candelaria to attend mass. Part of a trilogy by Jeffrey Puente García (72 Hrs, Para subir al cielo), it reflects the perseverance of rural Catholic communities in Cuba. At its core is Father Yvan Bergeron, a Quebec missionary who served in Candelaria for decades. More than a simple pilgrimage, 25 KM portrays faith, dignity, and resilience in the Domínguez-Martínez family, especially their mother Milagros Díaz, who strives to preserve tradition and spirituality amid hardship and isolation.
Cuba, Drama, Economics/Development, Religion, Social Issues, Women's Studies38 Días
A short reflexive documentary about the search and assassination of Fructuoso Rodríguez a revolutionary and communist student leader by supporters of Batista’s Dictatorship. Rodríguez became the leader of the Federación Estudiantil Universitaria, a group of communist students at Universidad de La Habana who directly opposed Fulgencio Batista’s dictatorship in Cuba during the 1950s, after the previous’ leader Jose José Antonio Echeverría assassination. In the documentary, the surviving members of the FEU and Rodriguez’s friends detail the events that lead to his Assassination, focusing on his last 38 days of life soon after becoming the leader of the FEU.
Biography, Cuba, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceA Cor Do Trabalho
The documentary is part of a set of actions developed by Setre since 2007, including the Call for Support to the Solidarity Economy of the African Matrix, whose objective is to permanently strengthen and value the historical roots of black people. According to the state secretary of Labor and Sports, Nilton Vasconcelos, "the documentary records how the union between solidarity and work constituted a force with the power to transform stories and lives of the black population in Bahia, making positive their experiences, surpassing the adversities and serve as examples and references for later generations. " The film encourages young people to dream of a future different from their parents
Brazil, Economics/Development, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesAbsences
Lulu's husband and 8-year-old son Brandon disappeared from Monterrey Mexico five years ago when a group of armed men hijacked their car. Though she has heard nothing since that time, Lulu, who now lives alone with her daughter, continues to hope for their return. This short documentary gives her platform to narrate her family's experience, one shared by many in a region plagued by violence.
El Salvador, Mexico, Migration/Immigration, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Women's StudiesAcosada: de piel de vibora / Cornered: Made our of snakeskin
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 unaware that this interferes with the interests of a gang of delinquents who turn her into the pursued instead of the pursuer.
Drama, Mexico, Social IssuesAids In The Barrio: Eso No Me Pasa A Mi / This Isn’t Happening To Me
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.
Gender/Sexuality, Latinos/Chicanos, Social Issues, USAAleijadinho: Passion, Glory and Torment
Part of a two DVD set called "Race and History in Brazil." The other DVD in this set is called "Denying Brazil." ALEIJADINHO: PASSION, GLORY AND TORMENT is a fictionalised drama about the life of 18th-century sculptor Antonio Francisco Lisboa, who was known as Aleijadinho. Born the son of a slave, Lisboa struggles with prejudice, mental illness, and disease but never stops expressing himself through his art.
Art, Brazil, Drama, Social IssuesAlias Maria
The Colombian jungle, present day. Maria, a 13-year-old child soldier, grew up in the jungle with the guerrillas. When Maria realizes she is pregnant, she quickly understands that to keep her child, she must hide her pregnancy. One day, the camp commander entrusts Maria with his newborn and asks her to take him to a nearby town.
Colombia, Gender/Sexuality, Social IssuesAlicia En El Pueblo De Las Maravillas
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 arrives. This film by Daniel Diaz Torres mixes absurdity, humor and horror, and was banned because it was believed to be anti-revolutionary.
Cuba, Drama, Social IssuesAlmost Brothers / Quase Dois Irmãos
This searing look at the class struggle in Brazil over a period of four decades is told through the closely linked yet fatallz divided lives of Miguel, a middle-class white rebel, and Jorge, his black childhood friend. Remembering their time of imprisonment by the right wing government in the 1960s, Miguel returns as a progressive politician to the prison where Jorge serves a sentence as a gang leader, to seek his help in changing the cycle of death and poverty.
Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Drama, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesAmericas: Part 1
"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.
Argentina, Economics/Development, History, Latin America, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesAmericas: 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 IssuesAmericas: Part 8
"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 face of strong pressures, both foreign and domestic. The program, set in Colombia, Jamaica and Panama, explores a wide range of threats to sovereignty, from narco-terrorism to foreign intervention.
Colombia, Economics/Development, Jamaica, Latin America, Panama, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesAmores Perros / Love’s a Bitch
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 catapulted into unforeseen dramatic situations.
Drama, Mexico, Social IssuesAngel de Fuego
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 traveling puppeteers preaching the word of God and joins them, eventually entrusting her son to God.
Drama, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesAntonia
From the Producers of City of God and acclaimed writer/director/producer Tata Amaral comes Antônia, a moving soulfoul look into the lives of four women living on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Determined to escape their poveryy stricken lives, the talented younf women form an all=female rap group but find their road to success is riddled with sexism, racism and violence. One by one, they succumb to their frim realitiews, putting the group's future, and their lifelong friendships, in jeopardy. Until they learn that out of struggle comes strength, and out of strength, the courage to continue on.
Subject: Music/Dance, Social Issues, Drama, Women's Studies
Armas de la violencia, Las / The Weapons of Violence
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 and marginality, and are exacerbated by the firearms that entered the region during the years of civil war. Las Armas de la Violencia explores the dimensions, effects, costs (both human and economic,) of these new forms of violence and the responses of Central American societies to their emergence.
Social IssuesAs Américas Têm Cor / The Americas Have Color
"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 for advancing the rights of Afro-descendants in Latin America. The documentary was conceived by the 2010 Census Afro-descendant Group, produced by TV Brasil International, and funded by UNIFEM Brazil and Southern Cone, through its Regional Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Poverty Program." Part of 4-DVD collection, "Coletânea Gênero, Raça e Etnia."
Brazil, Economics/Development, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesAzucar Amarga / Bitter Sugar
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, a disenchanted dancer who longs to escape to Miami. Despite their radically opposed beliefs, Gustavo and Yolanda are inseparable. The city begins to erupt around Gustavo when his rebellious musician brother injects himself with the AIDS virus in suicidal protest, and his father realizes that he will earn more money as a hotel bar pianist than as a doctor.
Cuba, Drama, Social IssuesBabas
This is a documentary about the history of wet nursing among Brazilian families. The film is a reflection on how it had developed over the years in different contexts throughout the twentieth century, from black slaves nursing white children to mothers hiring a nanny. The film uses subjective narration, autobiographical elements, photographs, domestic footage, and newspaper ads to reflect on how genuine affective relationships are nevertheless influenced by a long-range history of racial oppression in Brazil. This film was donated by Duke University Visiting Instructor Aaron Lorenz.
Brazil, Country/Region, History, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, SubjectBanana Split
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 common banana workers and their relationship with the fruit corporations.
Economics/Development, Honduras, Social IssuesBarroco
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.
Art, Cuba, Drama, History, Social IssuesBatalla de Tepoztlan, La
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 is legal and what is not in present civilization.
Economics/Development, Mexico, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesBay of Pigs
This documentary shows the change in Cuba to its communist regime, and the reaction of the United States, particularly with the CIA's plan of the Bay of Pigs invasion.
Cuba, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, Social Movements/Resistance, USABefore Night Falls / Antes que anochezca
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 into trouble: he spends two years in prison, writing letters for other inmates and smuggling out a novel. He befriends Lázaro Gomes Garriles, with whom he lives stateless and in poverty in Manhattan after leaving Cuba. When asked why he writes, he replies cheerfully, "Revenge."
Cuba, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, USABoleto al Paraiso
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. And after robbing a pharmacy, he departs for Havana with a pair of friends. Fate intertwines the lives of the two teenagers and they embark on a "ticket to paradise."
Country/Region, Cuba, Gender/Sexuality, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, SubjectBrainstorm
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 event are. The film is a meditation on the role of journalism in contemporary Cuba; a practice that supposedly has to be combative, investigative, and neutral. What, then, is the real role of journalism?
Cuba, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesBreak of Dawn / Rompe el Alba
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 until he challenged a powerful and corrupt political system.
Drama, Latinos/Chicanos, Social Issues, USABus 174
In 2000, Sandro do Nascimento, a young man from a poor background, held passengers on a bus hostage for four hours. The event was caught live on television. The movie examines the incident and what life is like in the slums and favelas of Rio de Janeiro and how the criminal justice system in Brazil treats the lower classes. Within the film, Padilha interviews former and current street children, members of the Rio police force, the Rio BOPE police team, family members, and sociologists in order to gain insight into what led Nascimento to carry out the hijacking.
Brazil, Docudrama, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesCafé Con Leche: Voices of Exile’s Children
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 the young Cuban-Americans comment on their experiences growing up bi-culturally.
Cuba, History, Latinos/Chicanos, Social Issues, USACanoa: Memoria de un hecho vergonzoso
One of the first powerful statements about the repression of the student movement in 1968 in Mexico. This documentary-style film depicts the case of five young employees of the Autonomous University of Puebla attacked in the small town of San Miguel Canoa by locals who believed the group consisted of dangerous Communist agitators given the anti-student propaganda circulating at the time. Villagers killed two of the students, and almost burned the remaining three alive.
Drama, History, Mexico, Social IssuesCaracoles: New Paths of Resistance
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 international civil society. The video is an open call to join the Zapatista communities in their struggle for recognition of their autonomy and in their fight against neo-liberal economic policies and globalization.
Mexico, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceCarandiru
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 of prisoners rule the actual prison based on their own codes and laws. This rule ends in bloodshed in October 1992 when 300 policemen storm the facility and kill 111 unarmed inmates.
Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Social IssuesCaso Pinochet, El / The Pinochet Case
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 Yard, the film follows the workings of the British legal system that ensued. The film also movingly incorporates the stories of many Chileans who traveled to Madrid to testify, including relatives of the disappeared and others who survived horrifying torture in secret prisons.
Chile, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesChiapas! The Fight for Land and Liberty
Produced by John Alpert and Maryann DeLio; co-produced by the Disarm Educational Fund and the Ecumenical Program on Central America and the Caribbean. Through interviews with peasants and peasant leaders, the Catholic Church, human rights workers and victims of Army abuses, and government officials, this documentary attempts to portray the life of the indigenous in Chiapas and show why and how the revolution of the Zapatista National Liberation Front in 1994 makes sense in their lives.
Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceChild of the Dark
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, using images (mainly pictures and pieces of art) of the favelas. Note: This video doesnt have very good sound quality.
Brazil, Literature, Social IssuesCidade Baixa / The Lower City
Deco and Naldinho are best friends in a constant struggle to earn an honest living in the gritty world of Salvador de Bahia's Lower City. When a beautiful prostitute named Karina asks to hitch a ride, the twosome quickly becomes a threesome. To survive life in the Lower City, the trio must learn to accept each other as lovers, friends and enemies.
Brazil, Drama, Social IssuesCidade De Deus / City Of God
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 with a different eye: the eye of an artist. In the face of impossible odds, his brave ambition to become a professional photographer becomes a window into his world and ultimately his way out.
Brazil, Drama, Social IssuesCine Mambembe / Cinema Discovers Brazil
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 the first time.
Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Social IssuesCineastas Indígenas 1: Kuikuro
This 3-part collection includes six films produced by Indigenous filmmakers Kuikuro, Huni Kui and Panara. Part I includes: Imbé Gikegü, Cheiro de pequi (2006, 36 minutes) and Nguné Elü, O dia em que a lua menstruou (2004, 28 min) by Kuikuro.
Part II includes: Xinã Bena, Novos tempos (2006, 52 min) and Huni Meka: Os Cantos do cipo (2006, 25 min) by Hunikui. Part III includes: Kiarãsâ Yõ Sâty, O amendoim da cutia (2005, 52 min) and Prîara Jõ, Depois do ovo, a Guerra (2008, 15 min) by Panará.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, History, Indigenous Peoples, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsCineastas Indígenas 2: Huni Kuí
This 3-part collection includes six films produced by Indigenous filmmakers Kuikuro, Huni Kui and Panara. Part I includes: Imbé Gikegü, Cheiro de pequi (2006, 36 minutes) and Nguné Elü, O dia em que a lua menstruou (2004, 28 min) by Kuikuro.
Part II includes: Xinã Bena, Novos tempos (2006, 52 min) and Huni Meka: Os Cantos do cipo (2006, 25 min) by Hunikui.
Part III includes: Kiarãsâ Yõ Sâty, O amendoim da cutia (2005, 52 min) and Prîara Jõ, Depois do ovo, a Guerra (2008, 15 min) by Panará.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, History, Indigenous Peoples, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsCineastas Indígenas 3: Panaráí
This 3-part collection includes six films produced by Indigenous filmmakers Kuikuro, Huni Kui and Panara. Part I includes: Imbé Gikegü, Cheiro de pequi (2006, 36 minutes) and Nguné Elü, O dia em que a lua menstruou (2004, 28 min) by Kuikuro. Part II includes: Xinã Bena, Novos tempos (2006, 52 min) and Huni Meka: Os Cantos do cipo (2006, 25 min) by Hunikui.
Part III includes: Kiarãsâ Yõ Sâty, O amendoim da cutia (2005, 52 min) and Prîara Jõ, Depois do ovo, a Guerra (2008, 15 min) by Panará.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, History, Indigenous Peoples, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsCity of Men
Two lifelong friends raised amidst the turmoil of Rio de Janeiro's notorious Pool Hall Hill attempt to navigate the treacherous maze of adulthood after celebrating their 18th birthdays and becoming caught up in the city's endless cycle of violence in director Paulo Morelli's companion piece to the Golden Globe-winning drama City of God. Laranjinha and Acerola may not be bound by blood, but these childhood friends are closer to one another than most brothers. While their friendship has gone a long way in helping them both to cope with the strife that surrounds them, the hard truth is that they will both have to fend for themselves now that they've entered into adulthood. For Laranjinha, entering this stage in life means finding his long-lost father; for Acerola it means finally taking responsibility for his growing family. Now, as Laranjinha's cousin, quick-tempered local drug lord Madrugadão (Jonathan Haagensen), finds his power threatened by his former right-hand man Nefasto (Eduardo BR Piranha), it quickly becomes apparent that a formidable war is brewing in the poverty-stricken shantytown. The brother of Laranjinha's girlfriend, Camila (Naima Silva), looks to be a key component in this battle, threatening to draw a neutral man into a deadly confrontation. Meanwhile, Acerola's wife, Cris (Camila Monteiro), is threatening to move to S?o Paolo so that her family won't be consumed by the violence that has torn apart so many families before.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, Drama, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesCiudad De Mexico Imaginada Por Los Viajeros, La
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 those which best typified the City. Using Nahuatl texts from Montezuma and, the poetry and music of Jim Morrison, the video explores the history of the use of Mexico City by its inhabitants. A collaboration by Nestor García Canclini and researchers at UNAM.
Mexico, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsCiudad En Rojo / City In Red
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 26th of July Movement. Taking place in 1959, the movie narrates how escalating violence bursts out in the tranquil life of people and different social groups in the city. First-time director Rebeca Chávez participated in the clandestine struggle in her teenage years and has characterized the film as "a reflection on violence."
Cuba, Drama, History, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceCiudad, La /The City
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 brick from an abandoned lot struggle to save one crushed when a wall collapses; a young man from Mexico meets a girl from his home village at a quinceañera, then loses her in the maze of a housing project; a homeless puppeteer dreams of a better life for his daughter, but cannot enroll her in school; a sweatshop seamstress needs money for her daughter?s medical treatment, but her employer has not paid her in more than a month. Most of the actors are nonprofessionals and are themselves struggling immigrants, bringing understanding and realism to the film
Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesCivilizadores: Alemanes En Guatemala, Los
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 names. Maya peoples continue to contest the concentration of land, and military and police abuse.
Guatemala, History, Social IssuesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 1
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 on a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: La suerte de la fea a la bonita no le importa; Benjamín; Adiós mama; Noche de bodas; Espías en la ciudad; Sr. X; Hombre que no escucha boleros; Pasajera; Ligerita.
History, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 2
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 on a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: De mesmer, con amor ó té para dos; Sístole diástole; El agujero negro del sol; ¿Que hora es?; El milagro; De jasmín en flor.
Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 3
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 on a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: La maceta; La historia de I y O; Sus demonios; A la otra; Circuito interior; El columpio del diablo; Gertrudis Blues.
Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 4
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 on a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: Azar; Rogelio; Ponchada; E pur si muove; Me voy a escapar; Una bala; Malos presagios; Peor es nada; El pez dorado; Juego de niños.
Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 5
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 a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: ¿Qué me va a hacer?; Cita en el paraíso; Otoñal; Malos hábitos; El árbol de la música; El valor de la amistad; Brusco despertar; La cumbre; Mantis religiosa.
Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesColección De Cortometrajes Mexicanos: Vol. 6
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 on a variety of subjects, people, and lifestyles. Some are comical, some are sad, and some are thought provoking. All of these films are very useful for Spanish Language classes. This specific volume contains the following films: Veneno; La tarde de un matrimonio de clase media; Lávelo y úselo; Un arreglo civilizado para el divorcio; Día de suerte; Encrucijada; El héroe; Contratiempo; El excusado; Pronto saldremos del problema.
Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues, Women's StudiesConjura de Aponte, La
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 to unite slaves and free blacks in order to stop Spanish rule.
Biography, Country/Region, Cuba, History, Social Issues, SubjectDe Nadie
Individuals who leave their countries in hopes of a better life in the United States have a rough road ahead of them. Mexican filmmaker Tin Dirdamal follows a number of refugees in a refugee center in southern Mexico, from whence they hitch illegal rides on freight trains to the northern border.
Border, Mexico, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesdeMoler
Small look at the sugar workers’ feeling when they see their sugar cane mill dismantled. In Guantanamo, very close to the U.S. Naval Base, stood the Central Paraguay sugar mill. It was initially the Las Cañas sugar mill, built in 1877, and after passing through several owners, was purchased in 1909 by the Guantanamo Sugar Company. After the nationalization of foreign companies brought about by the Revolution in 1959, it became Central Paraguay. And in 2002, following the restructuring of the sugar industry, its demolition was decided upon.
The filmmaker, Alejandro Ramirez, documents the painful process of the mill's disappearance and what it means for the workers and residents of the batey (sugar mill town). The sounds of metal fragments falling to the ground, the emotional voices of many of those interviewed, and the magnificent guitar theme that accompanies the footage, transform this act of demolition into a disturbing and vibrant vision of the national sugar industry's reality.
Desigualdades Raciales E Politicas Publicas
A recorded lecture giving historic overview of the black rights movement in Brazil. It explores the institutionalized racism inherent in universalistic public policies and signals the possibilities of implementing other types of public policy.
Brazil, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesDevil’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 IssuesDiablo Nunca Duerme, El
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 life of her family and her community, to a place between reality and fiction.
Mexico, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesDomésticas: O Filme
Five maids in São Paulo are observed in this episodic, impressionistic film. The women interact with each other, ride busses, work, and have longings: Rai for a husband, Créo for her lost daughter, Roxane for a career in modeling. Quitéria is naive, a gull for thieves. Cida has a husband and also a lover. While each woman gets what she wishes for (more or less), it doesn't always make things better. As Roxane says, no child sets out to become a maid. But once there, are all other doors closed?
Brazil, Gender/Sexuality, Social Issues, Women's StudiesDrug Wars: Frontline Documentary Part I
Despite America's 30-year war on drugs, the use of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana remains essentially unchanged. This two-part documentary presents a television history of America's war on drugs from both sides of the battlefield. The first episode examines the impact of crack cocaine on our city streets and our criminal justice system. The report also investigates Mexico's role in supplying drugs for American demand. The second episode recounts the origins of the drug campaign, from the Nixon administration's drug control efforts to the rapid rise and fall of the Colombian drug cartels. PBS documentary from Frontline.
Social Issues, USADrug Wars: Frontline Documentary Part II
Despite America’s 30-year war on drugs, the use of heroin, cocaine, and marijuana remains essentially unchanged. This two-part documentary presents a television history of America’s war on drugs from both sides of the battlefield. The first episode examines the impact of crack cocaine on our city streets and our criminal justice system. The report also investigates Mexico’s role in supplying drugs for American demand. The second episode recounts the origins of the drug campaign, from the Nixon administration’s drug control efforts to the rapid rise and fall of the Colombian drug cartels. PBS documentary from Frontline.
Social Issues, USADrug Wars: The Camarena Story
An undercover DEA stationed in Mexico exposed large-scale marijuana trafficking, which led to his own murder and a high-profile investigation into government corruption.
Parts 1-3 of the made-for-television Tom Brokaw report.
Dust And Lipstick In The Central Plateau / Poeira & batom no Planalto Central
This documentary interviews 50 Brazilian women from varying socio-economic statuses and professions who moved to the area between 1956 and 1960 – a transformative time in the region where most structures and life was in the process of being built. This is a good film for those interested in women studies and the role women played in building Brasilia.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Biography, Brazil, Social Issues, Women's StudiesEl pais de los pueblos
Brazil, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, UncategorizedEles Não Usam Black-Tie
Union leader's son doesn't want to engage in a strike, because his wife is pregnant, thus disregarding his father's tradition of political activism.
Brazil, Drama, Economics/Development, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceElite Squad
Thunderous gun battels and powerhouse performances anchor the groundbreaking story of BOPE, a SWAT-like team at was with the drug lords of Rio de Janeiro. Racing against time, its hard-driving captain puts a pair of rookies through hell in an effort to shape a worthy successor and clear out a drug-infested slum before his imminent retirement. Based on a book by two former real-life BOPE captains, Elite Squad's brutal honesty and raw action focked Brazil to its foundations and gripped viewers worldwide.
Brazil, Social IssuesEn El Camino De Nuestros Antepasados
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 Chichen Itza, and learn about things such as traditional Maya farming practices, ancient Maya religion, and heritage site looting and preservation.
Animated, Anthropology/Archaeology, Country/Region, Environment/Geography, Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social Issues, SubjectEn El Hoyo / In The Pit
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 by endlessly. Rulfo's film places us among these workers. The film chronicles long days of arduous work, risk taking, joking, swearing, and philosophizing.
Economics/Development, Mexico, Social IssuesFor Goodness Sake: Why America Needs Immigration Reform
In February 2011, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill hosted His Eminence Cardinal Roger Mahony. At that time, Cardinal Mahony was head of the nation's largest Roman Catholic archdiocese, the 5-million member Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, which is 70% Latino. In his presentation Mahony drew on scriptural and Catholic social justice doctrine in his call for immigration reform legislation. Also included with this film is selection of interviews with children of undocumented immigrants provided by Cardinal Mahony, as well as a public Q & A following the lecture.
Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, USAFrontera, La (The Exile)
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 a new way to see the world. La Frontera is the most awarded Chilean film in history.
Chile, Drama, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceGeografias Suaves 2
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 communities as well as stories based on folklore and oral tradition from the region.
Docudrama, Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsGuantanamera
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 sly critique of the regime, Alea masterfully weaves in tributes to Death of a Bureaucrat and other works.
Comedy, Cuba, Drama, Social IssuesGuerra Del Cerdo
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 war. Ultimately, the love of a woman shows him that happiness is possible only for those who show the courage to live fully to the end of their days.
Argentina, Drama, Social IssuesGypsies Without Tents / Gitanos Sin Carpas
This documentary portrays the lives of Chile’s 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 us into the families’ homes, their places of worship, the children’s schools, and the markets where the men trade, where the protagonists speak, in the Romani language as well as Spanish, about their lives and their concerns as Chileans and as Romanies.
Chile, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesHabanastation
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 Cuban entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards.
Country/Region, Cuba, Environment/Geography, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, SubjectHarvest Of Loneliness
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 need of laborers who would work the fields of California and other states. This documentary explores the Bracero Program, and immigration reform that sought Mexican workers for temporal guest workers. These workers could not join unions, strike, or seek redress of their grievances, making them vulnearable for exploitation. The program was supposed to boost the economies of both countries, but Mexican wives and children were left behind as husbands traveled north in search of the American Dream. The documentary shows how the main reason for the program was to provide cheap labor without regard for the Mexican families.
Country/Region, Latinos/Chicanos, Mexico, Migration/Immigration, Social Issues, Subject, USAHistorias De Gente Grande
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 that the process of growing old is a construction that combines biology with work, family and society. Due to their diminishing status and lack of social support, these older adults invent survival strategies while they wait for their death.
Art, Biography, Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social IssuesHombre Mirando Al Sureste / Man Facing Southeast
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 him as an intimate and knowing companion. The other patients, intrigued by his mysterious intelligence, see him as their only source of hope.
Argentina, Drama, Social IssuesIlha Das Flores
This is an 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 arbitrarily we have arrived at the human food chain and system of exchange that we now know.
Brazil, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsIntermezzo
In a men’s 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 strikes others as a courageous and noteworthy gesture, raising questions about the true nature of popular political participation. He ultimately finds himself in an awkward position with respect to the reality he lives in.
Cuba, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesJOGO DE CENA
Brazil, Country/Region, Gender/Sexuality, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, Subject, Women's StudiesJovenes Rebeldes
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, gender and sexuality, and relations with the United States. In many ways the Cuban hip-hop scene evokes memories of the culture when it first emerged in the United States in terms of its grassroots character as a form of expression for marginalized youth. Rappers comment on the significance the genre has as a form of cultural expression and social commentary, as well as the danger of Cuban hip-hop progressing down the same path of commercialization that has become so prominent in the United States.
Cuba, Music/Dance, Social IssuesJulio Y Su Angel
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 teaches him the values of life, work, family, and friendship while they embark on an adventure through tropical paradises.
Drama, Mexico, Social IssuesJusticia Esta Con Ella, La
Laws against the violence towards women and their families. Prod: Dinamu-SNV.
Drama, Mexico, Social IssuesKiss Of The Spider Woman (Beso De La Mujer Araña )
Political prisoner Valentín Arregui and homosexual pederast Luis Molina share a Brazilian prison cell in this fantastical drama from Manuel Puig’s book by the same title. Molina helps pass time by recounting memories from one of his favorite films, a wartime romantic thriller that just may also be a Nazi propaganda film, in order to spur Valentin’s imagination and distract him from the brutal realities of political imprisonment and separation from his love.
Brazil, Drama, Social IssuesLa Generacion del Estanbai
The working class of Puerto Rico is shrinking, leaving millennials entering the work force with few options.This film follows the lives of several college graduates and their economic hardships.
Economics/Development, Latinos/Chicanos, Puerto Rico, Social IssuesLand Belongs To Those Who Work It, The (La Tierra Le Pertenece A Quienes La Trabajen)
This documentary discusses the situation in the town of Bolon Aja’aw, located in the north of Chiapas near the famous Agua Azul river system. The federal government sold the land in Bolon Aja’aw to a private company to create an eco-tourism center without the permission of the community members. The video documents a meeting between Zapatista authorities and Mexican Government functionaries, and offers a critical look at the practical implication of so-called eco-tourism.
Mexico, Social IssuesLejania
A dramatic and sensitive analysis of the lejanía, the distance or separation among members of the same family, created by the Cuban revolution. A Cuban mother, now living in Miami, returns to visit her son whom she abandoned 10 years earlier.
Cuba, Drama, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceLey De Herodes, La (Herods Law)
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 town leader. At first, Vargas is the ideal politician: he’s honest, desperate and not terribly ambitious – or so it seems. But eventually, Vargas gives in to overwhelming temptation, bribery, and even violence in this brilliant, tongue-in-cheek story about government treachery.
Comedy, Drama, History, Mexico, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesLife And Debt
A real world look at how the policies of globalization and free trade devastate places. Director Stephanie Black focuses on Jamaica, which has been virtually destroyed from twenty-five years of ‘help’ from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. An important hit at the 2002 Human Rights Watch Film Festival, with a soundtrack by Ziggy Marley and a narration written by Jamaica Kincaid from her book A Small Place.
Jamaica, Social IssuesLista De Espera
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 don’t want to.
Comedy, Cuba, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsLiving Juarez
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 of the War on Drugs have occurred. Among those killed were youths from the neighborhood of Villas de Salvárcar, whom the government had described as gang members. Living Juarez follows the families of the victims as they speak out against Calderón and the violence in this area.
Country/Region, Mexico, Social Issues, SubjectLos Que Se Quedan
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.
Border, Economics/Development, Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesLost Souls
Follow filmmaker Monika Navarro on her eight-year journey to understand the tragedy and triumph of her family history - a history of immigration and deportation, substance abuse and absent fathers, old patterns and new beginnings. In this touching account, Monika manages to pain of her own father's neglect by reconnecting with her Uncle Augie, a drug addict and distant father who had been deported to Mexico and was trying to forge a new life in the wake of his brother's tragic heroin overdose. Taking viewers from San Diego to Guadalajara, to Tijuana and back again, Lost Souls (Animas Perdidas) demonstrates the complex struggle drug addicts and their loved ones must endure, and the importance of forgiveness and support in breaking the generational cycle of substance abuse.
Border, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesMadame Satã
Born to slaves in the arid wasteland of NortBrazil and sold by his mother at the age of 7 for amule, Joao Francisco dos Santos battled all stereotypes on the mean streets of Lapa, Rio de Janeiro. Jailed for 27 of his 76 years, dos Santos was an explosive figure prone to excessive bouts of violence and moments of extreme tenderness the next. Karim Ainouz's extraordinary and complex portrait of the triumphs and tragedy of this colorful personality unfolds against the vibrant, sordid backgrouns of Lapa in the 1930s> a thronging underworld of pimps and whores, of cut-throats, queers and artists, of dark bars and brotherls thick with smoke, drenched in sweat and cheap perfume. A world filled with violence and raw desire, where desperate dreams spring from poverty and squalor.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Drama, Music/Dance, Social IssuesMaestra
In 1961, over 250,000 Cubans joined their country's National Literacy Campaign and taught 707,000 other Cubans to read and write. Almost half of these volunteer teachers were under 18. More than half were women. Narrated by Alice Walker, MAESTRA (Spanish for "Teacher") explores the experiences of eight women who, as young girls, helped eradicate Cuban illiteracy within one year. Interweaving recent interviews, archival footage, and Campaign photos, this lively documentary includes one of the first Cubans of her generation to call herself a feminist and one of the first openly proud members of Cuba's LGBT community. With wit and spirit, all recall negotiating for autonomy and independence in a culture still bound by patriarchal structures.
Cuba, Gender/Sexuality, Literature, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceMan Who Copied, The
omance and intrigue await a poor copy machine operator who learns that counterfeiting and murder are a lethal combination in this enthralling Brazilian thriller that blends good-humored romanticism, poignant social observations and exciting criminal action. Fresh from his success in the acclaimed hit Madame Sat, handsome Lzaro Ramos stars as 20 year-old Andre, a dreamer whose days consist of working at a copying store while at night he draws comic book fantasies and spies on Silvia (Leandra Leal), the beautiful clothing store salesgirl who lives across the street. After he summons enough courage to meet her, their lives take an unpredictable turn when the lure of cash proves to be too great a temptation. In combining magical realism and comedy, director Jorge Furtado creates a new cinematic vision that is propelled by a lively soundtrack and a first-class ensemble cast.
Art, Brazil, Comedy, Drama, Economics/Development, Social IssuesMango Yellow
Short stories revolving around a bar and a hotel in Recife, unveil a mosaic of exotic characters living in the Brazilian underground: a butcher married with an evangelical woman, a necrophile in love with a bar owner, a transvestite, and many others.
Art, Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Social IssuesMaquila: A Tale Of Two Mexicos
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.
Economics/Development, Mexico, Social Issues, USAMargarette’s Feast
The film tells an allegory of Brazil's social struggles without words while making use of Brazilian music. After losing his job, goodhearted but penniless Pedro comes into possession of a miraculous suitcase that never runs out of money, allowing him to throw an extravagant birthday party for his wife.
Art, Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Music/Dance, Social IssuesMaria Llena De Gracia (Maria Full Of Grace)
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 world of international drug trafficking proves to be more than Maria bargained for. This dramatic thriller builds toward a conclusion so powerful and revealing it could only be based on a thousand true stories.
Colombia, Drama, Social IssuesMariachi, El
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 his guitar for a gun and play for his life in this vision of bandido violence in Mexico.
Border, Drama, Mexico, Social Issues, USAMemorias Del Subdesarollo
Set in the early 1960s, the film centers on the Europeanized Cuban intellectual, too idealistic (or lazy) to leave Miami, but too decadent to fit into the new Cuban society. This is both a critique of Revolutionary society and a critique of that critique. It is also the first film from post-revolutionary Cuba to be released in the U.S.
Classic, Drama, Social IssuesMiami-Havana
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 fragmentation, as well as the ideological struggles in both communities. An excellent point of departure for considering the Cuban Revolution, migration and communities of exile. Produced by the Institute for Policy Studies, USA
Cuba, Latinos/Chicanos, Social IssuesMiddle Of The World, The
Romao, illiterate and unemployed, feels destiny drawing him on an odyssey to Rio de Janeiro in pursuit of a job and a decent life. Based on a true story, the movie follows a family of seven on a journay 2000 miles across the hinterlands of Brazil on bicycles. Along the way, director Vicente Amorim beautifully explores the inner dynamics of a family facing a great challenge. The Middle of the World is an unimaginable road movie, both graceful and tender, about having the courage to pursue your dream.
Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Drama, Social Issues, TravelMiel Para Oshun
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 revelations about his family history: though told his mother had abandoned him, Roberto learns from his cousin Pilar that his wealthy father had kidnapped him when fleeing the Revolution- leaving behind his poor black mother. Roberto, Pilar, and a driver named Antonio then take up a journey through Cuba to track her down, only to make more shocking discoveries along the way.
Cuba, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Social IssuesMil Nubes De Paz / A Thousand Clouds Of Peace
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 is haunted by images: each masculine body he sees reminds him of his lover.
Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social IssuesMilk of Sorrow, The / La Teta Asustada
Fausta suffers from "The Milk of Sorrow", an illness transmitted through mother's milk by women who've been raped during Peru's Civil Wars. Stricken with the fear the she's contracted the illness from her mother's break milk -- Fausta goes to extreme lengths to protect her own sexuality and safety. After her mother's sudden death, she finds herself compelled to embark on a frightening journey for re-awakening, freedom and wholeness.
Gender/Sexuality, Peru, Social IssuesMiss Mary
Between pre-war Buenos Aires and the turbulence of Peron's Argentina are remembrances of things past. This is the story of Miss Mary (Julie Christie) the compassionate English governess and the wealthy family that lives and dies by their inflated sense of tradition and of the broad political events and intimate personal dramas that will carve their destinies.
Argentina, Drama, Social IssuesMuerte De Un Burocrata
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
Cuba, Drama, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceMuralla Verde, La
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.
Biography, Drama, Environment/Geography, Peru, Social IssuesNadies, Los
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, one of them used by the children and the other by the directors.
Argentina, Social IssuesNo Nos Tientes
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 a cross-section of the country's population during the forty years of civil war. Recommended for undergraduates and high school students.
Guatemala, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceNuestra Comunidad
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 in the United States is central to this film. Through many interviews with policy-makers, immigrants, religious officials, human rights workers and North Carolina residents, a complete picture of the opinions that fuel the debate is provided here. The film also examines the contours of cultural encounter and prospects for the future for these new southerners.
Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, USANueve Reinas / Nine Queens
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 a big-time swindler who steps in to "arrest" him with the hope of recruiting him for a bigger job obtaining a counterfeit collection of some extremely rare stamps known as the Nine Queens.
Argentina, Drama, Social IssuesO outro lado da rua / The Other Side Of The Street
Regina, a lonely and retired grandmother, defies social expectations maintaining a very active lifestyle in Rio de Janeiro's urban life. She does this largely by supplying the police with tips on criminal activities in the area. When she witnesses what she believes is a murder across the street, she tries to obtain incriminating statements from the supposed perpetrator but in the process her whole world changes...
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Social IssuesOdo Ya! Life With Aids
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.
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Health, Religion, Social IssuesOlvidados, Los
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 are areas of complete misery. Children are malnourished, there are no schools, sanitation is not up to par and delinquents abound. Los Olvidados has been called a work of free art, a testimonial, an aesthetic expression of moral conscience. The film is an effective protest against human cruelty.
Economics/Development, Mexico, Social IssuesOnce Upon a Time in Rio
De and Nina come from opposite worlds; he is a working-class guy who lives in the favelas; she is a high-class student who lives in a bubble of wealth and so-called-safety. Crossing all boundaries of Rio's social apartheid, they end up falling in love at the common-grounds of Ipanema beach. Inevitably, growing from the guts of a magical city, their true love test every limit of a fractured society.
Brazil, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesOro 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 IssuesOur Brand Is Crisis
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 access to think sessions, media training and the making of smear campaigns, we watch how the consultants', including James Carville, marketing strategies shape the relationship between a leader and his people. The film is a shocking example of how the all-American art of branding can affect the "spreading of democracy" overseas.
Social Issues, USAPais de los Pueblos Sin Dueños, El
The documentary features the voices of indigenous peoples, campesinos, Afro-Colombians, trade unionists, students, displaced peoples and all those who mobilized in the Social and Communitarian Minga in October and November of 2008.
Colombia, Economics/Development, Indigenous Peoples, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistancePajaros Tirandole La Escopeta, Los
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.
Comedy, Cuba, Social IssuesPampa Barbara
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 in the frontier territories, remembering the loss of his mother in the hands of an Indian.
Argentina, Social IssuesPerfume De Violetas
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 accomplices, kidnap Yessica. The indifference and selfishness of the adults break the friendship of the two young girls and carry them to the brink of tragedy.
Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social IssuesPinochet’s Last Stand
The drama, based on true events, tells the fascinating story of the surprise 1998 arrest of the former Chilean dictator for crimes against humanity. Armed with diplomatic passport and apparent immunity, the retired general visited Great Britain for a vacation that was to forever change his life - and the prospects for dictators across the globe. Amnesty International spearheaded the long-awaited arrest with the help from the Spanish and British governments, but faced a pro-Pinochet publicity campaign masterminded by one of the dictator's few allies, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. As the dissenting faction pushed for an extradition trial, 500 days passed with Pinochet under house arrest in an exclusive suburban London community.
Biography, Chile, Drama, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesPoto Mitan: Haitian Women, Pillars Of The Global Economy
An exploration of the effects of globalization and neo-liberal policies in Haiti as reflected in the lives and daily struggles of five Haitian women living in Port-Au-Prince. These women tell compelling stories about their experiences working in factories producing items for export for wages that are far from sufficient to meet the cost of living, highlighting the ways in which Haiti has come to serve as a reserve pool of cheap labor for the global marketplace. The film explores themes such as the contraction of the agricultural sector and increased urbanization spawned by neo-liberal policies, the lack of basic services such as healthcare and education, and the gendered dimensions of the violence spawned by widespread poverty in Port-Au-Prince.
Economics/Development, Haiti, Social Issues, Women's StudiesPresumed Guilty / Presunto culpable
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 Hernandez and Layda Negrete, who gained prominence in Mexico when they helped bring about the release of another innocent man from prison. Shot over three years with unprecedented access to the Mexican courts and prisons, this dramatic story is a searing indictment of a justice system that presumes guilt.
Docudrama, Mexico, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/Resistance, SubjectPuño De Hierro, El
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 HIERRO was the first movie that touched upon the issue of drug addiction in Mexico.
Mexico, Social IssuesQati 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 IssuesQuilombo Country: Afrobrazilian Villages In The 21st Century
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 rare footage of two ceremonies and many other celebrations.
Brazil, Social IssuesRaça. Um Filme Sobre A Igualdade
Raça 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 followed these 3 people for a number of years - people they consider are on the frontlines of the country's race debate/divide - in an effort to bring something unique to the public.
Brazil, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, Social Movements/ResistanceRace And History In Brazil: Aleijadinho
This is a special 2-DVD Set. The first DVD is titled "Aleijadinho: Passion, Glory and Torment" and is set in 18th century Brazil - a time when slavery was still the foundation of the Latin American economy. This fascinating historical drama is loosely based on the life of Black sculptor Antonio Francisco Lisboa "Aleijadinho," one of the greatest sculptors of Latin America. The second DVD is a documentary "Denying Brazil," covering 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 soap operas, calling attention to their likely influence on Black People's identity-forming processes.
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Docudrama, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesRaza
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 is often considered taboo and divisive.
Cuba, Social IssuesRight to Mourn
Brazil, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesRodrigo D: No Futuro
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 violence, fear, aimlessness, drugs, and jail, rock and roll emerges as salvation, escape, hope --and agony. Employing a cast of young actors and real-life street toughs – some of whom meet violent ends before the film was released – Rodrigo D invites comparisons to Luis Buñuel's classic Los Olvidados.
Cinema/Theater, Colombia, Social IssuesSeis Historias Brasileiras: Santa Cruz
Seis Historias Brasileiras: 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. The director wanted to show point of views that are rarely shown in the news. The film was originally released as a television series in 2000.
Brazil, Religion, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsShoveling Water
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 plants, the main ingredient of cocaine, with concentrated herbicide as part of the U.S. war on drugs. Listen to people on the ground, hear about the impacts, and learn new ideas about how to solve this deadly problem.
Colombia, Environment/Geography, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Subject, USASituacao Das Mulheres Afrodescedentes Na América Latina, A
"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 Brazil, Costa Rica, Panama, and Colombia, all of whom highlight discrimination against women of color throughout the region. Part of 4-DVD collection, "Coletânea Gênero, Raça e Etnia."
Costa Rica, Economics/Development, Gender/Sexuality, Social Issues, Women's StudiesSobada
Sobada is a documentary about the techniques used by midwives in Mexico in order to help a woman during her pregnancy. The specific technique discussed in the video is called sobada which is a type of abdominal massage. This technique is used by the indigenous midwives in order to make the process of birth easier.
Country/Region, Mexico, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, SubjectSuper Amigos
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.
Mexico, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceThe Spirit Of Samba
The music and dance of samba has gained international predominance in a little more than a century. The spirit of samba can be traced to the state of Bahia on the eastern coast of Brazil. The word itself means "party" and found life when ex-slaves of Bahia moved to the cities, bringing their style of music and dance. This one-hour documentary takes a comprehensive and thorough look at samba, from its origins to its international acclaim and its influence on other styles of music. This video is a celebrated tour of Brazil -- its people, its culture, and the schools of samba in preparation for Carnivale. This documentary includes some wonderful colorful and vibrant footage of the samba and Carnivale, as well as interviews with some of Brazil's shining samba stars.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Music/Dance, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsThe Sugar Curtain /El Telon De Azucar
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, the idealism if the people kept afloat their proud , shared conviction that a new type of society was possible.People were not obsessed with consumption and gain and the basic necessities were provided, along with free education and health care. Here is an intimate portrait of those who lived Cuba's utopian dream during the golden era of the revolution.It is alos a lament for the end of that dream, which began to fizzle after the fall of the Berlin Wall and has since continued on a downward spiral. Through interviews we learn of the disillusionment of the Cuban people suffere- and continue to suffer - seeing the beloved island of their youth turn into a nightmare
Cuba, History, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesThe Year My Parents Went On Vacation / O Ano em Que Meus Pais Saíram de Férias
The year is 1970, and Mauro (Michel Joelsas) is taken to live with his grandfather while his mother and father flee the politically repressive Brazilian regime. As the nation prepares to watch their team compete in the soccer World Cup, Mauro anticipates the return of his parents. When his grandfather dies suddenly, he is set adrift and befriends the characters who live in the surrounding Jewish neighborhood, all the while anxiously awaiting news of his parents' fate.
Brazil, Drama, Migration/Immigration, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/ResistanceThose I Left Behind
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 travel restrictions enacted by the U.S Government and the emotional impact on the lives of four Cuban families.
Country/Region, Cuba, Culture/Festivals/Food, Migration/Immigration, Social Issues, Subject, USATo The Left Of The Father
Based on the eponymous book by award-winning writer Raduan Nassar, the films is set in the Brazilian countryside and focuses on the relationship between a young man, André (Mello), and his religious but caring family. After running away from his Lebanese-Brazilian abode, André has to confront Pedro (Leonardo Medeiros), the older brother determined to convince him to return to the protective cares of their parents played by acclaimed Brazilian actors Raul Cortez and Juliana Carneiro da Cunha. Torn apart by an unresolved incestuous past with his younger sister Ana (Simone Spoladore), Pedro has to choose between a life of utopian freedom, removed from past connections, or, in the case of an eventual return home, a re-engagement with strict patriarchal norms.
Cinema/Theater, Gender/Sexuality, Social IssuesTrabalho Domestico, Trabalho Decente
"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 promoting women's economic rights and empowerment. Produced by TV Brasil International, this documentary series was funded and technically assisted by UNIFEM Brazil and Southern Cone through its Regional Gender, Race, Ethnicity, and Poverty Program. Part of 4-DVD collection, "Coletânea Gênero, Raça e Etnia."
Brazil, Economics/Development, Gender/Sexuality, Social Issues, Women's StudiesTren Blanco, El / The White Train
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 busily going about their work to try to make a living in a country wrecked by financial chaos and economic instability.
Argentina, Economics/Development, Social IssuesTumaco Pacifico
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 by the accumulation of pollution in the sea and connected waterways. Residents live in houses standing on stilts over the ocean, with no proper water or sanitation systems. Residents of the town share their life stories, their modes of earning a living and reflections on their struggle to secure improved working and living conditions and overcome poverty. Award winner, 26th Latin American Film Festival Bordeaux, France (Public Award) & First Award best feature length documentary film 2009 FESALP Film Festival, La Plata. Argentina.
Colombia, Economics/Development, Environment/Geography, Social IssuesUma Mãe Como Eu
This film records the testimonies of mothers in Brazil whose sons have been the victims of police brutality and who have united to fight this systemic problem in their nation.
Brazil, Gender/Sexuality, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/Resistance, Women's StudiesUnderground Railroad In Mexico, The
This film is about the discrimination of the Black population of Mexico, especially in Oaxaca. The film describes the history and the culture of the Black population and how they are trying to gain more awareness and understanding in the community by sharing their culture
History, Indigenous Peoples, Migration/Immigration, Social Issues, Social Life and CustomsVazante
Brazil, 1821. Upon returning from a long trading expedition, a merchant discovers that his wife and newborn have died in labor. Confined to a decaying property in the company of his aging mother-in-law and a group of new African slaves, he marries his wife's young niece, Beatriz. Beginning her new life on the isolated farmhouse in the mountains, Beatriz faces physical and emotional unrest beyond her years, finding solace in the displaced inhabitants around her. Exploring the fraught intersection of feminism, colonialism, and race that has persisted across centuries, Vazante is a beautiful and haunting solo directorial debut from Brazilian filmmaker Daniela Thomas.
Colonial, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, History, Social IssuesVenezuela: Revolution From The Inside Out
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, community memebers and scholars such as former Duke Mellon visiting professor Steve Ellner, the film examines political developments of the last twenty years from the perspective of popular participation. Beginning with a brief discussion of the Caracazo of 1988, the documentary looks at the role that grassroots mobilization in the form of cooperatives and other locally-based organizations in efforts to reshape Venezuelan economy and society.
Economics/Development, Politics/Human Rights, Social Issues, Social Movements/Resistance, VenezuelaVida No Es Facil, La
This documentary examines the issue of the ineligibility of undocumented immigrants for in-state tuition at North Carolina's public universities and how this situation affects the lives of college-aged Latino students. Director Maurice M. Martinez examines this controversial topic through the stories of three such students who were born to poor farm workers in Mexico. They have spent much of their lives in the U.S. and are struggling to find the financial resources to attend college. Other topics covered include misconceptions of the Latino community, the conditions of agricultural labor and the impact of Latinos on the economy.
Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Social Issues, USAVidas secas
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 problem of migration to the Northeast regions of Brazil.
Brazil, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesWar of the CIA in Cuba
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 names of CIA agents known to be active in Cuba. Produced by Cuban television.
Cuba, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesWarrior Of Light
Documentary about artist Yvonne Bezzerra de Mello, a human rights activist and her work with homeless boys in Rio de Janeiro.
Biography, Brazil, Docudrama, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesWaste Land
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 Janeiro. Mixes art with social projects. Addresses issues such as classism.
Art, Brazil, Environment/Geography, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesWe Don’t Play Golf Here
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, soccer, with golf. It is how the golf course is going to affect the people in the surrounding area. Fertilizers and pesticides will pollute the nearby waters, Constructing the golf course would require the government to cut down trees, creating an environmental issue. People who believe in taking care of the natural forests around them were being punished by the military for not agreeing with their course of action. Without an individual voice the people of Mexico came together and had strikes against the golf company, the metal company dumping materials, in order to move toward a more democratic country. Despite globalizing efforts of the government, the people of Tepozitlan will always fight for what they believe in.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Economics/Development, Environment/Geography, Mexico, Politics/Human Rights, Social IssuesWhen The Drum Is Beating
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 journey through Haiti’s culture and history; from French colonialism and bloody revolutions to natural disasters and foreign debt while Septentrional’s beautiful sounds of Haitian voodoo beats and Cuban big band serve as a backdrop. This film contains graphic images.
Colonial, Haiti, History, Music/Dance, Politics/Human Rights, Religion, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, Social Movements/Resistance, USAWhich Way Home
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 as nine years old, these children ride atop the roofs of Mexican freight trains in hopes of getting to the United States. This film centers on the experiences of two teenagers from Honduras, Kevin and Fito, following them as they make their way north. The film explores their experiences undertaking a journey that is harrowing even for the most resourceful of adults. Interviews with migrant children,immigration officials, and parents back home reveal the myriad dangers these children face and their determination to brave these dangers in hopes of obtaining a better life.
Cuba, Latinos/Chicanos, Migration/Immigration, Social IssuesY tu mamá también
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 the young cast and a subtle glimpse into Mexican life and its politics.
Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Issues