Category: Social Life and Customs
¿Quien Baila Aqui?
A documentary about the Congo or Bantu religion in Cuba.
Cuba, Religion, Social Life and Customs13 Bak’tun New Maya Perspectives
The Maya word bak’tun signifies a calendric sycle of 400 years of 360 days, and the ancient instriptions indicate that once the 13th bak’tun is reached, the Long Count cycle starts over. These DVDs document the symposium “13 Bak’tun: New Maya Perspectives in 2012,” held October 25 and 26, 2012 at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The symposium placed the calendric reckoning of 2012 within a larger historical and cultural context, including the voices of Maya people.
Recordings of three seperate presentations are available: Part 1: New Maya Perspectives with Victor Montejo; Part 2: Indigenous Land Rights in Belize with Cristina Coc; and Part 3: Curator talk on ancient and living Maya through the photographic lens with George Stuart. Please indicate if you'd like to see all three parts or only one when requesting the film.
A Magia Do Churrasco [Marcos Bassi: The Magic Of Grilling]
For more than four decades, businessman Marcos Bassi surprises us with his creations and knowledge about steaks. With 'A Barbecue Magic' you will learn about choosing the steak, to cutting and preparing the delicious barbecue. Known as the Artisan of the Beef, Marcos Bassi reveals his secrets, highlighting some of his own creations such as Skirt steak and Good-Good steak, in addition to the T-Bone Steak, Wide Beef steak, Bisteca Fiorentina steak, Steak Eye and Whole Picanha.
Biography, Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Social Life and CustomsAjayu
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 CustomsBabas
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, SubjectBay 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, USABrazil Revealed
With panoramic high-definition photography and intimate storytelling, Discovery Atlas shows you a new way to connect with the world. Transport yourself to another land like never before through the collective vision and personal lives of those who live there. You will look through their eyes, dream with their vision, share in their joys, and conquer their challenges. Join us in an extraordinary journey....
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, History, Social Life and CustomsCentral America Close-Up
El Salvador, Guatemala, Social Life and CustomsCineastas 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 CustomsCiudad 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 CustomsComo Agua Para Chocolate
From the literary world of magic realism, this award-winning film adapted from the book by the same title chronicles life in Mexico near the Texas border in the early twentieth century. Unrequited passions, changing political situations and even madness emerge in this highly entertaining and endearing story. The cooking scenes and the portraits of food are spectacular, as are the romantic scenes.
Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Life and Customs, Women's StudiesCoração Do Samba
This is a musical documentary about the contagious rhythm of the samba schools' batteries, their origin, instruments, the different suits and their evolution.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, Music/Dance, Social Life and CustomsCorazon Indio
Part of a video series of the Taller Miradas Antroplogicas, which seeks to recognize the indigenous peoples of Mexico and their participation in Mexican society. This episode documents the presence of indigenous youth in university life.
Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsCuba 15
With passion and uncertainty, Tzunami, a small-town Cuban girl prepares for her quinceañera. The celebration is for her fifteen birthday –the official crossroads between innocence and maturity. This short film won nine international film awards, including the 1998 Berlin Jury Prize for the best short film.
Cuba, Social Life and CustomsCuba Va: The Challenge of the Next Generation
A fast paced weaving of sound bites and interviews that lets young Cubans speak and argue for themselves. What they have to say or sing or rap suggests that everyone born after the revolution has an opinion. Directors/Producers: Gail Dolgin, Vicente Franco. USA (the filmmakers consulted with many Cubans, and filming is entirely in Cuba, but production was done in San Francisco).
Cuba, Latin America, Social Life and Customs, USACuba: Island Of Dreams
Experience a tour through mountains, beaches, and the colorful panorama Cuba has to offer. This video provides pieces of folklore, music, architecture, history, as it shows the major cities of the island. Video Visits.
Cuba, Social Life and Customs, TravelCuban Experimental Short Films
This is a collection of five short experimental videos made by Cuban directors. Here is a brief description of each film: DeMoler (12 min) is a short documentary directed by Angel González about a small sugar mill and its meaning to its workers; Horizontes (3 min) is a silent animated film directed by Yemelí Cruz Revero and Adanoe Lima Cruz; 25 KM (19 min) is a film directed by Jeffery Puento that follows the journey of two Cuban women on their way to church; Freddy o el Sueño de Noel (7 min) is an experimental film directed by Waldo Ramirez that shows short clips of men fishing; Todo Por Ella (20 min), directed by Pavel Giroud, tells the story of a 19 year old male who is caught up in the world of sex, drugs, and debts.
Cuba, Social Life and CustomsCubanos, Los: Bretón Es Un Bebé
This documentary combines social commentary with surrealism to explore the Cuban soul. The filmmakers take the viewer on a trip through the heart of twenty-first-century Cuba, making stops in Pinar del Río, los Acuáticos, Matanzas, Cienfuegos, and Guaraabuya. In each stopping place, local lore and characters help present an overall portrait of Cuban history, society, and culture.
Art, Cuba, Culture/Festivals/Food, Social Life and CustomsDay Of The Dead In Janitzio, The
Experience the ancestral rituals of the Day of the Dead as it takes place in the mystic atmosphere of Jantzio. Watch as the people prepare themselves to receive their dead relatives as they clean and decorate graves and they set beautiful tables or altars in which they place offerings of food, liquor, cigarettes and flowers for the enjoyment of the visiting dead. In the evening the people go to the cemetery to bid farewell to the dead using thousands of candles to guide them on their long journey back.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsDestination Brazil
This documentary follows world traveler Ian Wright through his journeys in Brazil, venturing alongside the Amazon and coast until he reaches Rio. There, Wright provides an informational outlook on both Brazilian culture and the city itself. Viewers will be able to learn more about the place Portuguese, Catholicism and post-colonial history in everyday Brazilian life, as well as witness how unique ceremonies, vibrant landscapes and versatile traditions all weave a rich national heritage.
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Social Life and Customs, TravelDioses Rotos, Los / Broken Gods
Laura, a professor, conducts research for a PhD dissertation that delves into the Havana underworld in search of Albert Yanini, the most famous Cuban pimp from the turn of the twentieth century. Shot to death by his French rivals for control over the Havana prostitution business, Yarini's power of seduction captivate the soul of a culture that both criticizes and reveres him. Recently submitted by Cuba for the Best Foreign Film Oscar, the film is an exploration of Cuban sexuality and masculinity.
Cuba, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Social Life and CustomsFilhas Do Vento
Two sisters from the state of Minas Gerais are reunited after several years apart when their father dies and are forced to confront each other about the ill feelings generated by the hurts of the distant past.
Brazil, Cinema/Theater, Social Life and CustomsFood For The Ancestors: The Mexican Celebration Of The Days Of The Dead
This film documents the weeklong Mexican celebration known as Days of the Dead. This festival honors the memories of loved ones who have died. Food for the Ancestors explores this festival as it takes place in the culturally rich state of Puebla. The program is also very focused on the special food that is made for this celebration. The climatic portion of the film, and of the festival, occurs on November first when family members spend the entire night sitting at self decorated gravesites waiting for their ancestors to return.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsFour Short Films By Joseph Fabry
A collection of four short films by Venezuelan filmmaker Joseph Fabry. The first, "Tres Encuentros del Arte Hispanoamericano" (30 min.), explores the broader contours of Latin American art by examining three specific forms: the spiritual architecture of Andean Peru, the murals of post-revolutionary Mexico, and contemporary sculpture in Venezuela. The second film, "Armando Reveron" (24 min.), profiles the life of a 20th century Venezuelan artist, while the third film, "Carmelo Fernandez" (17 min.) examines the life of 19th century artist and intellectual Carmelo Fernandez. The final film, "Toros, Caballos y Hombres de Valor" (15 min.) examines the Venezuelan sport of coleado, a rodeo-like event in which competitors grab the tail of a bull while riding on horseback.
Art, Social Life and Customs, VenezuelaFuera De Liga
“Fuera de Liga,” a documentary that has circulated the Havana streets, raises the problems that exist in Cuban baseball, those hidden behind the passions that are awoken by the stadiums of Cuba’s national sport. Directed by Ian Padrón and produced by ICAIC, this 68 minute film was never released into theaters. It is presented as a documentary about the baseball team the “Industriales,” an emblem of Cuban baseball, which has won a record 10 national series. The difficult conditions of life for the players as well as many other themes are approached in this film. It also talks about those athletes that left Cuba play professional baseball elsewhere.
Cuba, Social Life and CustomsGeografias Suaves 1
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.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsGeografias 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 CustomsHabanastation
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, SubjectHistorias De Futbol / Soccer Stories
This film includes three stories about football, one of the most important twentieth-century rituals. A third division player from Santiago de Chile is bribed, but does not realize that his behavior betrays more than the loyalty of his team-mates. A boy from Calama, Chile wins the local derby pichanga, a soccer match that can last all afternoon, but he loses the few pesos he acquired by pawning his mother's last possessions. Francisco, a boy from the city, is stuck in a remote corner of the southern island of Chiloé on the day that Chile has to play its qualifying match for the World Cup. The only TV is in the house of the Serón sisters. While the local male population gathers to watch the match, the sisters decide which of them will initiate the young Francisco into love.
Chile, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Politics/Human Rights, Social Life and CustomsIlha 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 CustomsJOGO DE CENA
Brazil, Country/Region, Gender/Sexuality, Social Issues, Social Life and Customs, Subject, Women's StudiesLinda Sara
Linda Sara is the first Puerto Rican film to be nominated for an Oscar. This film is about a love that transcends time and a family about to lose the only thing they own: the house they have lived in since their birth.
Drama, Puerto Rico, Social Life and CustomsLista 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 CustomsMayas U Su’ut Ka’ansah
Filmed in the states of Quintana Roo and Yucatán, "U Su'us Ka'ansah (The Cycle of Teaching) depicts the living ancestral science within Mayan communities. We are given the opportunity to partake in their cultural practices, experiences, and knowledge, as well as their unique ways of thinking. In addition, the documentary reveals ancient Mayan principles which are still present in Yucatán communities today. We are presented with the problems surrounding their language, customs, ceremonies, traditional medicinal practices, products, and land, and how these endanger their cultural identity and ancestral knowledge.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Country/Region, Culture/Festivals/Food, History, Indigenous Peoples, Mexico, Social Life and Customs, SubjectMissao de Pesquisas Folcloricas Cadernetas de Campo
This DVD brings the field notebooks used by the researchers sent to the North and Northeast of the Country in 1938 by the then director of the Department of Culture of Sao Paulo, Mario de Andrade. Material, until now inaccessible to the Folkloric Research Mission, the books were digitized, transcribed and their images edited in an interactive program, in addition to being illustrated by the material recorded by the team, such as photographs, films and phonograms. Navigation can be carried out from each small notebook, with a reading centered on the notes of each researcher, or by the team's itinerary, whose diary organized by Flavia camargo Toni allows diving and understanding of the activities carried out day by day by members of the Mission.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Brazil, Indigenous Peoples, Social Life and CustomsMomias, Las
This film documents “The Accidental Mummies of Guanajuato” exhibition which appeared at the Natural Science Center of Greensboro, NC in 2012. The history of the city of Guanajuato, Mexico, through the lens of its “accidental mummies”, is explained by historians, architects, anthropologists, and forensics teams. The mummies and crypts are carefully preserved and contribute to the city’s rich cultural heritage.
Anthropology/Archaeology, Colonial, Culture/Festivals/Food, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsMujer de Benjamin, La
Seventeen-year old Natividad is bored with her life in her village. Meanwhile Benjamin, fifty something, fat, and the fool of the village, is in love with Natividad. Incited by his friends, Benjamin decides to kidnap her. Leandro, Natividad's boyfriend, interferes in the kidnapping and unleashes a violent episode which determines the fate of Natividad and restores the deteriorated image of Benjamin in the eyes of the villagers.
Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Mexico, Social Life and CustomsMusic Of The Maya
Produced by Samuel Franco, director of the Casa K'OJM, a private non-profit educational research center in Antigua, Guatemala dedicated to the preservation of Maya culture through music this video shows us live footage of music during daily life and special ceremonies throughout Guatemala, particularly in the Highlands. Narrated by Samuel Franco.
Culture/Festivals/Food, Guatemala, Indigenous Peoples, Music/Dance, Social Life and CustomsMy Footsteps In Baragua
On the history in Cuba of an extensive West Indian community (consisting of people from Jamaica, Barbados, & many others)
Anthropology/Archaeology, Cuba, Culture/Festivals/Food, Social Life and CustomsNew Muslim Cool
Jason Perez, a.k.a “Hamza” is a Puerto Rican American man who grew up in Massachussets. Raised as a Catholic, he experienced a conversion to Islam after being imprisoned. This conversion was a turning point in his life and afterwards he formed a rap group through which he expresses bonds of solidarity with the Muslim community in Pittsburgh and in the United States. After his mosque is raided by the FBI for unclear reasons, Hamza begins giving anti-drug talks as a spiritual speaker in a jail of Pittsburgh, where he unites inmates of different racial and religious backgrounds. Hamza also looks for new alliances with a Jewish writer and both of them start using music and poetry as means for spiritual and social expressions through which the youth can channel their aspirations and frustrations.
Politics/Human Rights, Religion, Social Life and Customs, USAÓ Pai, Ó
During the Carnival in the historical site of Pelourinho (Salvador, Bahia, Brazil), we follow the lives of the tenants of a falling-to-pieces tenement house who try to get by using creativity, irony, humor and music.
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Drama, Gender/Sexuality, Music/Dance, Social Life and CustomsPor Primera Vez
Por Primera Vez is a documentary in which the crews of ICAIC’s Moving Cinema visit “Los Mulos,” in the mountains of Baracoa. There, they observe and interact with the peasants of the area who are seeing film for the first time.
Cuba, Social Life and CustomsPrision Insomne, La
This documentary gives the viewer the unfortunate important facets of life and the controversial work of the poet Gabriel de la Concepción Valdés, Plácido, during the first half of the turbulent and contradictory colonial nineteenth century in Cuba. The audiovisual speech reveals different nuances and mysteries about the identity of the bard and the essential features and significance of the poetry staff. The film also delves into their participation in the so-called Escalera Conspiracy against the Spanish government in power at the time.
Art, Country/Region, Cuba, Culture/Festivals/Food, Docudrama, History, Literature, Politics/Human Rights, Social Life and Customs, SubjectProyecto Videoastas Indigenas De La Frontera Sur
Five short documentaries created by the the Indigenous Video Makers Project of the Southern (Mexican) Border: "Te xa wuil a va (Que tengas el poder de mirarte a ti mismo)," directed by Linda Lothe, Cecilia Monroy Cuevas and Roberto Chankin Ortega (10 minutes, Spanish). "Kin santo ta sotzoleb (Dia de muertos en la tierra de los murcielagos)," directed by Pedro Daniel Lopez Lopez (33 minutes, Tzotzil). "Squinal Ixim (Fiesta del Maiz: El Tercer Encuentro del Maiz Maya-Zoque)," directed by Jose Angel Lopez Dominguez and Roberto Alejandro Corzo Leon (16 minutes, Spanish). "Mas de mil años despues...," directed by Pablo Chankin Najbor, Axel kohler and Tim Trench (19 minutes, Lacandon Maya). "La tierra es de quien la trabaja: Keremetik busca autonomia," directed by Pedro Daniel Lopez Lopez and Jose Miguel Hernandez (10 minutes, Spanish).
The objective of the project is the development of a collaborative decolonized anthropology that permits intercultural dialogue and self-representation
Pueblos Indigenas Hoy, Los / Five discs set.
Los Pueblos Indigenas Hoy is a ten part series that is an educational resource about the indigenous peoples of Mexico. Sponsored by the Mexican government, the series aired on Mexican national television in 2010 in honor of the Bicentennial celebration of Mexican independence. It features studio interviews with indigenous people, including rights advocates and leaders. Each program is 55 minutes and is presented in Spanish and using Spanish subtitles to translate interviews, with two programs on each DVD.
DISC 1
Episode 1: "Contribucion indigena en independencia y revolucion" translates to contribution of indigenous peoples to independence and revolution. The episode places emphasis on the current state of indigenous people in Mexico and what can be done to improve. Episode 2: "La lengua como construccion" translates to language as a means of construction. The episode deals with the significance of the native languages of the indigenous peoples and the importance of preserving them.
DISC 2
Episode 3: "Expresiones artisticas y artesanales" translates to artistic expressions. The episode focuses on objects crafted by the indigenous peoples of Mexico and their cultural significance as well as how the modern markets have changed how art is sold. Episode 4: "Pervivencia de una justicia propia" translates to preservation of self justice. The episode deals with the injustice faced by the indigenous peoples of Mexico due to corruption and their desire to govern themselves.
DISC 3
Episode 5: "Los Recursos Naturales y la Vida Indigena" translates to natural resources and indigenous life.The episode talks about the biodiversity in indigenous lands and and what can be done to preserve and honor it. Episode 6: "Musica y Literatura" translates to music and literature. The episode deals with the significance music and literature to the culture of indigenous peoples as well as its current state and what can be done to preserve it.
DISC 4
Episode 7: "Espirtualidad indigena y vida religiosa" translates to indigenous spirituality and religious life. The episode discusses various rituals and customs regarding religion and the effect Catholicism and tourism has had on them. Episode 8: "Salud y Medicina indigena" translates to indigenous health and medicine. The episode deals with the need for traditional medicine in indigenous communities and the clash between traditional and modern medicine.
Raça. 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/ResistanceRegina Vater: Six Videos On Brazil
This video contains six segments in Portuguese with no subtitles. "Turning Sadness Inside Out" (1985, 18 minutes) is about Rio's Carnival. It is basically a musical where the lyrics somehow cements the images. "From Brazil by Brazilians" (1993, 20 minutes) is an experimental video of interviews with five Brazilian intellectuals, mixed with street and country scenes. This segment also shows how Brazilians see themselves and how they feel about the European and American perception of them. "Tupi or not Tupi" (1988, 18 minutes) contains fragments of interviews with filmmaker Vera Figueredo, famous theater director José Celso Martines Correia, writer and scholar Antonio Medina, and American composer John Cage, regarding their feelings about Brazil and Brazilian culture. "Nature Still Alive" (1993, 5 minutes) is a short work about ecology and conscience, computer edited. This segment works in analogical and metaphorical discourse, and is the result of edited images of animals with Regina Vater's "Nature Mortes" (collection of photographs). "Green" (1991, 30 minutes) is a film made for a video installation in the Royal National Museum of Antwerp in 1992. This film is about the destruction of America's ecology and culture by the Europeans. At the same time, it deals with the foods America provided Europe with the discoveries. The last segment of this video (1993, unfinished) contains a fragment of an hour video recording most of Regina Vater's art works from 1979 to 1993. In this video the artist reads a statement on her ideas about art.
Art, Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Environment/Geography, Social Life and CustomsRetrato De Teresa
Shot in fluid vérité style, the film focuses on the stubborn survival of deeply-ingrained traditions of machismo and sexism in post-revolutionary society. Teresa is a housewife and mother whose involvement in political and cultural groups incurs the displeasure of her husband. This film is most appropriate for university students and adults, but may also be used in high school classroom settings.
Cuba, Gender/Sexuality, Social Life and CustomsRomance Da Empregada / The Story Of Fausta
Betty Faria stars as Fausta, a quirky cleaning lady whose sexy swinging hips open the door to a more comfortable life. When an old widower breaks the ice and buys Fausta perfume and a drink, she sees a way out of her dead-end marriage and the shanty town that traps her. The bawdy sitcom hilarity of Fausta and her relationships are infused with a deeper message in the film's startling conclusion.
Brazil, Comedy, Drama, Social Life and CustomsSantiago
This is a documentary about Santiago Badariotti Merlo, an Argentine man who was the butler of the filmmaker and his parents for thirty years in their large home in Brazil. It is made by veteran documentary filmmaker João Moreira Salles, who filmed the material in 1992 but left it unfinished until he returned to it 15 years later. Salles discovered that he was in fact the subject of the documentary, and uses creative editing to show how he orients the directions in Santiago’s life and to reveal the relations of power at play between Santiago and the family. The film is recognized as a reflection on “framing” documentaries, and won “best documentary” in several film festivals. This film was donated by Duke University Visiting Instructor Aaron Lorenz.
Biography, Social Life and CustomsSeis 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 CustomsSobada
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, SubjectTerras
Terras ("Lands") is a documentary about the border of Brazil, Colombia, and Peru, located in the heart of the Amazon. On this triple frontier the twin towns of Leticia (Colombia) and Tabatinga (Brazil) form an urban island surrounded by forest. It is a region marked by a constant flow of people from diverse origins, where ancestral and contemporary cultures live side-by-side. Through photography and sound, Terras explores the concept of frontier beyond the territorial demarcations that divide nations. Immersing itself in the daily lives of the towns and their inhabitants, this documentary uses a poetic and reflective approach to reflect on the relationship and contact between different nationalities, ethnicities, and cultures.
Border, Brazil, Environment/Geography, Indigenous Peoples, Social Life and CustomsThe 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 CustomsUnderground 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 CustomsWar Takes / Tomas De Guerra
For over four years, three Colombian filmmakers turned their cameras on themselves, using personal stories to expose the tough reality in their violent, war-ravaged country. Their portrayal does not aim to confirm the image the outside world has of Colombia as a hotbed of excessive political violence and drug traffic, but instead draws out the beauty and warmth of the people amidst the larger turmoil within their homeland.
Colombia, Politics/Human Rights, Social Life and CustomsWhen 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, USAYAKWA: O BANQUETE DOS ESPIRITOS
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Drama, Indigenous Peoples, Social Life and CustomsYakwa: O Banquete Dos Espiritos
Documenting the most important ritual of the Enauêne-Nawê Indians, the seven months every year that the spirits of the dead are venerated with offerings of food, song, and dance so they will protect the community and bless it with an abundant harvest and great quantities of fish.
Brazil, Culture/Festivals/Food, Drama, Indigenous Peoples, Social Life and Customs