Harvard University
Thursday 14
5.30 p.m. Opening Reception
6.45 p.m. Opening Program
Un Mundo Para Raul (Academy / Oscars Award Winner 2013)
Mauro Mueller, 15 min. Mexico, short - Trailer
Alumbrones
Bruce Donnelly, 75 min. Cuba, documentary - Website and trailer
This documentary feature looks at the work and lives of twelve contemporary Cuban artists, living in Havana. Through in-depth interviews, the film covers a diverse range of subjects and issues, from supply shortages and constant blackouts (‘apagones’) to family life, love, sex and music. Visiting each person in their home and studio, the film explores the varying styles, techniques, themes, philosophies and ideas present in their work.
8.30 p.m. US Program – Co-presented by the Independent Film Festival of Boston
El Toro, Juan Diego Ramirez, 5 min. USA, short
Cielo Lindo, Iris Lopez, 10 min. USA, short
Monsters (los Monstruos) Melissa Thompson, Mitchell Wenkus, and Alexander Johnson, 45 min. USA, documentary - Website and trailer
An estimated 42 people a year have been killed in Chicago by the Fisk and Crawford coal-burning plants. Leila, who has lived four blocks from the Fisk plant since she was 9 years old, knew nothing about this until she herself got cancer. This documentary chronicles her journey as a community organizer working alongside more than 60 organizations to get rid of the plants and help heal her community.
Trailer: Monsters (Monstruos) from Greenpeace USA on Vimeo.
Friday 15
5.00 p.m. Central American Program.
Carnada, Carlos Benavides, 14 min. Costa Rica
The Word in the Woods, Jeffrey Gould and Carlos Henriquez Consalvi, 56 min. El Salvador - Website and trailer
During the early 1970s, hundreds of peasants in a remote region of El Salvador began to emulate the early Christians, working the land together and building communities based on solidarity. By the late 1970s, thousands of peasants organized to resist National Guard repression. In the 1980s, the military engaged in scorched earth operations against their villages, beginning a 12-year civil war. The Word in the Woods shares their stories.
6.30 p.m. Selection of Shorts from Spain, A selection of the best shorts shoot in Spain between 2012 – 2013. 105 min. Co-presented by the Belmont World Film Series and Boston Area Spanish Exchange (BASE)
Buenos Aires, Daniel Gil Suarez, 12 min.
Buenos Dias Resistencia, Adrian Orr, 20 min.
Efimera, Diego Modino, 18 min.
El Otro, Jorge Dorado 18 min.
El Ruido Del Mundo, Coke Rioboo, 13 min.
Inertial Love, Jose Esteban Alenda and Cesar Esteban Alenda, 6 min.
La Media Vuelta, Fernando Franco, 17 min.
8.20 p.m. Films About Women (Latin America and Latina/USA). Co-presented by Women in Film and Video New England (WIFVNE)
Courage, Nanda Abella and Michael Martinez, 7 min. short (About breast Cancer)
Goals for Girls: A story of women with balls (Mujeres con Pelotas), Ginger Gentile and Gabriel Balanovsky, 65 min. Argentina, documentary - Website and trailer
In Argentina, where football is a man’s sport, a group of young women from the infamous Villa 31 shantytown in Buenos Aires fight to form their own team. With courage they overcome many obstacles until they realize their dream of competing in the Homeless World Cup in Brazil. Using this story as a starting point, “Goals for Girls: A story of women with balls” investigates the ignored world of women’s football in Argentina. The women of the Villa 31 and players from different backgrounds reveal that family prejudices combined with complete abandonment by local authorities conspire against the development of a sport that has grown worldwide. These players have to fight on and off the field to ensure that the words of the president of FIFA come true: “the future of football belongs to women”.
Northeastern University
Saturday 16
1.30 p.m. Panel on Media and Immigration / Co-presented by the Massachusetts Lawyers Guild
2.30 p.m. 1st Immigration Program
Undocumented, Dana Hodgdon, Gary Novak, Joanne Zielinski, 6 min. USA, Documentary
The Vigil, Jenny Alexander, 54 min. USA, Documentary - Website and trailer
The Vigil Is the story of three immigrant women who, armed with their faith and traditions,
set out to stop America’s most controversial immigration law.
La Vigilia from Jenny Alexander on Vimeo.
4.00 p.m.
The New Entrepreneur’s Manual, Andrew Stehney Vargas, 12 min. Cuba, Documentary
Jamon, Iria Lopez, 10 min. USA, Short Animation
The Rican-ing of White Boy, Paul Louis, 55 min. Puerto Rico, documentary - Trailer and Facebook Page
What happens when a paternally adopted forty seven year old schmuck from Queens, New York, sets out for the first time to meet his long lost Puerto Rican family, after being raised by a tribe of white people? Actor/Filmmaker, Paul Louis (Muller Gonzalez), comically documents his Puerto Rican pilgrimage, with twisted humor, clever insight, Jesus jokes, lots of culture shock, and a surprisingly touching lesson learned on the concept of family, and the spiritual bond that connects us.
5.30 p.m. Co-presented by Boston Area Spanish Exchange (BASE)
El rastrillo se quiere comprometer, Santi Veiga, 14 min. Spain
74 Square Metres (74 Metros Cuadrados) Paola Castillo and Tiziana Panizza, 67 min. Chile, documentary - Trailer
A fantastically well done documentary about urban development and social problems. This Chilean documentary is a social experiment that moves marginalized families into a middle class neighborhood in Valparaiso, Chile.
Teaser documental 74m2 from Errante on Vimeo.
7.00 p.m. Flamenco Program
El hombre equivocado, Roberto Goñi, 17 min. Spain. Short
Sobre Las Olas, Carolina Loyola-Garcia, 100min. USA, documentary - Website and trailer
This documentary gives voice to flamenco singers, guitarists, dancers, and scholars as they explore the tradition and struggles of flamenco as it was established in the U.S. Focusing on the main American contemporary flamenco artists, we experience their creative development while witnessing their inheritance of flamenco’s tragic narrative.
9.00 p.m.
Justice for My Sister, Kimberly Bautista, 70 min. Guatemala, documentary - Website and trailer
This documentary tells the story of Adela, 27, who left home for work one day and never returned. Her ex-boyfriend beat her until she was unrecognizable and left her at the side of the road. Her story is all too familiar in Guatemala, where 6,000 women have been murdered in the last decade. Only 2% of those killers have been sentenced. Adela’s sister Rebeca, 34, is determined to see that Adela’s killer is held accountable. She makes tortillas at home and sells them in order to raise her five children, as well as the three children Adela left behind.
The challenges Rebeca encounters in her search for justice are illustrative of the thousands of other cases like this one in Guatemala. However, her willingness to practically take on the role of investigator while she is still mourning is exceptional. She encounters many setbacks during her three-year battle: a missing police report, a judge accused of killing his own wife, and witnesses who are too afraid to testify. Completely transformed by her struggle, Rebeca emerges as a feminist leader in her rural community with a message for others: justice is possible.
Justice for my Sister trailer from Kimberly Bautista on Vimeo.
Sunday 17
2.00 p.m.
Zero Hour, Dan Carrillo, 8 min. USA, Short (Cannes Film Festival)
The Second Cooler, Ellin Jimmerson, 87 min. USA, documentary - Website and trailer
The Second Cooler is a migrant justice documentary for English and Spanish speaking audiences, which unravels why twelve million Latin American migrants are in the U. S. illegally and brings major implications into focus. The Second Cooler differs from every other documentary to date on the subject. It raises a well-focused question: “Who benefits?” from illegal migration. It has interviews with 25 illegal migrants, including three children under the age of 12.
The Second Cooler Official Trailer-Vimeo Upload 720p from Ellin Jimmerson on Vimeo.
4.00 p.m. Selection of International Shorts. Co-presented by Boston Area Spanish Exchange (BASE)
A Mexican Sound, Roy Germano, 13 min. Mexico
Yemanja, Jon Lewis, 15 min. Brazil
Equacao A Do Amor, Fabio Allon, 21 min. Brazil
Ex-Votos, Ivete Lucas, 19 min. Mexico – Website and trailer
Her pregnancy at risk, a young girl and her mother set out on a pilgrimage to ask the miraculous Saint Francis for divine protection.
Ex-Votos Trailer from Ivete Lucas & OTIS IKE on Vimeo.
Mind of Brando – Ciento Veinte Minutos, Lucas Hugo Guerra, 3 min. Argentina
6.00 p.m. LGBT Program
Planète Rouge, Carlos Ciurlizza, 14 min. Peru, Short - Website and Trailer
Ernesto, a Peruvian filmmaker, goes to Los Angeles to screen his latest short film at a film festival. While there, he meets Olivier on Grindr and they decide to go on a date.
Free to Love, Jorge Oliver, 84 min. Puerto Rico, documentary - Website and trailer
In 2008, a group of diverse Puerto Rican activists come together to organize a grass roots initiative against CR 99, a constitutional marriage amendment measure backed by the religious right. Free to Love chronicles the events that led to the demise of such a measure from the activists’ perspective.
8.00 p.m. Directors Reception
Harvard University
Saturday 23
2.00 p.m. 2nd Immigration Program
El Abuelo. Stephen Crutchfield, 20 min. USA, Short (Autism & Immigration)
The Immigration Paradox, Lourdes Lee Vasquez, 91 min. USA, documentary - Website and trailer
The Immigration Paradox takes a critical and in depth look at immigration. In search for answers and solutions to this complex social issue, Emmy Award winner and filmmaker Lourdes Lee Vasquez sets out to understand why people would risk their lives to come to the U.S. However, over the course of seven years searching for answers and interviewing an array of people from various backgrounds that include economics, sociology, philosophy, history, policy, and activism, her quest takes an unexpected twist.
Why aren’t we finding long term solutions? – Immigration Reform from Deep Focus Cinema on Vimeo.
4.00 p.m. Selection of US Shorts
Wife’s Tale, Gabriela Bello, 10 min.
El Caballero, Xavier Santiago, 15 min.
Zara, Diana Palencia, 15 min.
El Silencio de Veronica, Martin Castañeda, 16 min.
A Truth in Silence, Jonathan Salemi, 17 min.
Windows, David Koff, 22 min.
6.00 p.m.
Promises, Promises, Adel Morales, 6 min. USA, Short
Timoteo’s Fabulous Ragged Circus (El Gran Circo Pobre de Timoteo) Lorena A. Giachino Torrens, 75 min. Chile, documentary - Trailer and Facebook Page
A circus of homosexuals has been touring around Chile for 40 years, setting up in cities and towns with its drag queen show. Its creator is the legendary comedian Timoteo. The circus is a refuge for a whole community, in which they also carry on their day-to-day lives feeling the acceptance of the nomadic clan led by Timoteo. The documentary portrays the life of the comedian at a crucial time: his health has produced uncertainty about the future of the particular world he has created for himself and the members of his circus.
Tráiler documental “El Gran Circo Pobre de Timoteo” from Lorena Giachino on Vimeo.
8.00 p.m.
Beauty Factory, Zachary Kerschberg, 85 min. Venezuela, documentary - Website and trailer
Venezuela has won more international beauty pageants than any other country. With 6 Miss International crowns, 6 Miss World crowns, and 6 Miss Universe crowns, what is it that makes Venezuelan beauty queens so special? Beauty Factory follows five contestants over the course of four months as they compete for the coveted Miss Venezuela crown; offering an intimate look into the world of beauty, and the sometimes-ugly things people do to be a part of it. This film will take you behind the scenes as the girls are told how much weight they must lose, how big their breasts should be, what diet fits them, the length and color of their hair, their gym routine and even what plastic surgeries they need to get. For many of them, the ultimate goal isn’t the Miss Venezuela crown, or even the Miss Universe one. These are smart, savvy women who are using their beauty as a launch pad for something greater.
Excerpt from ‘Beauty Factory’ from RIF/RAF on Vimeo.
Sunday 24
2.00 p.m. Selection of documentaries on Immigration
Paper State: Undocumented, Unafraid, Undeterred, Elena Gaby, 25 min. USA
Four undocumented teenagers in the Hudson Valley, New York, struggle to rise above their legal status and make the transition from high school to college.
The other Side of Immigration, Roy Germano, 55 min. USA - Website and trailer
Based on over 700 interviews in Mexican towns where about half the population has left to work in the United States, The Other Side of Immigration asks why so many Mexicans come to the U.S. and what happens to the families and communities they leave behind. Through an approach that is both subtle and thought-provoking, filmmaker Roy Germano provides a perspective on undocumented immigration rarely witnessed by American eyes, challenging audiences to imagine more creative and effective solutions to the problem.
4.00 p.m. Brazilian Program
A coleção invisível, Bernard Attal, 89 min. Brazil - Trailer and Facebook page
The young Beto ventures to the Brazilian countryside in search of a collection of rare drawings. There he meets Samir, the collector, and his family ruined by the demise of the cocoa plantations. The journey and the encounter will irrevocably change the young man’s soul.
6.00 p.m.
Todos Somos Estrellas (Closing Program / Special Screening 1993), Felipe De Gregory / Ivone Barriga (lead cast), 88 min., Peru, Movie /Comedy - Trailer
A family longs to be on a TV show which does an in-depth expose of a different real-life family every week. When they are finally selected they decide to change their lives completely so that the audience sees them as they want to be seen, not as they really are.
