EU LAC cinema opens up more opportunities for indigenous peoples’ views in a top notch international Film Festival

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EU-LAC cinema opens up more opportunities for indigenous peoples' views in a top-notch international Film Festival

The San Sebastian film festival in Spain is one of the most important annual events in the film industry, bringing together film producers and directors from across the EU and Latin America.

The audio-visual industry can be challenging for young creators, particularly those whose work focuses on indigenous cultures. This is why one of the initial actions of EULAC Cinema has been to promote diversity in cinema EU-LAC co-production by facilitating the participation in San Sebastian Film Festival of two young women film-makers placing special emphasis on the rights of indigenous peoples and minorities.

© San Sebastian International Film Festival, 2024

Two young female filmmakers from Colombia and Peru were selected for their creative vision, social impact, and focus on underrepresented communities, following a call launched last summer,. The two directors were supported by the EU to attend the prestigious San Sebastián Film Festival Forum from 22-26 September 2024, to promote their projects focused on indigenous people on an international stage.

Meet the producers

Paola Andrea Díaz Gómez

Paola Andrea Díaz Gómez, from Colombia, is the creative producer of the project "Somos Historias II", a documentary series that tells stories of resistance and social transformation in communities in Colombia, Bangladesh and Kenya. Trained in the audiovisual laboratory "Historias en Kilómetros", she has led a team that uses cinema as a tool to make visible the struggle for peace, memory and cultural identity in the Global South.

"Historias en Kilómetros is a community film laboratory that provides training, production and dissemination in Colombia, Kenya and Bangladesh. Thanks to the EULAC initiative, we were selected to participate in the latest edition of the San Sebastián Film Festival, in the Industry section, with the documentary series "Somos Historias", a series that brings together the different cultural resistances against social and armed conflict in Colombia", said Ms Gómez.

It was very enriching for the project to be able to have access to different distributors and producers interested in learning more about the voices of these communities and to seek exhibition outlets with them for this initiative that seeks to build peace and memory in a country that is still affected by the war.

"We were also able to talk with different filmmakers about the second season of Somos Historias, which establishes a community cinema bridge between Africa, Asia and Latin America, allowing to know different proposals for its development. This undoubtedly feeds the possibility that regions and communities that have not had spaces for dissemination can be known and thus give a significant place to their voice and their stories."

Jaisia Figueroa (Peru)

Jaisia Figueroa is a Peruvian filmmaker based in Madrid, with studies in Cuba and Spain. Her project focuses on the Yagan indigenous community in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Through the documentary film, Jaisia seeks to recover the ancestral ceremony of Chiejaus, highlighting the traditions and struggles of her people. She has been recognized at international festivals and has a career focused on issues of diversity, migration and indigenous peoples.

"I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to have participated in the industry space of the San Sebastián Festival. I was fortunate to connect with an Italian production company that showed great interest in our project.," said Ms Figueroa.

This festival has been key and strategic for me, since it symbolizes the union of two worlds that I am passionate about: Latin America and Europe.

Being able to start this adventure from Spain, with the help of Originaria Films - a production company founded in 2024 with the firm purpose of giving a voice to underrepresented people and communities - is not only a professional challenge, but also a dream. I am convinced that these stories, so necessary and valuable, will find their place in the film industry".

Discover more about the EU-LAC Cinema initiative encouraging audio-visual cooperation on youth, gender and diversity.