The Politics of First-Person Documentary in Latin America

900 University Ave,Riverside CA 92521

09 March, 2022

Description

The Politics of First-Person Documentary in Latin America: the Cinema of the Exile as a Key Antecedent The conference will explain how documentaries made in exile—Reflections of a Savage (Gerardo Vallejo, 1978, Spain), Journal inachevé (Marilú Mallet, 1982, Canada)—or in situations of territorial estrangement—Susana (Susana Blaustein Muñoz, 1980, United States), Boulevards du Crépuscule (Edgardo Cozarinsky, 1992, France- Argentina)—were a political and aesthetic antecedent of subjective narratives in non-fiction cinema in Latin America. Unlike what happens in the films of the 21st century, in which the first person is the privileged enunciation strategy that a new generation of filmmakers (Nicolás Prividera, Sandra Kogut, Flavia Castro, among others) choose to express their voice, in these works the irruption of the self is linked to the need to delve into aspects related to personal history when the authors find themselves in situations of exile and identity crisis caused by abandoning their country of origin. This presentation aims to reflect on how the introduction of narratives of the self in Latin American documentaries has produced a permanent tension between the implementation of actions of collective political transformation and the promotion of solipsistic and inbred discourses. In this realm of intersection and disputes, the proposals of a set of non-fiction films have been articulated with contemporary identity politics associated with gender issues, human rights, and political violence.