Browse Titles - 7 results
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Discovering Dominga
directed by Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002; produced by Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002, Jaguar House Films (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2002), 57 mins
This unforgettably dramatic and powerful documentary relates the extraordinary story of a young Iowa housewife who discovers she is a survivor of one of the most horrific massacres in Guatemalan history, committed in 1982 against Maya Indian villagers who resisted a dam project funded by the World Bank. The film f...
Sample
directed by Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002; produced by Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002, Jaguar House Films (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2002), 57 mins
Description
This unforgettably dramatic and powerful documentary relates the extraordinary story of a young Iowa housewife who discovers she is a survivor of one of the most horrific massacres in Guatemalan history, committed in 1982 against Maya Indian villagers who resisted a dam project funded by the World Bank. The film follows her remarkable journey of transformation and discovery as she returns to Guatemala in search of her heritage and ultimately join...
This unforgettably dramatic and powerful documentary relates the extraordinary story of a young Iowa housewife who discovers she is a survivor of one of the most horrific massacres in Guatemalan history, committed in 1982 against Maya Indian villagers who resisted a dam project funded by the World Bank. The film follows her remarkable journey of transformation and discovery as she returns to Guatemala in search of her heritage and ultimately joins efforts to bring the perpetrators of the massacre to justice and to promote peace and reconciliation in her native country.Dominga Sic Ruiz was nine years old when, during the bloody Guatemalan civil war, she escaped while paramilitary and army forces murdered her mother and 76 other women and 107 children in the Maya village of Rio Negro. She was eventually adopted and grew up in small-town America, where she became a "normal" teenager named Denese and later married. She buried her past so deeply it became transformed in adulthood into doubts and nightmares, until events brought her to face the truth.Beautifully photographed in Iowa and amid the stunning landscapes of the Guatemalan highlands, the film follows her emotional reconnection with lost relatives, with a rich indigenous culture, and with the violent history in which her beloved adopted country -- the United States -- played a sinister role. Dominga joins the Maya community in the dangerous effort to demand the exhumation of a clandestine mass grave, and later provides testimony in a landmark genocide case, thus becoming part of a global grassroots struggle for justice and human rights."Discovering Dominga" is a compelling and inspiring story that will engage student interest and provoke reflection and discussion in a wide variety of courses in Latin American studies, cultural anthropology, Third World studies, human rights, women's studies, American history and studies, and sociology. It was produced and directed by Patricia Flynn and co-produced by Mary Jo McConahay for the Independent Television Service (ITVS) in association with KQED with funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
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Field of Study
Global Issues
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002, Jaguar House Films
Author / Creator
Patricia Flynn, fl. 2002
Date Published / Released
2002
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Civil war, Peace processes, Criminal justice, Survivors, Guatemalans
Copyright Message
Copyright © 2002 Berkeley Media
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Losing Knowledge: 50 Years of Change
directed by Laura Nader, 1930- and Roberto J. González, 1969-; produced by Laura Nader, 1930- and Roberto J. González, 1969- (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2012), 40 mins
This profound ethnographic documentary explores the myriad of ways in which centuries-old indigenous knowledge is rapidly vanishing throughout the world. The film focuses on the southern Mexican village of Talea, Oaxaca. For half a century, the Zapotec people of this region have experienced rapid modernization: Th...
Sample
directed by Laura Nader, 1930- and Roberto J. González, 1969-; produced by Laura Nader, 1930- and Roberto J. González, 1969- (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2012), 40 mins
Description
This profound ethnographic documentary explores the myriad of ways in which centuries-old indigenous knowledge is rapidly vanishing throughout the world. The film focuses on the southern Mexican village of Talea, Oaxaca. For half a century, the Zapotec people of this region have experienced rapid modernization: The creation of a road linking the village to cities, the arrival of electricity, and the introduction of computers and Internet have all...
This profound ethnographic documentary explores the myriad of ways in which centuries-old indigenous knowledge is rapidly vanishing throughout the world. The film focuses on the southern Mexican village of Talea, Oaxaca. For half a century, the Zapotec people of this region have experienced rapid modernization: The creation of a road linking the village to cities, the arrival of electricity, and the introduction of computers and Internet have all transformed the texture of daily life. However, the people of Talea have often experienced progress as a double-edged sword. Farmers are now able to export coffee and other cash crops, but many of their children have migrated to the United States and today, fertile fields lay abandoned. Governance was once a village affair, but state and national government has disrupted and sometimes displaced local political autonomy. Most new buildings in Talea are constructed with imported concrete, not with regional materials. And traditional healing practices are rapidly being displaced by Western biomedicine. By exploring the transformation of agriculture, governance, architecture, and medical practices in the village, filmmaker/anthropologists Laura Nader and Roberto Gonzalez pose a series of provocative questions: Is it possible that 50 years of development has done more to unravel local culture than 500 years of conquest? What are the long-term implications of the knowledge that has been lost? Is there any possibility these processes might be reversed? The film also examines how disappearing indigenous knowledge isn't just a Zapotec problem. It is a global problem, for throughout the world, local knowledge developed over centuries -- a priceless intellectual treasure trove -- is withering away at an alarming rate. Losing Knowledge is both insightful and poignant. It will engage students and engender thought and discussion in a wide range of classes in cultural anthropology, Latin American studies, development issues and economics, and third-World studies. It was produced and directed by Laura Nader (University of California, Berkeley) and Roberto Gonzalez (San Jose State University).
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Laura Nader, 1930-, Roberto J. González, 1969-
Author / Creator
Laura Nader, 1930-, Roberto J. González, 1969-
Date Published / Released
2012
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Mexico and the United States Border, Agriculture, Immigration and emigration, Anthropology, Zapotec, 21st Century in World History (2001– )
Copyright Message
Copyright © 2012 Berkeley Media
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Mined to Death
directed by Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015; produced by Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2006), 39 mins
Working at an elevation of 16,000 feet, Quechua-speaking miners in Potosi, Bolivia, dig out zinc, tin, and silver much like their Incan ancestors did more than five centuries ago. This poignant documentary explores the lives and work of the miners as the veins of ore in the sacred mountain they are mining become i...
Sample
directed by Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015; produced by Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2006), 39 mins
Description
Working at an elevation of 16,000 feet, Quechua-speaking miners in Potosi, Bolivia, dig out zinc, tin, and silver much like their Incan ancestors did more than five centuries ago. This poignant documentary explores the lives and work of the miners as the veins of ore in the sacred mountain they are mining become increasingly depleted and ever more difficult to discover and remove. Rising more than three miles above sea level, the crusty red mount...
Working at an elevation of 16,000 feet, Quechua-speaking miners in Potosi, Bolivia, dig out zinc, tin, and silver much like their Incan ancestors did more than five centuries ago. This poignant documentary explores the lives and work of the miners as the veins of ore in the sacred mountain they are mining become increasingly depleted and ever more difficult to discover and remove. Rising more than three miles above sea level, the crusty red mountain of Sumaq Orqo dominates the landscape of Potosi, just as it did in the time of the Inca. More than 550 years of mining has marred its cone-shaped mass, and stone openings lead down vertiginous dark shafts to galleries where ore is dug out by pick ax and, where possible, by mechanized drills. Over the centuries it is said that some eight million Indian miners have died working the mines.Today 28 indigenous mining cooperatives eke out a living on the mountain. They drill into the veins of ore, fill the mining carts, and drag the carts up to the surface. Commentary by the miners, their wives, and their children powerfully convey the hardships and tragedies of life in the Andes. A few miners who have escaped the hard labor of the mines now return to the shafts -- guiding tourists. For $10, tourists can experience first-hand the perils of the mines: noxious gases, unprotected paths, extreme heat and cold, and little to eat or drink for several hours while walking through the bowels of the earth. Interviews with European and American tourists reveal their conflicted emotions after witnessing these harsh conditions. Miners put their faith in the subterranean deity called Tio, who they hope will lead them to a rich vein of ore and protect them as they blast out the metal. Transnational mining companies, however, predict an end to the mining on Potosi mountain. Like the miners, the mountain is exhausted and dying a slow, difficult death. Mined to Death provides an illuminating case study of suffering and hardship that is common among indigenous peoples in the developing, post-colonial world. Its dramatic visuals and forthright testimony will engage students and inspire discussion in a variety of courses in cultural anthropology, Latin American and Andean studies, development studies, tourist studies, and human rights. It was produced and filmed by Prof. Regina Harrison, University of Maryland, who also produced the acclaimed "Cashing in on Culture: Indigenous Communities and Tourism."
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015
Author / Creator
Regina Harrison, fl. 2002-2015
Date Published / Released
2006
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Global Indigenous Perspectives, Tourism industry, Working conditions, Mining industry, Ecology, Quechan, 21st Century in World History (2001– )
Copyright Message
Copyright © 2006 Berkeley Media
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Six Billion and Beyond
presented by Blythe Danner, 1943-; produced by Linda Harrar, Linda Harrar Productions (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 1999), 57 mins
Half of the world's six billion people are under the age of 25. The decisions they make about how many children to have, and when to have them, will be critical in shaping life on earth in the next 50 years. But what factors are shaping these young people's decisions? This thought-provoking documentary is, stated...
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presented by Blythe Danner, 1943-; produced by Linda Harrar, Linda Harrar Productions (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 1999), 57 mins
Description
Half of the world's six billion people are under the age of 25. The decisions they make about how many children to have, and when to have them, will be critical in shaping life on earth in the next 50 years. But what factors are shaping these young people's decisions? This thought-provoking documentary is, stated simply, the best and most comprehensive introduction available on video to the interconnected issues of population growth, economic dev...
Half of the world's six billion people are under the age of 25. The decisions they make about how many children to have, and when to have them, will be critical in shaping life on earth in the next 50 years. But what factors are shaping these young people's decisions? This thought-provoking documentary is, stated simply, the best and most comprehensive introduction available on video to the interconnected issues of population growth, economic development, equal rights and opportunities for women, and environmental protection around the world. The film interweaves expert commentary with incisive portraits of young people in six diverse countries -- Mexico, Italy, Kenya, India, China, and the USA -- to illustrate how young people are making decisions about their lifestyles, patterns of consumption, and reproductive choices. The film demonstrates how these decisions will have an extraordinary impact on the world's environment, and how in turn the condition of the environment will strongly affect the quality of people's lives everywhere. "Six Billion and Beyond" is a seminal work that will richly reward showing in a wide range of courses on economic development, population issues, the environment, sociology, and women's studies. It was produced by Linda Harrar Productions and is hosted and narrated by noted actress Blythe Danner.
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Linda Harrar, Linda Harrar Productions
Author / Creator
Blythe Danner, 1943-
Date Published / Released
1999
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Human Population Growth, Youth, Population growth, Women's rights, Reproductive rights, Environmental impact analysis, History, Ecology, North Americans, Chinese, Indians (Asian), Kenyans, Italians, Mexicans, 20th Century in World History (1914--2000)
Copyright Message
Copyright © 1999 Berkeley Media
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To Live with Herds
directed by David MacDougall, 1939-; produced by Judith MacDougall, fl. 1970-2011 and David MacDougall, 1939-, University of California. Extension Media Center (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 1974), 1 hour 10 mins
This classic, widely acclaimed film on the Jie of Uganda, produced by the renowned ethnographic filmmaking team of David and Judith MacDougall, examines the effects of nation building in pre-Amin Uganda on the seminomadic, pastoral Jie. Much more than an intrinsically interesting historical document, it has achiev...
Sample
directed by David MacDougall, 1939-; produced by Judith MacDougall, fl. 1970-2011 and David MacDougall, 1939-, University of California. Extension Media Center (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 1974), 1 hour 10 mins
Description
This classic, widely acclaimed film on the Jie of Uganda, produced by the renowned ethnographic filmmaking team of David and Judith MacDougall, examines the effects of nation building in pre-Amin Uganda on the seminomadic, pastoral Jie. Much more than an intrinsically interesting historical document, it has achieved classic status among ethnographic films owing to its remarkable success in developing a coherent analytical statement about its subj...
This classic, widely acclaimed film on the Jie of Uganda, produced by the renowned ethnographic filmmaking team of David and Judith MacDougall, examines the effects of nation building in pre-Amin Uganda on the seminomadic, pastoral Jie. Much more than an intrinsically interesting historical document, it has achieved classic status among ethnographic films owing to its remarkable success in developing a coherent analytical statement about its subjects' situation, yet at the same time allowing them to speak for themselves about the world as they see and experience it. The film explores life in a traditional Jie homestead during a harsh dry season. The talk and work of adults go on, but there is also hardship and worry, exacerbated by government policies that seem to attack rather than support the values and economic base of Jie society. A mother counts her children; among them is a son she hardly knows who has joined the educated bureaucracy. Later we find him supervising famine relief for his own people in a situation that seems far beyond his control. At the end of the film Logoth, the protector of the homestead, travels to the west to rejoin his herds in an area of relative plenty; at least for the time being his life seems free from official interference.
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
David MacDougall, 1939-, Judith MacDougall, fl. 1970-2011, University of California. Extension Media Center
Author / Creator
David MacDougall, 1939-, Judith MacDougall, fl. 1970-2011
Date Published / Released
1971, 1974
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Benin and Nigeria Border, Living conditions, Government programs, Government policy, Cultural identity, Law, Sociology, Jie, 20th Century in World History (1914--2000)
Copyright Message
Copyright © 1974 Berkeley Media
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Trees Tropiques
directed by Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009; produced by Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2010), 31 mins
This innovative and thought-provoking documentary subtly explores the difficult issues that arise when the ethics of deforestation and the ethnographic encounter intersect. The film incisively poses the question: “Who has the right to cut… both trees and film footage?” Seemingly an observational ethnographic...
Sample
directed by Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009; produced by Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2010), 31 mins
Description
This innovative and thought-provoking documentary subtly explores the difficult issues that arise when the ethics of deforestation and the ethnographic encounter intersect. The film incisively poses the question: “Who has the right to cut… both trees and film footage?” Seemingly an observational ethnographic immersion in life along the waterways where the sweet water of the Amazon basin mixes with the salty Atlantic Ocean, the film is sudde...
This innovative and thought-provoking documentary subtly explores the difficult issues that arise when the ethics of deforestation and the ethnographic encounter intersect. The film incisively poses the question: “Who has the right to cut… both trees and film footage?” Seemingly an observational ethnographic immersion in life along the waterways where the sweet water of the Amazon basin mixes with the salty Atlantic Ocean, the film is suddenly interrupted by questions about the ethics of including images of deforestation, which could land the protagonist in trouble with Brazil’s environmental police. The editing waxes experimental, prompting the viewer to revisit editorial decisions, while bringing the family being filmed into the editorial decision-making fold. The film ruminates on the global ethics of deforestation as it illustrates the relationship of deforestation to the harvesting of açai, Brazil’s latest boom crop that is now a key ingredient of popular energy drinks and a staple of Oprah’s diet. Açai is harvested by ascending into the tops of skinny palm trees, offering stunning visuals. The penultimate scene unexpectedly and evocatively ties the themes together in an act of animal acrobatics, defying the audience’s expectations. The ecological connections between waterways, flora, fauna, and humanity subtly intertwine to make viewers contemplate all that we are losing in the continual deforestation of the Amazon as well as the multiple levels of complicity in that loss. Trees Tropiques will engage students with its creative style and structure and generate thoughtful discussion in a wide variety of courses in Latin and South American studies, cultural anthropology, environmental studies, development issues, visual anthropology, and Third-World studies. It was produced by Alexander Fattal. It is in Portuguese with English subtitles.
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009
Author / Creator
Alexander Fattal, fl. 2009
Date Published / Released
2009, 2010
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Deforestation in the Amazon, Trees, Environmental protection, Forests, Indigenous peoples, Ecology, Anthropology, 21st Century in World History (2001– )
Copyright Message
Copyright © 2010 Berkeley Media
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Woven Ways
directed by Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008; produced by Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2009), 49 mins
Filmed amid the dramatic landscapes of the Navajo reservation lands in eastern Arizona and western New Mexico, this multifaceted documentary incisively explores the profound relationships between the Navajo people, their land, and their livestock, and illustrates how their environment sustains their traditional cu...
Sample
directed by Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008; produced by Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008 (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Media, 2009), 49 mins
Description
Filmed amid the dramatic landscapes of the Navajo reservation lands in eastern Arizona and western New Mexico, this multifaceted documentary incisively explores the profound relationships between the Navajo people, their land, and their livestock, and illustrates how their environment sustains their traditional culture and lives. The film also examines how environmental issues now threaten the Navajo’s health, culture, and well-being. Deadly ur...
Filmed amid the dramatic landscapes of the Navajo reservation lands in eastern Arizona and western New Mexico, this multifaceted documentary incisively explores the profound relationships between the Navajo people, their land, and their livestock, and illustrates how their environment sustains their traditional culture and lives. The film also examines how environmental issues now threaten the Navajo’s health, culture, and well-being. Deadly uranium mining and dirty coal power plants pose serious problems for the Navajo. Much of the nation’s uranium and valuable deposits of coal, gas, and oil lay beneath the Reservation, yet one-third of Navajo homes are without electricity. The Navajo live with all of the negative health and environmental impacts of these resources, yet share in few of the benefits derived from them. Woven Ways is an unusual documentary in that it allows Native Americans to tell their stories in their own words, with no script and no narration. It is a character-driven film that focuses on the individual stories of five Navajo families and the empirical evidence they gather each day from a life lived close to the earth. The film chronicles the resilience and steady resolve of these families to preserve their way of life and defend what is sacred to them – the land, air, and water – not just for themselves, but for generations to come. With its sensitively captured imagery and its compelling first-person testimonies, Woven Ways will inspire students and motivate thought and classroom discussion. The film will make a timely and important contribution to a variety of classes in Native American studies, cultural anthropology, sociology, American studies, Public Health, and environmental issues. It was produced by Linda Helm Krapf.
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Field of Study
Anthropology
Content Type
Documentary
Contributor
Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008
Author / Creator
Linda Helm Krapf, fl. 2008
Date Published / Released
2009
Publisher
Berkeley Media
Topic / Theme
Global Indigenous Perspectives, Environmental protection, Coal, Power plants, Environmental illnesses, Ecology, Sociology, Navajo, 21st Century in World History (2001– )
Copyright Message
Copyright © 2009 Berkeley Media
×
