Latin America Cinema Today

Latin America remains one of the most culturally vibrant but artistically under recognized regions of the world. Since the Festival’s last panel on Latin American cinema in 1989, which included such internationally renowned filmmakers as Fernando Birri, Tomas Gutierrez Alea, and Ruy Guerra, Latin America’s rich cinema outpouring has been reduced to a trickle because of the current economic conditions that have seriously eroded government funds available for film, production and forced closure of national film agencies. In what promises to be a thoroughly stimulating and enlightening panel discussion following up on the conclusions of our 1989 panel, this tear the Festival will reexamine the state of the art in Latin American cinema with the new generation of filmmakers, including those who are feature in the Pan American Highway program. Topics to be covered include the various cultural and political contexts in which films are funded, produced and distributed; the possibility of maintaining a national cinema in the current global economic climate; and the filmmakers formulate or adjust their aesthetic aspirations to deal with the difficulties of the times.