Feature Film Festival on East Germany and Latin America
A still from The Colors of Tigua (Die Farben von Tigua), showing at The University of Scranton on Friday, Nov. 7, as part of “East Germany and Latin America: Solidarity Work In and Through Film.”
The University of Scranton will feature several films, some of which that have never before been available with subtitles, and a lecture by Rainer Simon, who is one of the most important East German directors.
“East Germany and Latin America: Solidarity Work In and Through Film” will feature four movies by Simon, who will also discuss his work following the films. The film festival is free and open to the public.
The Ascent of Chimborazo (Die Besteigung des Chimborazo) (1989) will be shown on Thursday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m. in Ballroom C on the fourth floor of the DeNaples Center. The film focuses on German naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt’s expedition to Ecuador in the early 19th century.
On Friday, Nov. 7, three short documentaries on indigenous groups in Ecuador will be shown beginning at 7 p.m. in the Pearn Auditorium on the second floor of Brennan Hall, Madison Avenue. The Colors of Tigua (Die Farben von Tigua) (1994) features the villages of the Quichua Indians in the Ecuadorian Andes, where painters have been documenting the lives of the villages and their occupants. Talking with Fish and Birds (Mit Fischen und Vögeln reden) (1999) tells the story of Mánari Ushigua, the last shaman of the Zápara Indians, who died 11 years ago, and his family. The Call of Fayuujmu (Der Ruf des Fayu Ujmi) (2002) is a semi-documentary based on an Ecuadorian Chachi Indian legend, telling the story of a 13-year-old Indian boy found unconscious after being attacked by an evil spirit in the jungle.
The film festival is jointly sponsored by The University of Scranton’s World Languages and Cultures Department, the university’s Office of Equity and Diversity, the Deutsche Film Aktiengesellschaft (DEFA) (the state-run East German film studios) Film Library at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the DEFA Foundation, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
“East Germany and Latin America: Solidarity Work In and Through Film” is currently touring the United States and Canada as part of the biannual Filmmaker’s Tour organized by the DEFA Film Library.
Simon began his career at the DEFA Studio for Feature Films and is the only German Democratic Republic director who received the Golden Bear award at the International Berlin Film Festival.
For more information, contact Jamie H. Trnka, Ph.D., assistant professor of World Languages and Cultures at The University of Scranton, at (570) 941-7430.
“East Germany and Latin America: Solidarity Work In and Through Film” will feature four movies by Simon, who will also discuss his work following the films. The film festival is free and open to the public.
The Ascent of Chimborazo (Die Besteigung des Chimborazo) (1989) will be shown on Thursday, Nov. 6, at 7 p.m. in Ballroom C on the fourth floor of the DeNaples Center. The film focuses on German naturalist and explorer Alexander von Humboldt’s expedition to Ecuador in the early 19th century.
On Friday, Nov. 7, three short documentaries on indigenous groups in Ecuador will be shown beginning at 7 p.m. in the Pearn Auditorium on the second floor of Brennan Hall, Madison Avenue. The Colors of Tigua (Die Farben von Tigua) (1994) features the villages of the Quichua Indians in the Ecuadorian Andes, where painters have been documenting the lives of the villages and their occupants. Talking with Fish and Birds (Mit Fischen und Vögeln reden) (1999) tells the story of Mánari Ushigua, the last shaman of the Zápara Indians, who died 11 years ago, and his family. The Call of Fayuujmu (Der Ruf des Fayu Ujmi) (2002) is a semi-documentary based on an Ecuadorian Chachi Indian legend, telling the story of a 13-year-old Indian boy found unconscious after being attacked by an evil spirit in the jungle.
The film festival is jointly sponsored by The University of Scranton’s World Languages and Cultures Department, the university’s Office of Equity and Diversity, the Deutsche Film Aktiengesellschaft (DEFA) (the state-run East German film studios) Film Library at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, the DEFA Foundation, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
“East Germany and Latin America: Solidarity Work In and Through Film” is currently touring the United States and Canada as part of the biannual Filmmaker’s Tour organized by the DEFA Film Library.
Simon began his career at the DEFA Studio for Feature Films and is the only German Democratic Republic director who received the Golden Bear award at the International Berlin Film Festival.
For more information, contact Jamie H. Trnka, Ph.D., assistant professor of World Languages and Cultures at The University of Scranton, at (570) 941-7430.
