The fourth edition of Equis-Feminist Film Festival of Ecuador returns this year in a virtual and face-to-face format at Quito, Cuenca and Guayaquil. 26 movies that reflect the different realities that women and girls live and are part of this cinephile proposal that It will take place from November 8 to 20.
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“For us, cinema is like an impressive tool for change and social impact… The numbers of violence in this country are getting worse, so for us it is super important that the festival continues and maintains this activism and this fight in favor of gender equality”holds Stephanie Arregui, one of the directors of the festival.
According to the FemicidiosEC tool of the Council of the Judiciary (CJ), from 2014 to 2022 in Ecuador have been processed 1,539 cases of victims of femicides and violent deaths of women. “We don’t feel like we’re making much headway on women’s rights issues and this is our way of doing our activism. and to do our bit to try to make things change a little and that the lives of women and girls in this country and in the world are better”, adds Arregui.
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For his part, Virginia Sotomayor, co-director of the festival, considers that activities like these create reflection in the spectators, as well as empathy for the realities of others. “Sometimes we believe that, since it doesn’t happen to me or it doesn’t happen to the people close to me, it’s not happening. So it is to open your eyes and see that there are things that are happening in other parts of Ecuador and also to know that, although there are actions that correspond to the State, each person can also do something”, he argues.
For this edition, which marks the full return to movie theaters, they premiere the section Satellite Venues, consisting of projections in cultural centers, community centers and film clubs. “This makes us very happy because we have joined forces with fourteen cultural centers, foundations, film clubs (…), this joining forces with other spaces helps us to have a bigger impact”they comment cultural managers.
The movie Darling, by Isabel Castro (USA, Mexico, 2022), will be in charge of opening the festival on Tuesday, November 8, at 7:00 p.m. This film is described as a moving love letter to migrants and their children, it presents the story of Doris and Jacks, who work in the music industry and carry the pressure of obtaining a green card on their shoulders, being the first members born in the United States.
Later, from November 9 to 13, two daily functions will be offered in Quito cinemas, such as Eight and a half (18:00 and 20:00), and in the Cinematheque of the House of Ecuadorian Culture (5:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.), in the latter there will also be forums after the screenings.
Individual tickets to the face-to-face functions in Quito can be purchased at each of the venues during the festival (the cost of each one is established by each venue). Also for sale is the X pass, that allows access to all the shows in Quito, in the Cinematheque and the OchoyMedio (with the exception of the closing screening); It costs $20. Advance purchase can be made by writing to produccion@festivalequis.com.
Within the programming, films stand out that they define as powerful, inspiring and varied, such as Children of the Mist (Hà Lệ Diễm, 2021), in which the filmmaker debates between respect for a culture and the violence of a tradition that supports the misogynistic practicessuch as the forced marriage of girls. there is also Alis (Clare Weiskopf, Nicolás van Hemelryck, 2022), a film that reflects the narratives of adolescents who lived on the streets of Bogotá, and who add incredible strength to break the cycle of violence.
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Or the feature film Clara alone (Nathalie Álvarez Mesén, 2021), who talks about the process of self-discovery and sexual awakening of Clara, a woman with disability, after years of being controlled by her mother’s repressive care.
In addition, this festival will celebrate the premiere in Ecuador of The beach of the enchaquiradosfrom the national director Ivan Mora Manzano. The documentary portrays Vicky and a trans community that are part of a fishing village on the coast of Ecuador. This film will close the festival in Quito on November 12 at the Cinematheque of the House of Ecuadorian Culture.
In Cuenca face-to-face functions are freeon November 10 and 11 they will be at the Alliance Française and on the 12th and 13th there will be an outdoor function at the Municipal Heritage House Old Central School of the city.
The visual artist Juanca Vargas opens the exhibition ‘Survey’ this afternoon
In Guayaquil the screenings will take place from November 11 to 13 in Muegano Theater, located in Callejón Magallanes and Rocafuerte. Films like Fruits of Labor, Female Soldier, Green Tide, See You Again Y Among us Women. There will also be functions in Hifa Creative House (Chile 2623 and Portete) from November 17 to 20. Admission for performances in these cultural spaces is $3; You can consult the schedules directly on their networks (@mueganoteatro).
The virtual proposal will be made up of six performances, from November 9 to 20, through festivalequis.com. The cost of each online function will be $5, you will also be able to access the Violet Pass, which will allow entry to all virtual functions at a cost of $15. “We keep this part virtual because it allows us to reach a broader audience around all of Ecuador,” Sotomayor mentions.
workshops
Finally, the festival will offer two parallel activities. The first is the workshop stop motion autobiographical “Lives in Motion”aimed at women in situations of human mobility who live in Quito, organized with the support of the Rosa Luxemburg Foundation and the collaboration of the Cine Hogar Workshop.
The second is the cmaster class “Cinema with impact”, which will dictate Sandra Tabares-Duque, an expert in cinema with a social impact, in order to promote and motivate film students and professionals to make more films with a feminist perspective. The activity will take place on November 12 at 11:00 a.m. in the Cinematheque of the House of Ecuadorian Culture. (YO)
Source: Eluniverso
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