Bob's Take: 10 films give flavor of Latino culture

Talk to the people who helped choose the 10 films for Film Streams' second Cinemateca series and you quickly learn they are passionate about the subject of movies — especially movies that reflect the many facets of Spanish-speaking and Latin American culture.

They may disagree about why a particular movie is important. But they are enthusiastic about how screening these movies can open dialogue between cultures, broaden viewpoints and bring a sense of humanity alive.

“I am happy to work for Cinemateca, a place where we can show our culture, our ideals,” said Andrea Dominguez, who moved to Omaha from Argentina. She hopes to teach a film course at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. “Even though these cultures might be different from American, we can embrace them.”

The films they chose reflect the diversity of cultures within the spectrum of Latino and Latin American nations, as well as within their group at the Office of Latino/Latin American Studies (OLLAS) at UNO.

The 10 films, shown in pairs over five weeks starting Friday, are from nine countries: Chile, Uruguay, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Honduras, Argentina and Cuba (two films).

That's the kind of diversity Film Streams director Rachel Jacobson was looking for when she partnered with OLLAS to present Cinemateca in 2008.

“We decided the format — five weeks, 10 films, two per week — worked the first time. This series is a bit heavier on recent films, but that gave us the chance to play films from Uruguay and Chile. And filmmaking in Argentina has been pretty amazing in the last decade or so.”

In addition to cultural diversity, there's a mix of narrative fiction and documentary, of subject matter, of language (they're mostly in Spanish, subtitled in English, but also in Portuguese and Russian).

“That's one of the goals, exposing people to this wonderful, rich array of cinema from widely disparate parts of the world,” said Lourdes Gouveia, director of OLLAS and a professor of sociology. “It's cultural therapy, a vehicle for people to lose their fears of subtitles or of realities they are not familiar with.”

Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado, assistant director of OLLAS and a professor of political science, said the first Cinemateca's success in 2008 has generated more interest this time.

“I'm excited to see the reactions to these films,” he said. “They will evoke passion and emotion because of the way they're made.”

Some of that passion can be expressed in post-film discussions each Tuesday night, starting Aug. 31 and running through September. Local restaurants (Maria Bonita, España, Peru Mucho Gusto, Latino Restaurant) will provide samples of food from their menus at most of those discussions.

“Audience members can participate in a dialogue with panelists who are experts on the films or who lived through the historical events in the films,” said Steven Torres, assistant professor of Spanish at UNO and an OLLAS member.

Lourdes said it's critical to see the films on a big screen to get the full depth of the aesthetic experience, and a sense of connection, identification and empathy.

“These films breathe life into what has been rendered one-dimensional,” Benjamin-Alvarado said. “You have the chance to see things in a whole new way.”

Panelists volunteered these thoughts about the titles they chose:

“Sin Nombre” and “Nueve reinas” (“Nine Queens”), Friday through Sept. 2: The former is about “the most discussed topic of the day,” a saga of immigrants trying to find work in the United States. The latter is a funny film, similar in style to writer David Mamet.

“Memorias del subdesarrollo” (“Memories of Underdevelopment”) and “Soy Cuba” (“I Am Cuba”), Sept. 3 through 9: A look at the immediate aftermath of revolution in Cuba in 1962. Alvarez called the latter “high-art propaganda.”

“Hable con ella” (“Talk to Her”) and “Gigante” (“Giant”), Sept. 10 through 16: Director Pedro Almodóvar won an Oscar for “Talk to Her,” a blend of melodrama and humor, a tale of loneliness, love and obsession. “Gigante” is a sweet-natured story about a security guard who falls in love via surveillance monitor, becoming something of a stalker because of his shyness.

“Machuca” and “El olvido” (“Oblivion”), Sept. 17 through 23: “Machuca” is the tale of a child during the overthrow of Allende and the start of Pinochet's dictatorship. “El olvido” is a documentary about the 20-year dictatorship in Peru and the toll it took on that society.

“Central do Brasil” (“Central Station”) and “El violin” (“The Violin”), Sept. 24 through 30: Fernanda Montenegro earned an Oscar nomination for best actress in “Central Station,” the story of a cynical woman looking out for an orphan, one of the nation's 7 million “lost children.” Walter Salles directed. “The Violin” follows three generations of an impoverished Mexican family, playing music for change while smuggling weapons to a peasant rebellion.

For more information on Cinemateca, visit www.filmstreams.org.

Contact the writer: 444-1269, bob.fischbach@owh.com

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