Venezuelan Film Days to open ‘window’ into life of South American country

AMMAN — The Jordanian public will be exposed to the life and culture of Venezuelan people this week, during the Venezuelan Film Days held at the Royal Film Commission (RFC), the RFC’s media and communications coordinator, Marian Nakho, told The Jordan Times over the phone.

“Our aim at the RFC is to show films of different genres, countries and scenarios,” Nakho said, adding “with this festival, we chose movies that are informative and help spread awareness on important issues like the environment”.

Held in cooperation with the embassy of Venezuela, the movie festival will screen three award-winning movies, offering a window into the daily life of the South American country.

“It seemed important to us to work with the embassy to show the Jordanian public some of the problems that this South American country is currently facing,” the coordinator added.

The Film Days will start off on Tuesday with “El Rumor de las Piedras” [The Rumble of the Stones], a 2011 movie by Alejandro Palacios.

Following the life of a young woman who survived a river-flood, along with her mother and two sons, the movie depicts a society in which the power of love keeps people united, in spite of the challenges of poverty, hopelessness and violence, according to a statement by the organisers.

Selected as the Venezuelan entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 84th Academy Awards, the film has won numerous awards including Best Director and Best International Feature at New York Latino Film Festival, the Jordi Dauder Award Lleida Latin-American Film Festival and the Honourable Mention at Santa Barbara International Film Festival. 

On Wednesday, the festival will continue with the 2014 documentary “Verde Salvaje” (Wild Green), by Belén Orsini.

The 75-minute takes the viewers on a journey across the coastal territory of Venezuela, by following three biologists in their quest to study and protect the endangered Chelonia Mydas species (or green turtle), organisers said.

Sceneries of Aves Island, Los Roques and the Gulf of Venezuela expose the beauty of the Caribbean biodiversity, while stressing its endangered situation, the statement added. 

“This documentary has a very important relevance in these Film Days, as it highlights an issue that all countries are confronted with: environment preservation,” Nakho said. 

“The environment and species endangerment are issues that concern us all, and this documentary might push people to take action,” she added.

The Film Days will conclude with Thursday’s “Patas Arriba” (Upside Down), a 90-minute drama by Alejandro Wiedemann.

The movie portrays an ailing man whose fate has to be decided by his three children. While his daughters resolve to send him to hospital against his will, his granddaughter Carlota helps him plot his escape from Venezuela to Salvador de Bahia in Brazil, as he once promised his deceased wife, the statement said.

A reminder of the importance of family ties across generations, the movie has won Best Movie Award at the Venezuelan Film Festival in 2012, according to the statement.

All movies, screened in Spanish with English subtitles, will be displayed at 8pm at the RFC premises in Jabal Amman.