A Short video of the guys I have been working with in Siglo XX. No narration, but it will give you an idea of what their day to day is like.
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/4/12/977104/MinersOfSigloXXWeb.mov
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
El Che is Dead. Long Live El Che
Everybody wanted to get to Valle Grande, Bolivia on the weekend of the seventh of October, to celebrated the fortieth anniversary of the death of Che Guevara. Hippies from around South America (often referred to as “artisans”) showed up in droves, the Venezuelan embassy sent its staff in a chartered jet, several ex-guerillas with expanding waistlines returned to the fields of their glory days and the president of Bolivia, Evo Morales, took the opportunity to make a speech. It’s what presidents do.
It is the first time a Bolivian president has attended the anniversary and the first time the event has been supported and promoted by the national government. The negative reaction to Che in Bolivia is often more pronounced than it is in the Untied States because, well while we may get sick of distant gazes and star-spangled berets, Che is an Argentine guy who came to Bolivia to kill Bolivians.
But even as the revolutionary hero has finally achieved a degree of institutional support from the Government of Bolivia, and in spite of mythic – and even holy – status he has achieved in the world, the event proved just how thorough has been his ultimate downfall. The communist ideals and armed struggle he advocated were nowhere to be seen in Valle Grande. The official discourse and the chatter on the street lauded Che for his "human qualities" and his sense of justice, largely without reference to armed struggle against capitalist imperialism.
In fact, a host of people viewed the event, as well as Che, as a marketing opportunity. An army of vendors hawking Che-related knick-knacks and handicrafts invaded the plaza. A more complete appropriation of Che's image by modern capitalism could be found on a truck painted with a scantily clad beauty, posing on a beach clasping a two liter bottle painted with Che's photo. "Cuba El Che," a prepackaged rum with cola, is targeted at the rebellious age group of 15 to 20 year olds. This mating of an icon of rebellion and an entirely unoriginal sex symbol got good reviews in marketing studies.
The owner of Cuba El Che is Fernando Porras, who has worked for five years to open his company, and, though he describes himself as a leftist and admires Che's humanism, his goal is clearly to make money. "A company that is formed to make money doesn't have anything to do with socialism. And this is a company that is here to make money. I'm not an NGO for handing out gifts."
He has big plans for the company. If Cuba El Che goes well, he will move on to soft drinks: Che Cola, Che Piña, Che Papaya.
Not to be left out, the vice-ministry of tourism has also developed a tourist circuit called the "Ruta del Che," which includes several of the sites related to Che's ill-fated guerilla war in Bolivia. The vice-ministry hopes that this route will help foreign tourists spread their dollars a little wider within Bolivia so that the economic benefits of tourism reach poor people in remote areas.
President Evo Morales used the occasion of the anniversary to condemn "savage and inhuman capitalism," imperialism and neoliberalism, but he quickly moved on to tout his successes in gaining national control of natural resources. Rather than reminisce about the glory days of armed revolution, Morales looked forward to the more complicated struggle to control global warming. He warned that even the capitalists who benefit from the "sacking of Latin America's natural resources" won't escape the natural disasters that global climate change may be bringing.
It seems that since his visit to the UN General Assembly, the President has found an international cause to support. This is surprise in a country that regularly suffers a range of natural disasters, including floods, droughts, landslides and forest fires.
As for why the glory days of armed revolution – if not their principal icon – have gone out of style, a traveling artisan who left her home in Colombia seven years ago and goes by the name Pili offered the closest thing to an answer that the author has heard. She lamented the slow sales of handicrafts, saying simply "Communists don’t have much money."
It is the first time a Bolivian president has attended the anniversary and the first time the event has been supported and promoted by the national government. The negative reaction to Che in Bolivia is often more pronounced than it is in the Untied States because, well while we may get sick of distant gazes and star-spangled berets, Che is an Argentine guy who came to Bolivia to kill Bolivians.
But even as the revolutionary hero has finally achieved a degree of institutional support from the Government of Bolivia, and in spite of mythic – and even holy – status he has achieved in the world, the event proved just how thorough has been his ultimate downfall. The communist ideals and armed struggle he advocated were nowhere to be seen in Valle Grande. The official discourse and the chatter on the street lauded Che for his "human qualities" and his sense of justice, largely without reference to armed struggle against capitalist imperialism.
In fact, a host of people viewed the event, as well as Che, as a marketing opportunity. An army of vendors hawking Che-related knick-knacks and handicrafts invaded the plaza. A more complete appropriation of Che's image by modern capitalism could be found on a truck painted with a scantily clad beauty, posing on a beach clasping a two liter bottle painted with Che's photo. "Cuba El Che," a prepackaged rum with cola, is targeted at the rebellious age group of 15 to 20 year olds. This mating of an icon of rebellion and an entirely unoriginal sex symbol got good reviews in marketing studies.
The owner of Cuba El Che is Fernando Porras, who has worked for five years to open his company, and, though he describes himself as a leftist and admires Che's humanism, his goal is clearly to make money. "A company that is formed to make money doesn't have anything to do with socialism. And this is a company that is here to make money. I'm not an NGO for handing out gifts."
He has big plans for the company. If Cuba El Che goes well, he will move on to soft drinks: Che Cola, Che Piña, Che Papaya.
Not to be left out, the vice-ministry of tourism has also developed a tourist circuit called the "Ruta del Che," which includes several of the sites related to Che's ill-fated guerilla war in Bolivia. The vice-ministry hopes that this route will help foreign tourists spread their dollars a little wider within Bolivia so that the economic benefits of tourism reach poor people in remote areas.
President Evo Morales used the occasion of the anniversary to condemn "savage and inhuman capitalism," imperialism and neoliberalism, but he quickly moved on to tout his successes in gaining national control of natural resources. Rather than reminisce about the glory days of armed revolution, Morales looked forward to the more complicated struggle to control global warming. He warned that even the capitalists who benefit from the "sacking of Latin America's natural resources" won't escape the natural disasters that global climate change may be bringing.
It seems that since his visit to the UN General Assembly, the President has found an international cause to support. This is surprise in a country that regularly suffers a range of natural disasters, including floods, droughts, landslides and forest fires.
As for why the glory days of armed revolution – if not their principal icon – have gone out of style, a traveling artisan who left her home in Colombia seven years ago and goes by the name Pili offered the closest thing to an answer that the author has heard. She lamented the slow sales of handicrafts, saying simply "Communists don’t have much money."
Friday, August 10, 2007
Virgin of the Snows
Just back from the tropics Caranavi, where I wasn't working, but rather celebrating the day of the virgin of the snows, patrona of Caranavi. My friend Pancho, one of the drivers from my days at ACDI/VOCA was the preste, otherwise known as the guy who is in charge of the fiesta. When I was first working for ACDI/VOCA, pancho and I and a couple of other gringos toured the whole Yungas region interviewing beneficiaries of ACDI/VOCA's projects. Pancho, even more than most of the drivers, was the guy who served as the bridge between us and the local community. Throughout my time at ACDI/VOCA, I was continually impressed, more than anything else, by the drivers and their hard work, ingenuity and grace under pressure.
On sunday morning, after a night of drinking and dancing, all of the dancers crammed into the church for the mass, all fanning themselves and sweating. Lots of hymns and Ave Marias and the usual blahblah about the virgin of the snows, the patrona of Caranavi and Mary a that sort of stuff. And then the padre went on with the sermon, which consisted basically of four messages. Thanks, by name, to the various people who donated the cross, and the light fixtures, and the benches, and the flowers, and etc. Also if anyone feels inspired to donate flower vases, that would be welcome of course. And if anyone is an architect, we would welcome their support designing a larger church in Caranavi. And lastly, please don't offer the priests beer... they'll drink one or two, and the next thing you know, they are up dancing and everyone is making fun of them, so it's better if you offer them soft drinks.
Then they took the statue of the virgin of the snows, patrona of Caranavi, out to the plaza and paraded her around in the sun, stopping at every corner to bless the virgin and sprinkle holy water on the crowd and light off fireworks and sing a hymn. The major purpose of this seemed to be to get the rest of the people, who were still drinking at one o'clock in the afternoon, to stop for at least as long as the procession went around the plaza. Everyone stopped and stopped playing music and let the procession pass. Then the virgin went back into the church and they started the party again.
And after all of that, I'm still not sure where the snows are that the virgin is virgin of, but I did eat a tasty coconut icecream.
On sunday morning, after a night of drinking and dancing, all of the dancers crammed into the church for the mass, all fanning themselves and sweating. Lots of hymns and Ave Marias and the usual blahblah about the virgin of the snows, the patrona of Caranavi and Mary a that sort of stuff. And then the padre went on with the sermon, which consisted basically of four messages. Thanks, by name, to the various people who donated the cross, and the light fixtures, and the benches, and the flowers, and etc. Also if anyone feels inspired to donate flower vases, that would be welcome of course. And if anyone is an architect, we would welcome their support designing a larger church in Caranavi. And lastly, please don't offer the priests beer... they'll drink one or two, and the next thing you know, they are up dancing and everyone is making fun of them, so it's better if you offer them soft drinks.
Then they took the statue of the virgin of the snows, patrona of Caranavi, out to the plaza and paraded her around in the sun, stopping at every corner to bless the virgin and sprinkle holy water on the crowd and light off fireworks and sing a hymn. The major purpose of this seemed to be to get the rest of the people, who were still drinking at one o'clock in the afternoon, to stop for at least as long as the procession went around the plaza. Everyone stopped and stopped playing music and let the procession pass. Then the virgin went back into the church and they started the party again.
And after all of that, I'm still not sure where the snows are that the virgin is virgin of, but I did eat a tasty coconut icecream.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Back in Siglo XX
Just taking a quick turn through Siglo XX to show my face again after three months and deliver the shorts that I made of a bunch of these guys. It's been too long since I've been here and I'm not sure when I will make it back here, though I hope I can come back again before the end of August. Meantime, this is really just a quick turn through town and say hello to my friends befor its back to la paz. maybe even tomorrow.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Getting ready to travel again. I've got some visits to make with my friends in Siglo XX and some visits in the Yungas, and I still need to head down south to check out what kinds of possibilities there are down there. Not sure whether I will be able to head out by the end of this week, but if not, then first thing next week.
Meantime, it's winter in La Paz, which means chilly at night and bright sunshine all day.
Meantime, it's winter in La Paz, which means chilly at night and bright sunshine all day.
Monday, July 2, 2007
Welcome Back to Bolivia
On the cab ride from the airport, four taxis (including mine) arrived at an intersection at exactly the same time. All four sped into the intersection until each had to stop, inches from the drivers side door of the taxi that had entered from its right. None could move forward. In Bolivia, you only need four cars to make a traffic jam. And if only one car had had the patience to wait until another car passed, everyone would have gotten by faster.
For anyone who wants to understand Bolivia, the lesson is there, five minutes from the airport gate.
For anyone who wants to understand Bolivia, the lesson is there, five minutes from the airport gate.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Trailer!!!
The Trailer is up. Thanks to Taylor for the footage of Nevada and the help editing.
It sure is some pretty pictures.
www.fileden.com/files/2007/4/12/977104/a%20miners%20luck13mb.mov
You may need the latest version of QuickTime Player to see it, which you can download free from apple:
here for windows:
www.apple.com/support/downloads/quicktime716forwindows.html
or here for apple:
www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
It sure is some pretty pictures.
www.fileden.com/files/2007/4/12/977104/a%20miners%20luck13mb.mov
You may need the latest version of QuickTime Player to see it, which you can download free from apple:
here for windows:
www.apple.com/support/downloads/quicktime716forwindows.html
or here for apple:
www.apple.com/quicktime/download/
Friday, June 8, 2007
DC rat race
I'm in DC doing the ugly, ugly business of making documentaries. Which is to say, asking friends and family to make donations to the project and trying to get some larger institution involved, as a philanthropic venture. It's ugly, and it makes me really just want to climb back into a dark hole in the ground and look at miners.
But we got a trailer that is pretty good and shows some nice pictures of kids digging in the dirt and pretending to be miners for a day, and drilling with a four pound single jack hammer, and talking about how nobody does that any more. Which is a good thing to show next to some of the footage I already had of Bolivian miners working in the mines.
In other news, I pitched the story to a film production company, which I knew wasn't going to be interested, but it was a really useful practice pitch. Good feedback about the trailer, from the kinds of people I need to be able to pitch to.
heading up to the mountains tomorrow, and looking forward to being out of this game for at least a day.
But we got a trailer that is pretty good and shows some nice pictures of kids digging in the dirt and pretending to be miners for a day, and drilling with a four pound single jack hammer, and talking about how nobody does that any more. Which is a good thing to show next to some of the footage I already had of Bolivian miners working in the mines.
In other news, I pitched the story to a film production company, which I knew wasn't going to be interested, but it was a really useful practice pitch. Good feedback about the trailer, from the kinds of people I need to be able to pitch to.
heading up to the mountains tomorrow, and looking forward to being out of this game for at least a day.
Monday, May 28, 2007
'Neath the Sagebrush and the Cactus
I am in Hawthorne, Nevada. Hawthorne is out in the middle of the desert, and the main business for Hawthorne is the reservation where they store ammunition. From where I am sitting, I count at least nine flags, not to mention the bunting and streamers and other red white and blue themed items.
Hawthorne is also about twenty miles from Hugh's mine, where we did another shoot this morning. It was another really good shoot, along with the stuff we did yesterday at his home and the shoot we did in Tonopah on Saturday.
It's real wild west country and wild west people. I had to chuckle when Hugh said of a valley where he had worked a talc mine had "some real colorful characters." As if Hugh weren't colorful.
It's beautiful stuff to take pictures of though, and I think we have about what we need to cut together a trailer. So look for an update from Boston, next week.
Hawthorne is also about twenty miles from Hugh's mine, where we did another shoot this morning. It was another really good shoot, along with the stuff we did yesterday at his home and the shoot we did in Tonopah on Saturday.
It's real wild west country and wild west people. I had to chuckle when Hugh said of a valley where he had worked a talc mine had "some real colorful characters." As if Hugh weren't colorful.
It's beautiful stuff to take pictures of though, and I think we have about what we need to cut together a trailer. So look for an update from Boston, next week.
Monday, May 21, 2007
No Sleep till Brooklyn
So I am back in DC already. I got back much earlier than I thought I would, in order to be back for my grandmother's funeral. I miss her dearly. She was always so curious and a little bit dumbfounded by what I am doing in Latin America. But she always understood that it was something I love to do and supported me for that reason if for no other reason.
This is already promising to be a really busy trip, with work to do for "A Miner's Luck" and for a handful of other projects that I am involved in. One is regarding a World Bank Rural Development Project in Bolivia that was terminated and never received any follow-up or support for the maintenance and operation of the project. The other is to help Guillermo Ruiz publish the works of his father in the US in order to generate a little bit of revenue for his retirement.
Both of these are really interesting projects, and I am working with really good people on them, but they sure do take a lot of time. At any rate, I think I have most of the pieces of the puzzle ready for Nevada. The only thing that I am a little bit sad about is that I didn't get the short piece about the miners in Bolivia done to the point where I should have gotten it. It's almost ready, and it will have to do for Jim Butler Day, but there are just a handful of things that should be better.
Fortunately we will get a chance to work a little more on that in Boston before I show it to anyone else in DC. But it does mean another thing to do.
This is already promising to be a really busy trip, with work to do for "A Miner's Luck" and for a handful of other projects that I am involved in. One is regarding a World Bank Rural Development Project in Bolivia that was terminated and never received any follow-up or support for the maintenance and operation of the project. The other is to help Guillermo Ruiz publish the works of his father in the US in order to generate a little bit of revenue for his retirement.
Both of these are really interesting projects, and I am working with really good people on them, but they sure do take a lot of time. At any rate, I think I have most of the pieces of the puzzle ready for Nevada. The only thing that I am a little bit sad about is that I didn't get the short piece about the miners in Bolivia done to the point where I should have gotten it. It's almost ready, and it will have to do for Jim Butler Day, but there are just a handful of things that should be better.
Fortunately we will get a chance to work a little more on that in Boston before I show it to anyone else in DC. But it does mean another thing to do.
Saturday, May 12, 2007
I Get by with a Little Help
It's been, to say the least, a busy couple of weeks, and things have been progressing well.
I have finished a pretty good version of the treatment (click the link in the last post). You will note the beautiful cover, which my friend Gisel put together. She took a photo that Taylor shot and decided that it looked best as a dime store western cover.
And that is just what I'm after, with a few roles reversed here and there. A number of people read it, including Jeff, his dad, Heather and Carolina. Little by little, it gets better and better.
I also went to Siglo XX with Sixto Choque, who helped me get some production photos for the film. I shot a little bit of video, and sixto shot a bunch of photos, which I think will be really good for future graphic design needs and for video stills. I've been working with a cuadrillo of miners who keep inviting me back to their workplace again and again. It's their friendship and welcome most of all that makes this kind of work possible.
We also went to Macha, where the communities from the region celebrate the fiesta de la cruz by banding together and beating the snot out of each other. It's kind of a weird spectacle -- it happens at this time of year in Macha and in a number of other communities, and it happens throughout the north of Potosi throughout the year.
What struck me most from this spectacle is the lack of understanding between people who live in the campo and people who live in the city. The people who are from the town of Macha, where the festival happens every year, just lack any in depth understanding of the festival or the communities around Macha. Yes, they speak Quechua, but they can't identify the community relationships or even explain what the fiesta means to the people who participate. Not that I can either, but I'm not trying to be part of this multicultural, multiethnic society of Bolivia.
At any rate, I hope to post some of Sixto's photos in a subsequent post.
And we've been editing. Carolina has been helping me to cut together a short trailer for the film and a ten minute short of miners in Siglo. She has a very good eye, a remarkable capacity to deal with schedule changes and she instantly understood the project and what I am aiming for. I think that we'll get a really good trailer, once I finish getting the footage I'll need from Taylor in Nevada in a couple of weeks.
Also, Daniela just helped me move all of my stuff into her house.
I have finished a pretty good version of the treatment (click the link in the last post). You will note the beautiful cover, which my friend Gisel put together. She took a photo that Taylor shot and decided that it looked best as a dime store western cover.
And that is just what I'm after, with a few roles reversed here and there. A number of people read it, including Jeff, his dad, Heather and Carolina. Little by little, it gets better and better.
I also went to Siglo XX with Sixto Choque, who helped me get some production photos for the film. I shot a little bit of video, and sixto shot a bunch of photos, which I think will be really good for future graphic design needs and for video stills. I've been working with a cuadrillo of miners who keep inviting me back to their workplace again and again. It's their friendship and welcome most of all that makes this kind of work possible.
We also went to Macha, where the communities from the region celebrate the fiesta de la cruz by banding together and beating the snot out of each other. It's kind of a weird spectacle -- it happens at this time of year in Macha and in a number of other communities, and it happens throughout the north of Potosi throughout the year.
What struck me most from this spectacle is the lack of understanding between people who live in the campo and people who live in the city. The people who are from the town of Macha, where the festival happens every year, just lack any in depth understanding of the festival or the communities around Macha. Yes, they speak Quechua, but they can't identify the community relationships or even explain what the fiesta means to the people who participate. Not that I can either, but I'm not trying to be part of this multicultural, multiethnic society of Bolivia.
At any rate, I hope to post some of Sixto's photos in a subsequent post.
And we've been editing. Carolina has been helping me to cut together a short trailer for the film and a ten minute short of miners in Siglo. She has a very good eye, a remarkable capacity to deal with schedule changes and she instantly understood the project and what I am aiming for. I think that we'll get a really good trailer, once I finish getting the footage I'll need from Taylor in Nevada in a couple of weeks.
Also, Daniela just helped me move all of my stuff into her house.
Monday, April 30, 2007
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
I'm Not Crazy. No really, I'm Not.
Just got back from a short trip to the Yungas of La Paz. These are the steep tropical foothills of the Andes, a description that hardly does them justice. It is a landscape that doesn't exist in any other context of the imagination. You can't really photograph it because there isn't a center of focus. Are you looking at the mountains -- long finger ridges that go on forever in all directions -- or are you looking at the valleys -- the negative space between the mountains. Or the clouds, which move across the sky in every different angle all at the same time. It's not a landscape I can explain or even understand.
This trip include a visit to Santa Rosa de Lima and a community called Chillata. Chillata is about a two hour walk from the main road. No cars, no nothing. It's a pretty heavily traveled road though, because there are a number of gold mines up above the town. I saw at least eight people and two mules.
The community itself operates a mine too, which seems to be their principal cash income. At the bottom of the valley, the hillsides are covered in all coca fields. Though they said they had them here too, I didn't see any at all. The terrain is so steep and hilly that they may easily have been hidden out of eyesight from the road, but certainly it is nothing like the volume in other parts of the Yungas.
It was nice to be out of the city, and nice to be walking around in the country. And it's a challenge to find individuals and communities that are really interested in presenting their community and their reality in a documentary. How do you explain to someone who has never seen a documentary that this documentary will present a comparison between mining in the US and mining in Bolivia? How do you explain that I'm not doing this to make money, that I may break even if I get lucky, but that really what I am interested in is telling a story? Their story really.
What I am doing lies so far outside of their vision of the world and of what is possible, that it's hard to convince people that I this is really what I am doing. Come to think of it, I imagine that a number of you feel the same way.
What's interesting (and reassuring, sort of) is that in the mining towns, like Siglo XX, I found a number of people who said they wouldn't mind if I filmed them, they just wanted me to make a documentary that showed their reality. It's reassuring because it took me at least three visits to find these people and get to know them. So I think that with a little time and a lot of walking, I'll be able to find the same thing here in the Yungas.
This trip include a visit to Santa Rosa de Lima and a community called Chillata. Chillata is about a two hour walk from the main road. No cars, no nothing. It's a pretty heavily traveled road though, because there are a number of gold mines up above the town. I saw at least eight people and two mules.
The community itself operates a mine too, which seems to be their principal cash income. At the bottom of the valley, the hillsides are covered in all coca fields. Though they said they had them here too, I didn't see any at all. The terrain is so steep and hilly that they may easily have been hidden out of eyesight from the road, but certainly it is nothing like the volume in other parts of the Yungas.
It was nice to be out of the city, and nice to be walking around in the country. And it's a challenge to find individuals and communities that are really interested in presenting their community and their reality in a documentary. How do you explain to someone who has never seen a documentary that this documentary will present a comparison between mining in the US and mining in Bolivia? How do you explain that I'm not doing this to make money, that I may break even if I get lucky, but that really what I am interested in is telling a story? Their story really.
What I am doing lies so far outside of their vision of the world and of what is possible, that it's hard to convince people that I this is really what I am doing. Come to think of it, I imagine that a number of you feel the same way.
What's interesting (and reassuring, sort of) is that in the mining towns, like Siglo XX, I found a number of people who said they wouldn't mind if I filmed them, they just wanted me to make a documentary that showed their reality. It's reassuring because it took me at least three visits to find these people and get to know them. So I think that with a little time and a lot of walking, I'll be able to find the same thing here in the Yungas.
Monday, April 9, 2007
More Problems, please
Thanks to Aziz Isham, I solved the problem of the translator. The problem with a translator is that the American miner, Hugh, doesn't speak Spanish. Bringing him to Bolivia he will be able to see things and react to that, but he won't be able to react directly to what the people say. Plus everything in Spanish will have to be subtitled, and who reads subtitles. Bah. So we need an interpretor who will filter all of this information from Spanish to English and back again. Which sounds like a really boring way to make a film.
Aziz astutely raised yet another issue, the last time I talked to him. He noted that the film would benefit from having two miners who could interact rather than one. Call it the sidekick problem. Our miner needs someone to play off of and to talk to. Someone to ask him engaging questions and listen to what he says. Someone interesting, knowledgeable about mining and engaging on film. What Aziz didn't realize is that by raising the sidekick problem he was really solving the translator problem. The translator and the sidekick are one and the same.
I just finished a great interview with the second miner, Pedro. He started working in the mines in Cerro Rico in Potosi when he was very young, after his father had a bad accident and needed the help. From there, he began working as an assistant to one of the tour operators who bring gringos into the cooperatives of Cerro Rico. He taught himself English with the tourists and tripled his pay. He now works occasionally in the mines and occasionally as a guide.
Here's what struck me about Pedro when I met him two years ago. He stopped and asked his group of tourists in the mine and asked them why they wanted to see the mines in Potosi. It wasn't aggressive at all, but it showed a curiosity and thoughtfulness that is uncommon among bolivian tour guides. Enough so that, two years later, I remembered his name and was able to track him down almost instantly.
And in an interview this afternoon (with a beautiful golden sunlight and a perfect backdrop of green grasses), he proved to be curious, engaging, easygoing, entertaining. In short, it seems that my first impression was pretty accurate. Here is a translator who is interesting, knowledgeable about mining and engaging on film. Here is someone who can play off of Hugh, ask him engaging questions and listen to what he says. And a translator to boot.
So thanks to Aziz for raising solutions disguised as problems.
Aziz astutely raised yet another issue, the last time I talked to him. He noted that the film would benefit from having two miners who could interact rather than one. Call it the sidekick problem. Our miner needs someone to play off of and to talk to. Someone to ask him engaging questions and listen to what he says. Someone interesting, knowledgeable about mining and engaging on film. What Aziz didn't realize is that by raising the sidekick problem he was really solving the translator problem. The translator and the sidekick are one and the same.
I just finished a great interview with the second miner, Pedro. He started working in the mines in Cerro Rico in Potosi when he was very young, after his father had a bad accident and needed the help. From there, he began working as an assistant to one of the tour operators who bring gringos into the cooperatives of Cerro Rico. He taught himself English with the tourists and tripled his pay. He now works occasionally in the mines and occasionally as a guide.
Here's what struck me about Pedro when I met him two years ago. He stopped and asked his group of tourists in the mine and asked them why they wanted to see the mines in Potosi. It wasn't aggressive at all, but it showed a curiosity and thoughtfulness that is uncommon among bolivian tour guides. Enough so that, two years later, I remembered his name and was able to track him down almost instantly.
And in an interview this afternoon (with a beautiful golden sunlight and a perfect backdrop of green grasses), he proved to be curious, engaging, easygoing, entertaining. In short, it seems that my first impression was pretty accurate. Here is a translator who is interesting, knowledgeable about mining and engaging on film. Here is someone who can play off of Hugh, ask him engaging questions and listen to what he says. And a translator to boot.
So thanks to Aziz for raising solutions disguised as problems.
Friday, March 30, 2007
I have an intern, which is new and exciting. She's into the editing aspect of film and has been reviewing the footage I have already shot with an eye to how to cut together a thrilling trailer. She's smart and has a good eye. And she didn't bat an eyelash when I told her that we were going to cut a trailer now with the footage that I have so far and some footage of Nevada that hasn't been shot yet. And she has actual credentials in filmmaking. She graduated from Yale with a degree in film.
Other than that, a pretty uneventful week -- a little fundraising, which has been going pretty well, a little institutional capacity building and some planning for my trip back North to film the Nevada State Mining Championships.
Rather than bore you some more, I'm going to post a few pics.
The answer to the obvious question you are about to ask about the first picture is in the little blue bottle. CEIBO alchohol. The drink of choice for cooperativistas at carnaval... or any other time for that matter.
This is what Carnaval is basically about to me. The little bit of a rainbow over the rough edges of a hard life.
Lode Star Gold. Of course in Bolivia, this truck would be valued because it could get you home rather than because it's an antique. Doesn't have anything to do with the documentary, but it's a beautiful truck.
Other than that, a pretty uneventful week -- a little fundraising, which has been going pretty well, a little institutional capacity building and some planning for my trip back North to film the Nevada State Mining Championships.
Rather than bore you some more, I'm going to post a few pics.
The answer to the obvious question you are about to ask about the first picture is in the little blue bottle. CEIBO alchohol. The drink of choice for cooperativistas at carnaval... or any other time for that matter.
This is what Carnaval is basically about to me. The little bit of a rainbow over the rough edges of a hard life.
Lode Star Gold. Of course in Bolivia, this truck would be valued because it could get you home rather than because it's an antique. Doesn't have anything to do with the documentary, but it's a beautiful truck.
Friday, March 23, 2007
The Most Boring Post Ever
This post will be boring. This is the other half of filmmaking, and its much less appealing than crawling around on my hands and knees in the mud, in a dark, uncomfortable crack in the rock, a mile underground. But its as important as getting the footage.
This week, I started fundraising.
I hate asking my friends and family for money, but the film won't go forward if I don't. It's ugly. It's dirty. It's uncomfortable. But until I win the lottery, there's no way to make the film without it.
I need to go to Nevada to film the Nevada State Mining Championships over Memorial Day weekend. And I need to go back to Yerrington to film another interview with Hugh. These two shoots are key to the film, and the last two ingredients that I need in order to cut together a promotional trailer to bring to Foundations and other large-scale funders.
This is all going to cost a little less than $3,000. Which is about $3,200 more than I have right now.
So I sent a handful of emails out, and I will continue sending them out handful by handful. If you haven't had a note on the subject yet, don't worry. You will. Or you can head me off at the pass by sending a check to Wicked Delicate Films, at:
65 Old Harbor Street,
South Boston, MA 02127
Just make sure you put a note on it that it is for A Miner's Luck, and it will probably be a good idea to send me a note so that I can expect it. Those of you who would benefit from a tax deduction on donations, let me know that also. I can make arrangements for this donation to be made through a tax exempt fiscal sponsor.
And thanks to Ella, who was the first person to donate, in spite of the fact that I told her med students are exempt. She promised me a check for $25, and, maybe more important, wrote me some encourging words.
This week, I started fundraising.
I hate asking my friends and family for money, but the film won't go forward if I don't. It's ugly. It's dirty. It's uncomfortable. But until I win the lottery, there's no way to make the film without it.
I need to go to Nevada to film the Nevada State Mining Championships over Memorial Day weekend. And I need to go back to Yerrington to film another interview with Hugh. These two shoots are key to the film, and the last two ingredients that I need in order to cut together a promotional trailer to bring to Foundations and other large-scale funders.
This is all going to cost a little less than $3,000. Which is about $3,200 more than I have right now.
So I sent a handful of emails out, and I will continue sending them out handful by handful. If you haven't had a note on the subject yet, don't worry. You will. Or you can head me off at the pass by sending a check to Wicked Delicate Films, at:
65 Old Harbor Street,
South Boston, MA 02127
Just make sure you put a note on it that it is for A Miner's Luck, and it will probably be a good idea to send me a note so that I can expect it. Those of you who would benefit from a tax deduction on donations, let me know that also. I can make arrangements for this donation to be made through a tax exempt fiscal sponsor.
And thanks to Ella, who was the first person to donate, in spite of the fact that I told her med students are exempt. She promised me a check for $25, and, maybe more important, wrote me some encourging words.
Friday, March 16, 2007
Another Trip to Siglo XX / Llallagua
Just spent another week in Siglo XX / Llallagua. In spite of everything going wrong while I was trying to leave -- I had lent my lights to a cameraman with a drinking problem -- this was a really productive trip. We got some very good footage of the working conditions of the cooperative miners. I think the folks I know in Nevada will be surprised to see men working in conditions more primative than what is celebrated at events like the mining championships.
We followed a miner named Jorge through a days work, from his house in the weak light of the early morning, in a trufi (a land rover packed with miners, and four hanging off the back), "picchando" coca and talking politics with his workmates, and working the vein with a hammer and steel bit. I think the footage we got will get the sense of how primitive, brutal and difficult this work really is.
Actually, the vein we filmed isn't the vein that Jorge normally works, but for the sake of safety and in order to have enough room to work and film at the same time, he volunteered to work on a smaller vein nearby. Even so, he said he got four or five pounds of tin, which is worth ten to twelve dollars once he has it ground and concentrated. Not a lot of money.
This is the footage I need to have in order show it next to the footage of the Nevada State Mining Championships, in the end of May. Now all I have to do is raise three thousand dollars by the end of May to be able to go film that.
We followed a miner named Jorge through a days work, from his house in the weak light of the early morning, in a trufi (a land rover packed with miners, and four hanging off the back), "picchando" coca and talking politics with his workmates, and working the vein with a hammer and steel bit. I think the footage we got will get the sense of how primitive, brutal and difficult this work really is.
Actually, the vein we filmed isn't the vein that Jorge normally works, but for the sake of safety and in order to have enough room to work and film at the same time, he volunteered to work on a smaller vein nearby. Even so, he said he got four or five pounds of tin, which is worth ten to twelve dollars once he has it ground and concentrated. Not a lot of money.
This is the footage I need to have in order show it next to the footage of the Nevada State Mining Championships, in the end of May. Now all I have to do is raise three thousand dollars by the end of May to be able to go film that.
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Back to Bolivia (at last)
I wrote this on the tenth of February, when I got back to Bolivia. Only I didn't have a blog to publish it on yet. You should also visit the Wicked Delicate Films website, where there are photos and a bunch of other interesting films:
wickedelicate.com
Follow the link for "Documentaries" and then for "A Miner's Luck"
Text of first post below:
So I've finally gotten back to Bolivia, and back into the hustle of La Paz. Seems like the minute I stepped off of the plane I had a million things that I need to do. And I also learned that I missed a major miner's protest against the governments proposal to raise taxes. There were apparently some thirty thousand cooperativistas here in La Paz on Tuesday marching and throwing dynamite. I'm particularly sad that I missed it because there aren't that many times when thirty thousand miners march peacefully. It would have been a good moment to film and from everything that I understand miners on the march is a pretty intimidating sight.
I am also worried that this may be a sign of the conflicts escalating between the cooperativistas and the government. I'll see what I can learn when I go back to Siglo XX.
Meantime, I'm exhausted. Six weeks is a long time to be away, and I seem to have lost any acclimatization to the altitude that I might have had. Though running at sea level last week was pretty darn hard, too. Even so, it's good to be back.
wickedelicate.com
Follow the link for "Documentaries" and then for "A Miner's Luck"
Text of first post below:
So I've finally gotten back to Bolivia, and back into the hustle of La Paz. Seems like the minute I stepped off of the plane I had a million things that I need to do. And I also learned that I missed a major miner's protest against the governments proposal to raise taxes. There were apparently some thirty thousand cooperativistas here in La Paz on Tuesday marching and throwing dynamite. I'm particularly sad that I missed it because there aren't that many times when thirty thousand miners march peacefully. It would have been a good moment to film and from everything that I understand miners on the march is a pretty intimidating sight.
I am also worried that this may be a sign of the conflicts escalating between the cooperativistas and the government. I'll see what I can learn when I go back to Siglo XX.
Meantime, I'm exhausted. Six weeks is a long time to be away, and I seem to have lost any acclimatization to the altitude that I might have had. Though running at sea level last week was pretty darn hard, too. Even so, it's good to be back.
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