Across Bolivia

Sortir la spiritualité autochtone de la clandestinité

His buildings are garish, colorful and completely overloaded. Columns and glittering chandeliers everywhere, and way too much of everything. The Bolivian civil engineer and architect Freddy Mamani Silvestre (*1971) builds houses in El Alto for a nouveau riche upper class of the Aymara, the largest indigenous ethnic group in Bolivia.

Are tourists destroying the planet-or saving it? How do travelers change the remote places they visit, and how are they changed? From the Bolivian jungle to the party beaches of Thailand, and from the deserts of Timbuktu, Mali to the breathtaking beauty of Bhutan, GRINGO TRAILS traces stories over 30 years to show the dramatic long-term impact of tourism on cultures, economies, and the environment.

Mascarades

'The Devil's Miner' tells the story of 14-year-old Basilio who worships the devil for protection while working in a Bolivian silver mine to support his family.

A documentary on American political campaign marketing tactics and their consequences.

A documentary centered on the union formed by Bolivian farmers in response to their government's (which was urged by the U.S.) effort to eradicate coca crops, and the man who would come to represent them, Evo Morales.

A documentary filmmaker travels to Bolivia to learn more about his father and his family's history.

Andean communities fight to protect their water from contamination by mining companies.

In December of 2002, McDonald's had to shut down their restaurants in Bolivia. The company cited financial problems, but the real reasons were to be found elsewhere. Bolivia may be a small, poor nation on the global market, but a country's fierce local food culture can be sometimes a more powerful factor than economic clout. In his first feature-length documentary, Fernando Martinez shows what happened, a story driven by the characters behind the events and their life stories, such as renowned cooks and a review of popular sayings about the Bolivian food. The symbolism is obvious when a multinational giant is 'brought to its knees' by a country's traditions and heritage.

Photography trip to Bolivia filmed with a rostrum camera and edited with original sounds from the country.

For many years, the Swiss photographer Jean-Claude Wicky captured the world of Bolivian miners in photographs. When he discovered how strongly they reacted to his pictures, he decided to make a film. Black-and-white photographs alternate with film sequences, in which the miners talk about the harsh conditions of their everyday lives, while also rendering visible their pride, dignity, culture and dynamic traditions. Every day is night is first and foremost a testimonial of profoundly sincere human encounters based on respect, generosity and gratitude.

Images of Argentinian companies and factories in the first light of day, seen from the inside of a car, while the director reads out documents in voiceover that reveals the collusion of the same concerns in the military dictatorship’s terror.

Bolivia's Climbing Cholitas - a group of indigenous women scaling the Andes Mountains, some of the highest peaks in the world. Shot in Bolivia for Vogue Latin America and Vogue Mexico's 20th anniversary cover story.

A day in the life of Esperanza, a Quechua girl who lives in the remote mountains of southwestern Bolivia.

Danger, toil, and superstition pervade life in a mining town high up in the Bolivian mountains. Tin is the heartbeat of the community providing jobs and livelihoods - but at considerable cost. With deaths commonplace, people make offerings to El Tio, the devil under the earth, for protection and good fortune. But when the mountain's flow of tin ebbs, further measures must be taken...

L'Autre pays

Journal de Bolivie

The story of a poor girl who leaves her starving family and sheep for a more prosperous village. Her grandfather finds her and tries to convince her to return to her home.

General Alfredo Ovando Candia was a decisive figure in 20 th century Bolivian history. Through old home movies and institutional footage, Mauricio Ovando goes in search of the figure (and the shadow) of his grandfather, interweaving his history and History while going after an uncomfortable truth.