Aqui y alla (Here and There)

Aqu y All is a 22-minute experimental documentary that reflects on family as an emotional system that operates across generations by focusing on the passing of time, the possibilities of remembering and the construction of space as an ongoing historical and subjective process. The film creates an impressionistic tapestry that weaves the historical tension of racial identity in Colombia with the complexity of family dynamics between my grandparents, my father and his siblings during their time together in Chipaque, a small town in Colombia. I began this project with the intention to trace the echoes of violence in Chipaque between the 40s and 50s based on stories that my paternal grandfather used to tell. As I was doing preliminary interviews, I became aware that in a way I was chasing my grandparents shadow, as they have both passed away. Then, the house where my father and his siblings grew up was sold. This development prompted me to refocus the film and make a more personal and intimate exploration of the concept of family bonds and the idea of home. A type of cognitive map that works as a family portrait, the film juxtaposes colour 16mm images, black and white video footage and photos from the familys archive with an immersive sound design and a diaristic use of text to illustrate the impossibility of looking at the past as a fixed, solid and understandable dimension. Weaving fragments of private and public spaces, gestures, voices and phrases, the film draws from the tradition of experimental cinema to create an intimate audiovisual site of personal and collective memory in which the beauty and the pain from both the past and the present co-exist simultaneously.

Author dc:creator

• Rodriguez, Lina Paola

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Hoffman, Philip J

• Latin American history

Statement dc:rights

• Author owns copyright, except where explicitly noted. Please contact the author directly with licensing requests.

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/10315/36661

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:yorkspace.library.yorku.ca:10315/36661