IFF: telling the story of Panama

 
517Views 0Comments Posted 04/04/2012

A lovely, touching film about identity and culture in a changing world, The Wind and the Water (called Burwa Dii Ebo in Kuna) gives a deeper understanding of contemporary Panama.


Set in Panama City and the San Blas Islands, this locally-made film tells the story of two young Kuna natives.  Machi grew up in San Blas, speaking the traditional language and following the customs of his elders.  He is told that in order to know the secret of the wise ones, he must undertake a sort of vision quest, to the skyscrapers and noise of Panama City.

There he meets Rosy, a Kuna girl trying to hide her native roots.  She dresses in modern fashions and dreams of being a supermodel, until the death of her grandmother necessitates a trip to the islands.  Together with Machi, she journeys back toward her heritage and toward a peace with the complexity and contradictions of modern Panama.

The people of Kuna Yala (San Blas) were among the first to be contacted by European explorers, and possibly some of the only people to retain their political and cultural autonomy throughout the colonial period.  Traditional farming and fishing continue to this day, with daily community meetings to discuss island themes and listen to the song of the elders. 

But environmental degradation, and interference from drug traffickers and real estate agents, have diminished the traditional economy to the point where young Kuna people now journey to Panama City looking for work.  There, without Spanish language proficiency or applicable education, they gather in marginalized barrios, exposed to the threats of city living.

The Wind and the Water is the first film to tell their story, and it does so with poignance and with an infectious love for the beauty of the islands.  Featured in the Sundance, Toronto, and Chicago Film Festivals, The Wind and the Water will show in Panama’s International Film Festival on April 30 and May 1 at the Cinemark Multicentro, with English subtitles.

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