Right at the beginning of the project Charlotte spent 3 weeks undertaking research with the Coordinadora Latinoamericana de Cine y Comunicación de los Pueblos Indígenas (CLACPI) during the 13th International Indigenous Film and Media Festival, FICMayab’. FICMayab’ was coordinated locally by the Red Tz’ikin, a Guatemalan communitarian and Indigenous media organisation. The festival encompassed a series of community screenings and audience development in advance of the final three-week celebration, which was structured in 3 phases in different regions of the country: Quetzaltenango (Xela), Ciudad de Guatemala, and Chisec, Alta Verapaz. During the festival Claudia Arteaga (Scripps College/Escuela de Cine Amazónico) and I undertook several interviews with filmmakers and producers and we subsequently edited a short video and accompanying text on Indigenous epistemologies and filmmaking.
FICMayab’ was a celebration of the connection between different art forms and political voice, embracing its slogan ‘Por la memoria, el territorio y la vida’. With featured screening sessions on Queer Indigenous cinema and El Fuego volcano, among many others, it responded to crucial discussions regarding ongoing violations against diverse Indigenous communities.