MANDELA AND FIDEL / SOUTH AFRICA AND CUBA: AN EVENING WITH
FILM MAKER ESTELA BRAVO (Wed, 26 February, 6.30pm - Barratt One)
The Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), School
of Journalism and Media Studies, and the International Office cordially invite
you to a screening of two documentaries by acclaimed American documentary
film-maker Estela Bravo. We are
privileged to have Estela Bravo introduce and discuss the documentaries with us
at the screening.
"MANDELA AND FIDEL" (2013, 30 min) recounts the
friendship of ex-president Nelson Mandela with Fidel Castro of Cuba. Based on
the unique access Estela Bravo gained to both men, she explores the source of
their friendship in the context of the struggle to end apartheid in South
Africa.
"AFTER THE BATTLE" (1991, 58 min) movingly recounts
the stories of Cuban, South African, and Angolan soldiers who participated in
the epic battle of Cuito Cuanavale in Angola in 1987. What was the motivation,
and what was the outcome, for the ones who took part in the conflict, and for
their families? Those who fought answer these questions. Filmed on location
in South Africa, Angola, Namibia and Cuba, Bravo's documentary examines the
politics and human consequences of the war from all sides. It features
remarkable footage, archival material, and interviews with Cuban and South
African soldiers, as well as the grieving families of those who were killed in
the war.
DATE: Wednesday 26
February 2014
VENUE: Barratt Lecture Theatre 1
TIME: 6.30pm
ESTELA BRAVO: "One of the world's foremost documentary
filmmakers." National Film Theatre (London).
The ISER, School of Journalism and International Office are
privileged to host Estela Bravo at Rhodes University on the 26th February. Ms
Bravo is currently in South Africa for the premier screening of her documentary
"Mandela and Fidel".
Estela Bravo is an American documentary filmmaker who for
the past fifty years has divided her time between Latin America and the United
States.
Bravo's life-long objective is preserving collective memory
through film while pursuing a more humane future. Her 30 award-winning
documentary films have focused on the human effects of conflicts aimed at
achieving social justice throughout Latin America, Africa, the Caribbean and the
U.S. Bravo has developed a unique reputation for representing through film the
voice of ordinary people with great dignity and eloquence.
The work of Bravo has been aired on PBS (US), CBC (Canada),
Channel 4 (UK), RAI (Italy), Canal Plus (France), ABC (Australia), as well as
in Latin America. Her films have been reviewed in The New York Times, The Miami
Herald, The Guardian, The Economist, Le Monde Diplomatique, and Spain's El Pais
among others. Retrospectives of her films have been mounted in Madrid, London,
New York and Istanbul. Her body of work is considered in the book Estela Bravo:
Witness of her Times (Istanbul, 2003).
Miami-Havana (1992), a moving exploration of divided Cuban
families, appeared as part of the Point of View series on PBS, USA. The Cuban
Excludables made with the Canadian Broadcasting Company, received the 1997 One
World Award from the European Community and BBC as the best overseas production
on British Television. Her 2001 film, Fidel, was selected for the Toronto Film
Festival and received an award in New York's Urbanworld Film Festival for
"Distinguished Achievement for Excellence in Documentary
Filmmaking."
Who Am I ?, Bravo's latest film, received the Caracol Award
for best documentary at the Latin American film festival as well as the Telesur
Award.
Inquiries:
Professor Lynette Steenveld, School of Journalism and Media
Studies - 046
603 7142
e-mail: l.steenveld@ru.ac.za
Prof Robert Van Niekerk, Institute of Social and Economic
Research - 046
6038903
e-mail: r.vanniekerk@ru.ac.za
