| EMRO Highly Recommends TWN New Releases
TWN is proud to announce that
EMRO highly recommended several of our new
releases, including El Charango, On
the Downlow
and Two Dollar
Dance. EMRO also recommended Sipakapa
Is Not for Sale. Read the reviews below!
To
place your order, please
visit our new
website, print
out an order
form and fax it to (212) 594-6417 or
mail it
to Third World Newsreel, 545 8th Avenue, 10th
Floor, New York, NY 10018. We accept credit
cards, personal
checks or institutional purchase orders.
Remember to add $20 for shipping and
handling.
| El Charango
NEW El Charango
Available on
DVD
"El Charango is a documentary film about
the relationship between the Bolivian
stringed instrument the charango and a
mountain of silver called Cerro Rico (Rich
Mountain) in Potosi, Bolivia. In colonial
times the oppressed indigenous miners of
Potosi were forbidden to pay the Spanish
guitar so they created their own instrument
the charango. The diminutive charango
resembles the Hawaiian ukulele, but sounds
differently.
This short documentary does an excellent job
of contrasting the hard life of contemporary
Andean silver miners with the creation and
playing of the charango. The viewer is taken
on a hellish journey to the bowels of Cerro
Rico to observe the hard life of Bolivian
miners that is little changed from the time
of the conquistadors. Miners, who use simple
hand tools, must chew coca leaves to deal
with the darkness, heat, thirst, hunger, and
frequent cave-ins of Cerro Rico. Only El Tio
(the uncle), a local spirit or deity
identified with El Diablo, seems concerned
with the miners welfare. By contrast, an
expert craftsman discusses the making of a
charango. He explains that the charango's
body is sometimes made from the shell of an
armadillo or expertly carved from a solid
piece of wood. Musicians, including the
remarkable Ernesto Cavour Ayamaro,
demonstrate its musical versatility and
haunting beauty.
This fine little documentary is well edited
and fast-paced. Images flow at just the right
rhythm to maintain interest. Picture quality
and sound are excellent. The brevity of the
documentary is an asset. The director doesn't
linger over scenes, but makes his point and
moves on. I really enjoyed the music, and I
particularly enjoyed the playing of master
charango player Ernesto Ayamaro. What he can
do with this small instrument is nothing
short of amazing!
This superb film would be valuable in music,
folklore, anthropology, history, and Latin
American studies classes. I strongly
recommend this gem of an independent film."
--Charles Burkart, Media Bibliographer, West
Virginia University
Jim Virga & Tula Goenka |
documentary | 22 minutes | 2006 | $175
view
in catalog
| On the Downlow
NEW On the
Downlow Available on
DVD
"This excellent documentary focuses on
several African-American
bisexual men living in Cleveland, OH,
exploring their relationship to
their parents and children, to women, to the
HIV/AIDS crisis, to their
own sexuality, and to society. These young
men, ranging in age from 18
to mid-thirties, share how they think of
themselves and explain the
various ways they present themselves to
society.
Thoroughly empathetic, the filmmaker allows
the men to tell the
stories of their everyday struggles to
navigate being both black and
bisexual in the Midwest. In one of the most
poignant scenes, Kerwin
calls his soldier-father to tell him that
he's been bisexual since he
was 16, deeply afraid of his reaction to the
news. Antonio, recently
released from prison, gets his first HIV test
since entering prison.
Billy talks about how he would stop sleeping
with men, if it meant
he'd regain custody of his children. George
and Ray, both 18, reveal
how they haven't yet told their young
girlfriends of their
bisexuality. In sharing their personal
stories, these men reveal the
different ways they perform their identities
in different situations.
While the film addresses the controversial
idea that black men on the
"downlow" (or the "DL") are a large factor in
the increasing incidence
of HIV/AIDS among black women, it does not
spend too much time on the
topic, as the men interviewed in the
documentary forcefully reject
that hypothesis. The focus of the film is
much more on them as
individuals.
The production quality is more than
satisfactory, and features a great
soundtrack. On the Downlow is highly
recommended for classes on
gender, sexuality and African American
studies."
--Martha Kelehan,
Binghamton University
Abigail Child |
documentary | 54 minutes | 2006 | $225
view
in catalog
| Two Dollar Dance
NEW Two Dollar
Dance Available on
DVD
"Two Dollars Dance focuses on
Victor and
Lizabeth, both immigrants who haven't seen
their families in more than 6 years, and both
denizens of a New York dance bar. For $2 a
dance, Victor finds companionship,
conversation and the chance to briefly leave
the stresses of being an undocumented
immigrant behind. Lizabeth who both enjoys
and is somewhat ashamed of her job dancing
with lonely men, hides it from her family
back in Peru, preferring to tell them she
cleans offices at night.
This poignant short explores the emotional
costs of immigration, as both Victor and
Lizabeth put the financial success of their
families ahead of their own personal
happiness.
With decent production values and, of course,
plenty of romantic ballads, the film is
utterly watchable. Highly recommended for
those looking for an unusual glimpse into
immigrant life in America."
--Marhta
Kelehan,
Binghamton University
Yolanda Pividal |
documentary | 17 minutes | 2006 | $175
view
in catalog
| Sipakapa Is Not For Sale
Sipakapa Is Not
for Sale Available on
DVD
"The film sends a decisive message on the
problems of mine exploitation without
becoming burdensome and took an even handed
approach in handling conflicting testimony...
As a first time effort for director Alvaro
Revenga, Sipakapa Is Not For Sale, does an
impressive job with presenting the issues of
mine exploitation in developing countries,
and exposing some of the questionable manner
in which mining companies push forward their
agendas."
--Charmaine Henriques,
Northwestern
University Library
Alvaro Revenga |
documentary | 55 minutes | 2005 | $175
view
in catalog
| View TWN's 2007-2008 Releases eBrochure
TWN's 2007-2008 e-Brochure is now
available online!
view
brochure
| TWN Thanks
TWN is supported in
part by The New York State Council on the
Arts, The
National Endowment for the Arts, The New York
City
Department of Cultural Affairs, The Ford
Foundation, The North Star Fund, The Funding
Exchange, Manhattan Neighborhood
Network , as well as individual donors.
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|
phone:
212.947.9277
|
 |
TWN is a 501(c)3 nonprofit
organization dedicated to fostering the
creation,
appreciation, and dissemination of
independent media
by and about people of color.
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