Documentary Educational Resources - Subject / Tourism Studies / Cultural Tourism / All Films

Down To Earth

Thu, 30 Aug 2018 07:05:00 GMT

This fascinating multidisciplinary social history investigates the contributions of New Mexico's diverse cultures to the state's unique architectural heritage. Today adobe is often associated with wealth and the "Santa Fe Style." But adobe architecture also continues to play a vital role in Native American and Hispanic cultures in New Mexico. Adobe is not just a building material. Its formal and structural elements cannot be divorced from its social, cultural, and environmental functions. Down to Earth explores the increasing pressures of tourism and development and illustrates the relationship between the environment of New Mexico and the continuity of cultural tradition.

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Incidents of Travel In Chichen Itza

Wed, 29 Aug 2018 12:45:00 GMT

Incidents of Travel In Chichen Itza
Buy Now: $320.00

This original ethnographic video depicts how New Agers, the Mexican state, tourists, and 1920s archaeologists all contend to “clear” the site of the antique Maya city of Chichen Itza in order to produce their own idealized and unobstructed visions of “Maya” while the local Maya themselves struggle to occupy the site as vendors and artisans.

The setting is the spring Equinox, when a shadow said to represent the Maya serpent-god Kukulkan appears on one temple pyramid. As more than 40,000 New Age spiritualists and secular tourists from the United States and Mexico converge to witness this solar phenomenon, the video depicts the surrounding social event as a complicated entanglement of expected dualisms concerning tourism. Going beyond previous films that reduce tourism to neo-colonial and exoticizing social relations, this video portrays a Maya cultural site where US New Agers — rather than local Mayas — appear as exotic ritualists who are on display for other secular tourists and for local Mayas.

While the video does examine representations of Mayas by visiting New Agers as part of globalizing discourses on the exotic and evolution, it also shows how during the ongoing economic crisis, resident Mayas struggle against the Mexican state — rather than against tourists — that regularly “sweeps” them from the tourist zone in order to anchor the nation in an image of pure antiquity.

This video also asks what kind of fieldwork is possible as part of such a spectacle. It questions the status of ethnographic authority as people from the various groups converging on the event, ironically including the anthropologist-videomakers, trade positions and compete to speak about the Maya.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS

Society for Visual Anthropology Film Festival, Award 1997

Margaret Mead Festival, 1997

Royal Anthropological Institute, Material Culture and Archaeology Prize, 1998

Latin American Studies Association Film Festival, Washington DC, 2001

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Sight Unseen

Tue, 28 Aug 2018 07:46:00 GMT

Sight Unseen
Buy Now: $295.00

Every morning at dawn, Ida Pedanda, a Balinese Hindu priest, sets out to gather flowers that he will use in religious ceremonies throughtout the day. His daily journey takes him by the houses of people he has lived near all his life. He walks by the ocean he has fished in for nearly as long. And, on his way home, he passes by the establishment of his newest neighbor from Kentucky &emdash; Colonel Sanders. Ida Pedanda and his family live in Sanur &emdash; the heart of Bali's up-scale tourist resort district &emdash; in a small family compound surrounded by hotels and highways. Their physical surroundings suggest the sort of blatant juxtaposition of "different worlds" that troubles and fascinates many American and European visitors. Guidebooks to Bali decry the "cultural pollution" seeping into Sanur; one guidebook warns that nowadays even "revered Hindu Priests wear graffiti-art T-shirts." But while Bali is indeed host to a convergence of outside influences, the relationship of Balinese culture and society - and of Balinese people - to those influences looks less like a clash of worlds and more like a complex and intimate interaction occurring at the level of neighborhoods, families and individuals. The striking image of a barefoot Balinese Priest passing a Kentucky Fried Chicken outlet on his way to the ocean only begins to address the process of globalization that is underway on Bali. Such an image alone leads to a confusion, as one anthropologist put it, between "some ineffable McDonaldization of the world" and a much subtler process of cultural adaptation, resistance and exchange. The idea of an "authentic" Bali is one that most visitors bring with them, in some measure, when they arrive on the island. In its most extreme evocation, authentic Bali is a Bali that is imagined to be a place characterized by timeless tradition, unchanging ritual, hand-made arts, music and dance. This is the Bali that has been doomed ever since Miguel Covarrubias forecasted in the 1930's that "Bali would soon enough be 'spoiled' for those fastidious travelers who abhor all that they bring with them." It is a Bali that travelers imagine to be incompatible with the "Western" influences that are finding their way onto the island through the channels of television and radio programming, and the marketing of products, fashions and technology. In Sight Unseen, this touristic urge to classify and contrast the traditional and the modern is addressed with a montage of visual juxtapositions: a line of women in pakian adat (traditional clothing) parade before a Pizza Hut sign, a weathered stone statue grimaces in front of a bowling alley, and Ida Pedanda, a priest, is shown to bear an uncanny resemblance to the bespectacled and bearded Colonel Sanders. These are the sort of visual contrasts that intrigue any tourist on Bali, but they overemphasize superficial attributes of culture. The narrator of Sight Unseen questions the relevance of pointing out such contrasts by suggesting that it focuses attention on cultural products rather than cultural processes. The presence of Kentucky Fried Chicken and bowling alleys on Bali are not a sign of the imminent destruction of an authentic Balinese culture. Those forms and commodities certainly do take up a place in the various landscapes of Balinese culture, but they do so by working their way into the processes of cultural reproduction, not by simply overwhelming or blotting out what existed before, like an overcoat of paint. The Priest's son has integrated the use of closed-circuit video broadcasts into his father's ceremonies. The film is aimed neither at refuting nor condemning the so-called "Westernisation" of Bali, but at demonstrating the intriguing problems apparent in an attempt to neatly summarize the process. And demonstrating, most of all, that Bali is not really a "mix" of anything at all. Bali is... Bali, now.

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Tubabs In Africa

Mon, 27 Aug 2018 08:57:00 GMT

Tubabs In Africa
Buy Now: $320.00

In the Gambia, West Africa, locals have a name for foreigners; they call them "Tubabs" a term derived from "two bob", the standard fee British colonialists used to pay Gambians for odd jobs. In this film we follow a group of students from St. Mary's College in Maryland on a summerlong jaunt deep into the Gambia to study West African language and culture. The result is a story about a group of American teenagers traveling outside their comfort zones in search of adventure, knowledge, and self-discovery.

The filmmakers investigate issues surrounding modern-day colonialism, Westerner's relationship to developing countries, and the traditions of the Gambian people. The film serves as a meditation on that familiar topic, the study-abroad experience, and like any travel experience, the film is most entertaining when things go wrong. The bus breaks down, the students get lost, a mission goes awry, and the very moments that are the most awful at the time end up being the most memorable. Anyone who spent time overseas during college or high school will see a reminder of their travels and recall a bit of the Tubab in themselves.

Suitable for preparation for any fieldwork or travel abroad experience where the goal is to foster awareness and cross-cultural understanding. The film shows the timeless value of experiencing another culture first hand.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS
The Archaeology Channel International Film and Video Festival, Oregon, 2004
XII International Festival of Ethnographical Films, Italy, 2004

Georgetown Independent Film Festival, Washington, DC, 2003

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Unity Through Culture

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 13:38:00 GMT

Unity Through Culture
Buy Now: $320.00

Soanin Kilangit is determined to unite the people and attract international tourism through the revival of culture on Baluan Island in the South Pacific. He organizes the largest cultural festival ever held on the island, but some traditional leaders argue that Baluan never had culture and that culture comes from the white man and is now destroying their old tradition.

Others, however, take the festival as a welcome opportunity to revolt against '70 years of cultural oppression' by Christianity. A struggle to define the past, present and future of Baluan culture erupts to the sound of thundering log drum rhythms.

"...the various disputes that come forth during the film will provide an excellent teaching tool and springboard for myriad discussions associated with issues involving kastom, tradition, change, authenticity, performance, identity, cultural politics, exchange, and the impact of the West on traditional societies." -- Karen Stevenson, American Anthropologist, September 2012

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Voices of Orchid Island

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 13:38:00 GMT

Voices of Orchid Island
Buy Now: $320.00

Voices of Orchid Island focuses on the Yami on Orchid Island, a small island located 45 miles off the southeast coast of Taiwan in the Pacific Ocean. The film explores the complex and often troubled relationship the Yami community has with the outside world by looking in detail at three different cases of "invasion" it has experienced.

The film opens by directly addressing the suspicions the Yami have of outsiders. The visit of a Taiwanese tour group to the island is fraught with cultural miscues, sometimes humorous in their absurdity, but there are also sobering hints of exploitation. By the end of this scene, it is easy to understand why the Yami have forbidden tourists to photograph them. The second aspect the film deals with is the island's medical care. The film follows the one western-trained doctor on his rounds as he tries to introduce a basic level of modern medicine while confronting a firmly entrenched set of local beliefs and traditions.

Finally, the film documents the local anti-nuclear movement, the target of which is the nuclear waste dump the ROC government has built on the island. We hear representatives of the national government defend the site's safety while local people express their fears and concerns at having the site so nearby. Woven throughout the film are views of Orchid Island's rugged, gorgeous scenery and its vibrant festivals.

SELECTED SCREENINGS & AWARDS
Best Documentary Film, Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival, 1993
Silver Plaque Award, Chicago International Film Festival, 1994
Bilan du Film Ethnographique, Paris, 1994
Gottingen International Ethnographic Film Festival, Germany, 1994

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Zulay

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 12:27:00 GMT

Zulay
Buy Now: $320.00

Filmed over a span of 8 years, this film is based on dialogue between Zulay Saravino, an indigenous Otavaleña of Equador, and Mabel Prelorán, an Argentine anthropologist living in Los Angeles.

The Otavalo Indians are industrious landowners and farmers who have also transitioned somewhat to a textile-based economy, selling handwoven garments to tourists at markets in Quito.

The film shows the beautiful mountainous landscape of Zulay's home and the traditions of her people – their work, history, food, clothing, and Catholic religious practices. The educated and business-savvy Zulay shares her opinions on tourism and photography and her anger over the stereotypes imposed on indigenous people in Equador. She tells Mabel stories passed down from her elders and reflects upon the trade-offs she's had to make in leaving her home to come to Los Angeles, where her desire to learn new skills is tempered by homesickness. The film becomes a universal document on transculturation and its implications for identity, education, economic advancement, and emotional ties.

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Wandering Warrior

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 12:26:00 GMT

Wandering Warrior
Buy Now: $320.00

In 1983, at the age of 19, Maasai warrior Mpeti Ole Surum left his homeland in Southern Kenya. He left his cattle, sheep, and goats. He moved from the community where he lived among other warriors to attend school and learn the English language; an opportunity unknown to others in his village.

Mpeti had met American tourists who were on a safari in Kenya. Their talk of the "outside world" interested him; they encouraged Mpeti to think about education. But his father beat and put a curse on him at the mention of school. Only after Mpeti persuaded the chief of his village to speak on his behalf, did his father concede. Mpeti entered the first grade at 19, changed his name to "Tom" and graduated three years later with an eighth-grade education, able to read and write in English.

The Maasai people possess great pride and self-respect. Their life within a rigid social structure maintains the harmony that has sustained them for thousands of years in the Great Rift Valley of Kenya. According to Maasai tradition, the warrior earns privileges by performing special duties. Tom underwent a series of rituals during his development as a warrior, including circumcision at age 15. The most honorable achievement for a warrior is the slaying of a lion. Tom killed two.

Tom took a job at Keekorok Lodge, a resort owned by the United Touring Company (UTC), Kenya's largest tourist agency located in the Maasai Mara Game Reserve. He worked as a groundskeeper, room steward, a salesman, and a manager in the gift shop. But he made an impression on the guests when he began speaking about Maasai culture. In hopes of attracting others to Kenya, UTC sent Tom to entertain in London, England. Within months the nomadic warrior had become a sought-after lecturer, entertainer, and talk show guest.

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Yankee in Kamchatka

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 12:26:00 GMT

Yankee in Kamchatka
Buy Now: $320.00

Kamchatka, Siberia - a remote land of stunning natural beauty. As Russia opens its doors, nature writer/adventurer Robert Perkins is the first American to enter this territory which has been kept strictly off-limits to all foreign travelers since World War II. With his host, Russian wildlife photographer Vasily Peskov, Perkins' remarkable adventure takes him canoeing on a precarious, log-jammed river; climbing to the top of an active volcano; cruising the jagged Pacific coastline, rich in marine wildlife; hiking the untouched Kronotsky wilderness preserve with its snow-clad mountains, bubbling craters, pristine lakes and waterfalls.

He meets Russians whose love for their culture and their land make them dedicated to preserving their traditions and the environment - from an architect who, despite threats from the authorities, is recreating a stately church in his village; to fishermen who resist a plan to dam their major salmon river; to a tribe of wandering Koryak reindeer herders, still living in the traditional ways of their ancestors. Beautifully photographed, Yankee In Kamchatka immerses the viewer in an extraordinary cross-cultural journey that brings to life a previously unfilmed world.

"Breathtaking vistas and stirring adventures make this a wonderful choice for both and active canoeists and armchair travelers." -- Booklist

"Expertly condensed into 56 minutes of spectacular scenery and charming encounters with the Russians... Production values, photography, and editing are uniformly excellent." -- Library Journal

"A fascinating and eye-opening look at an unusual subject...the informal narrative style and technical excellence make this film a winner." -- American Film & Video Festival

"Excellent and unusual documentary. Highly recommended. Editor's Choice." -- Video Librarian

"This is a sharply lensed, well-produced video replete with telling details." -- Wilson Library Bulletin

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The Architect and the Old Village

Wed, 18 Jul 2018 13:31:00 GMT

The Architect and the Old Village
Buy Now: $320.00

Álvaro Siza Vieira, a famous visionary Portuguese architect, is called to coordinate the rehabilitation of the monuments and architectonic heritage of Cidade Velha (Old Village) in Santiago, one of the African islands of Cape Verde. This project creates great expectations among the local population, who envisages it as a way of improving their quality of life. The film explores the relationship and the conflict between these two worlds, two cultures, with different ideas of what modernity and progress mean.

The film reflects with humor the idea that tradition is a new value of the modern era, the relationship between the people of Cidade Velha and the team and finally, the role of Siza who in his calm and timid manner, manages to understand and incorporate all conflicts and questions by planning, deciding, imagining and, above all, by drawing intensively.

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