Film Image
Americano
Producer: Sylvain L'Esperance
2007
Color
110 minutes
Canada
English/Spanish
English subtitles

Americano

"I’m on my way to reconnect with long lost friends, 'mi familia Americana'. I need them to help me take the pulse of the Americas." Carlos Ferrand

AMERICANO is a personal journey through the back alleys of the Americas by Peruvian-Québécois filmmaker Carlos Ferrand. Travelling from Patagonia to Nu-navut over a period of four years, he revisits some of the men and women he befriended during his wanderings through the Americas: family members; filmmakers and professors; a doctor; the cook of his childhood home.

Fortunata Gomez was Ferrand's family Quechuan cook; she lives with her children in a house built in what was once a slum in Lima, Peru. Pablo Perelman, a Chilean filmmaker whose brother was killed by Pinochet's henchmen, is working on a feature film in Patagonia about an indigenous culture that has disappeared. Cesar Perez, a Peruvian of Chinese descent works for Bolivian filmmaker Jorge Sanjines. American friends Carol and Ajuba, from California and Brooklyn respectively, are social justice activists.

All have lived meaningful lives and carry those memories with them; all have stories to tell that bear witness to the political upheavals of recent years. Ferrand gives them a moment in the spotlight and each, in his or her own way, encourages us to question our own identity.
Pricing & Ordering
Buyer Type Format Sale Type Price
Higher Education Institutions DVD Sale $300.00
K-12, Public Libraries & Select Groups DVD Sale $80.00
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Reviews
"AMERICANO crosses all the rocky social, political and cultural terrain that is the Americas of today." - Telefilm Canada
"Captivating... Americano is a personal film, built on lifelong friendships, in which each person’s story is woven through the history of the continent and the diversity of its population." - Nicolas Renaud, Hors Champ
"Recommended for libraries collecting materials about Latin America. AMERICANO focuses on the historical and continuing abuse of indigenous peoples such as the Quechua and Aymara... The intimate look at these problems is informative and moving and each section is distinct enough that instructors could select particular vignettes relevant to their needs." - Jessica Schomberg, Educational Media Reviews Online
Screenings
• Vancouver Latin American Film Festival
• Toronto International Latin American Film Festival

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