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El GeneralUS Documentary Feature FilmsMexico/U.S.A., 2008, 83 mins., color “How do we reconcile the contradictions between our personal family memories and our country’s collective memory?” When filmmaker Natalia Almada asks this question, the answer is her latest film, a tour de force of cinematic imagination bristling with beauty, contradiction, and the epic scope of Mexico’s last 100 years of history. Stunningly realized, Almada’s filmic meditation is framed as a search through the memory of her grandmother, whose reminiscences revolve around her father, Plutarco Elías Calles, one of Mexico’s most prominent and controversial presidents. A general during the Mexican Revolution and then president from 1924 to 1928, Calles was known both for his deeds as a revolutionary hero and the brutal tactics he employed during his presidency. His life and legacy embody both the promise and betrayal of Mexico’s poignant history. For Almada, the exploration of her extraordinary personal link to Mexico’s past becomes a lens through which she explores the qualities of cinema that have formed the fulcrum of her artistic practice over her career. Archival and original footage, Hollywood films, and still photographs are woven with original music and meticulously edited audio archives to reveal a hypnotic and deeply compassionate portrait of the Mexican people and the forces that have shaped their country. Recipient of the Directing Award: U.S. Documentary. CAST Natalia Almada - Natalia Almada was born in Mexico. Her directing credits include All Water Has a Perfect Memory, an internationally recognized experimental short, and Al Otro Lado, an award-winning feature documentary about immigration and drug trafficking. Almada's work has screened at Sundance, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Whitney Biennial as well as on ARTE and PBS. She is a 2008 Guggenheim fellow and has received support from Creative Capital, the Sundance Institute, and the MacDowell Colony, among others. She shares her time between Mexico and Brooklyn.
Screenings:
Sun. Jan 18 noon - GENER18TD Temple Theatre, Park City Mon. Jan 19 9:00 a.m. - GENER19EM Egyptian Theatre, Park City Tue. Jan 20 6:00 p.m. - GENER20SE Screening Room, Sundance Resort Wed. Jan 21 6:45 p.m. - GENER21BE Broadway Centre Cinemas V, SLC Thu. Jan 22 6:00 p.m. - GENER22TE Temple Theatre, Park City Fri. Jan 23 12:15 p.m. - GENER234D Holiday Village Cinema IV, Park City |
