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Septiembres | Septembers Spain, Documentary, 2007 Wednesday, April 16, 8 pm
“The redemptive power of love and song flows powerfully through "Septembers," an emotionally involving item that's also curiously upbeat, given that it's set in Spanish jails. Catalan helmer Carles Bosch (2002's Oscar-nommed "Balseros") appears to have walked in aiming to mine as much joy as he could from the lives of the embattled inmates, and he's succeeded beautifully. Bosch chooses his subjects with care and lets their stories unfold sans voiceover, but with the kind of compassion and insight, docu suggests, rarely afforded by the justice system.” - Jonathan Holland, Variety Producers: Carles Bosch, Toño Folguera, Loris Omedes. |
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This project is funded in part by the City of Austin through the Cultural Arts Division and by a grant from the Texas Commission on the Arts. Cine Las Americas © 1997 - 2008 | ||
For the incarcerated participants of the 2005 Festival of Song, singing love songs is not merely entertainment. It is also a poignant reminder of the people they left behind. What begins as a visit to a friend in a Madrid-area penitentiary soon becomes the inspiration for this documentary, when director Bosch stumbles across a karaoke competition. The competitors are from as far afield as Argentina, Mexico, Bolivia and Lithuania, and each has chosen a love song, singing for family, friends and lovers as though his heart is far outside the prison walls. The winner moves on to a larger, system-wide contest, where many others are waiting to compete, including Gordoquia, a former rock star. Following these remarkable stories over the course of a year, Septiembres journeys both within and outside the prison, traveling from Buenos Aires to Lithuania, and Bolivia to Barcelona in order to track down the people for whom the prisoners sing. “What is love? Can a documentary be made about love?” asks Bosch. This beguiling film proves that the answer is an unequivocal yes.
Carles Bosch directed the Oscar-nominated Balseros, which screened at the Sundance, Miami International and Havana film festivals, among others, and won a number of international awards, including an Emmy and a Peabody. His work as a veteran reporter for Thirty Minutes (TV3, Spain) has taken him to the frontlines of major world events, including the first Gulf war, the wars in Bosnia and Kosovo, and the Zapatista revolution.
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