Patrick Vieira

Ainda a Fome: 1 bilhão de pessoas - assine a petição

A FAO lança uma campanha mundial contra a fome, dando um pontapé de partida a uma petição online incentivando o público a consciencializar-se e reagir perante a dura realidade de que quase 1 Bilhão de pessoas sofre ainda da fome no Mundo. O objectivo da campanha, em Cabo Verde, é de sensibilizar a população para o grave problema da fome no mundo e recolher 5.000 assinaturas, até o dia 16 de Outubro de 2010, Dia Mundial da Alimentação, cujo Lema este ano é “Unidos contra a Fome”.

Com a campanha “1BillionHungry” pretende-se utilizar imagens marcantes  e uma linguagem forte para chamar a atenção do público e ilustrar a fome em todos os seus estádios. O seu símbolo é um apito amarelo, encorajando os cidadãos a apitar contra a fome.

Pretende-se, com a petição, na internet, levar os governos a darem prioridade absoluta à eliminação da fome, porque se houver vontade política, poderão ser encontrados os recursos para acabar com a fome.

“Deverá constituir motivo de indignação e raiva o facto escandaloso de que os nossos semelhantes continuem a ser vítimas da fome. Se esse sentimento também é o seu, por favor manifeste-se, exprimindo a sua raiva contra a fome no Mundo, acrescentando o seu nome à petição mundial, no site http://www.1billionhungry.org”, declarou o Director-Geral da FAO, o Sr. Jacques Diouf.

A petição pode se propagar nas redes sociais tais como Facebook, Twitter e You Tube. Propõe-se também aos diferentes meios de comunicação e parceiros nacionais que utilizem as imagens da campanha nos seus próprios sites, na internet e que façam propaganda nos diferentes eventos, a realizar no País (ateliers, seminários, concertos, eventos culturais, etc…). Um dos pontos fortes da campanha é um vídeo promocional, realizado com o actor britânico Jeremy Irons (que pode ser visto no site da campanha).

Visto ser uma injustiça o facto de que mais de 1 bilhão de pessoas se deite, todas as noites, com a barriga vazia, o projecto “1billionhungry” conta com o apoio activo de cada um de nós, promovendo uma campanha com as nossas próprias redes de apoiantes. Caso contrário, o Objectivo do Milénio para o Desenvolvimento que consiste em reduzir para metade a percentagem de famintos, até 2015, não poderá ser atingido.

Cinema: Contrato de Guenny Pires a receber prémio...

A notícia chegou-nos, através do próprio realizador Guenny Pires, no Domingo passado. Encheu-nos de prazer e muito orgulho. Após a passagem - já - por alguns festivais de cinema, e a estreia na capital do país, Contrato arrancou o prémio para melhor documentário em Roxbury...

Faço questão de aqui deixar o press release referente ao feito. Parabéns Guenny!

“CONTRACT wins Award For Best Documentary Filmmaking”

Los Angeles, August 2, 2010: Txan Film Productions and Visual Arts, Inc. once again is proud to announce CONTRACT, a new docudrama film written, produced & directed by Guenny K. Pires, was screened at Hibernian Hall, Saturday July 31, 2010 @ 7:45pm (184 Dudley St., Roxbury MA 02119.) at the 12^th Annual Roxbury International Film Festival (RIFF.)

 “Local Ties, Global Reach.”

New England’s largest film festival dedicated to celebrating people of color, RIFF. From Thursday (July 29) and runs through Sunday, Aug. 1, 2010. Presented by The Color of Film Collaborative and ACT Roxbury, a program of Madison Park Development Corporation, RIFF screened 52 films including features, shorts, documentaries, and youth-produced works over those four days.

http://www.roxburyfilmfestival.org

Festival highlights include Asian and Cape Verdean-themed pictures as well as films by local Afro-Americans. CONTRACT became the first Cape Verdean and São Tomé and Príncipe movie to be recipient of an “Award For Best Documentary Filmmaking.”

“Wowww! This is great for São Tomé and Príncipe. I’m honored to representing my country Cape Verde and Africa. This film is not only a powerful emotional experience it is also a solid look into the past and the legacy of Slavery.” Said Guenny K. Pires during the 30 min questions and answers (Q&A.)”

Link to watch the trailer: http://www.youtube.com/user/filmmakerpires#p/a/u/1/Bnvcsw2eTcU

CONTRACT was the first Cape Verdean and São Tomé e Príncipe movie recipient of the “Audience Favorite Docudrama Award” at the 18th annual Pan African Film Festival in Los Angeles, California, which took place February 10th to 17th of this year.

"Lovely and touching," said Ayuko Babu, Executive Director, PAFF.

“Beautifully filmed as well, its images go back and forth from city streets plagued by yellow taxi cabs to nature and cocoa fields, from poverty ridden contract workers who have lost their life time on a free planet to magnificent scenery, forests, and waterfalls. It’s a journey not only for the contract workers who receiving 10 cents per day and a $10 life retirement from the São Tomé and Príncipe government are valued less than a thing, less than animals, but also for the film maker who returns to his roots in the making of this film about people whose only wish for life is “to keep working until the day I die”." commented Sylvie Baeza, Correspondent for the San Francisco Chronicle

http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle

 

About Txan Film Productions

Txan Film Productions & Visual Arts, Inc. is a four-member production company based in Los Angeles, California that produces audiovisual materials (documentaries, docudramas, fiction films, etc.) that relate to the societies and cultures of Africa and the African Diaspora in the Atlantic region (islands of the Caribbean, Cape Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe) and the Americas. We aim to explore aspects of African Diaspora history and culture that are not widely known or are normally overlooked in mainstream popular and scholarly discourse. Our first series of projects focuses on Cape Verde, an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean some 370 miles off the coast of West Africa. We are in the process of developing six feature-length documentary films that examine the rich culture and varied life experiences of Cape Verdeans in Cape Verde and around the world, covering such diverse themes as history, art and festival life, music, education, language, politics, socio-economic and environment issues, immigration and globalization.

"All true art must help the soul to realize its inner self..." Gandhi

The positive exposure and development of Cape Verdean, Portuguese speaking countries, and Africa culture is at the forefront of mutual our objectives. We share the important objective of economic development of the African people and we concur with your belief that as Africans “we must assume responsibility to develop a clear strategy for Africa's future that takes advantage of all of its human capabilities and natural resources.”

Today, the Islands continue to serve as a gateway to welcome Western Nations to the doorstep of Africa. Therefore exposing the beauty and the continued development and stability of the archipelago brings continued focus to this part of the world, which will allow for further investment in infrastructure development to boost tourism which serves as an engine of growth and improves competitiveness. 

Showing the beauty, the historical basis of the Islands and the character of the people in film festivals give Cape Verde, Portugal, São Tomé and Príncipe, and other African nations, provide unprecedented exposure that these countries would not have had otherwise. Our objectives are rooted in our personal passions and ties to our country and to this part of the world. This passion and historical legacy have driven us to achieve great accomplishments to date, notwithstanding very limited budget allocations.

Guenny K. Pires, filmmaker based in Los Angeles, CA, a pioneer in film making from his native country Cape Verde, brings his vast cinematographic experience to one the most important Film Festival in the US. He is a multi award-winning filmmaker dedicated to bringing the history and culture of his native Cape Verde to the world's attention.

Independent filmmaker Mr. Pires explores overlooked aspects of the African Diaspora in his docudrama, “CONTRACT,” filmed in the Cape Verde Islands, Sao Tome and Principe, and in the United States. The film is in Creole, Portuguese and with English subtitles and narrative. It tells the compelling story of two African countries (Cape Verde and São Tomé and Principe) forever linked by a history of poverty and slavery, and two people forever linked by the unbreakable bonds of family and love.

His first feature film, “The Journey of Cape Verde”, was an international landmark project that made a wide audience aware of the fascinating archipelago nation for the first time.

“The Journey of Cape Verde” won awards and left an important imprint at events such as the Pan African Film & Arts Festival, Lusophone Film Festival, Images 2005, Moondance Film Festival, Athens International Film Video Festival, Madeira Biennial, just to name a few. During the Pan African Film Festival, this documentary became the first Cape Verdean film with two screenings in Hollywood.

Guenny’s projects include film work with Noam Chomsky, an American linguist, philosopher, cognitive scientist, and political activist.

The aim of Guenny Pires is to explore aspects of African Diaspora history and culture that are not widely known or are normally overlooked by mainstream popular and scholarly discourse. Guenny's films work progressively to explore not only what it is to be Cape Verdean but also what it is to be human.

“With this film I wanted to try to understand how my people is living in Sao Tome and Principe today. The film documents my journey to reunite my uncle with his family 44 years later. As many others he had a big dream but his life conditions end up worse than slavery, living with less than .50 cents  per day,” said Mr. Pires.

Recently, CONTRACT was screened at the Lusophone Film Festival at the University of Massachusetts in Boston on March 27, 2010, at the Portuguese and Brazilian Film Festival on May 6, 2010, and in Cape Verde at the National Auditorium on May 28, 2010. This screening was included in the 35 years of Cape Verdean Independence and the Day of Africa Celebrations. The only African movie presented at Belize's 5th International Film Festival. “For the first time we had a film representing Africa. We’re proud of this director Mr. Pires. CONTRACT is an incredible story." Said Suzette Zayden, Executive Director, BIFF:

CONTRACT has screenings scheduled in US, Canada, and Italy (August/September), Portugal, France, São Tomé and Príncipe (October), Holland, Luxemburg (November) Germany, Austria (December) and many more venues around the world.

Txan Film Productions & Visual Arts, Inc.

Barbara Andrade

Vice President/Producer Manage