FRIDAY IN LA: Avant-Garde Colombian Animation

This Friday in downtown Los Angeles, as a part of Visions and Voices: The USC Arts & Humanities Initiative, a screening of Colombian animation will take place with the filmmakers present. From the event description:

Join us for a Visions & Voices event featuring rarely-seen animation by Colombia’s foremost experimental animation pioneers, Carlos Santa and Cecilia Traslaviña, and two of their students, Diana Menestry and Juan Camilo González. Exploding with powerful metaphors, surreal landscapes, and haunting images, these imaginative animated films were created within a context of a country ravaged by war, illustrating the philosophical and mental struggles of its people in conflict. These innovative experimental films utilize a range of animation techniques, from rotoscoping to under-the-camera animation, challenging concepts of traditional cinema.

The screening will be followed by a panel discussion with filmmakers Santa, Traslaviña, and their former student and current USC MFA student Juan Camilo González; international media scholar Dr. Cristina Venegas; and moderator Dr. Janeann Dill. The conversation will investigate artistic practice within the context of war and the role of the artist in politics.

The best part is that the screening and panel will be followed by a reception featuring “typical Colombian foods such as empanadas and buñuelos,” as well as classic Colombian music. The screening takes place at the Eileen Norris Cinema Theatre at the USC School of Cinematic Arts Complex (900 W. 34th Street, LA, CA 90007). The event is FREE, no rsvp necessary. In other words, no excuses. More details on the USC website.

Here’s the trailer for one of the films that’ll be shown, Carlos Santa’s The Strange Presages of León Prozak:

(Thanks, Juan Manuel Pedraza)