Landmarks
Argentine master Lucrecia Martel turns the murder of an activist into a powerful courtroom documentary that dismantles the still-living structures of Argentina’s colonial history from an Indigenous perspective.
In 2009, three armed men arrived to evict the Chuschagasta community from their land in the valley regions of northern Argentina. The confrontation ended with local activist Javier Chocobar being shot dead. The entire incident was captured on video. After years of protests, it was not until nearly a decade later that the case went to court. Lucrecia Martel’s first feature-length documentary begins with this scenario.
Landmarks deconstructs the structures of Argentina’s colonial history that remain alive today, from the perspective of an Indigenous community. This documentary defending land rights, shows how institutions such as the legal system, historiography and science continually betray Indigenous peoples. It reveals the various ways in which, over the years, attempts have been made to erase the Chuschagasta community entirely from the landscape and from the national memory. The film documents the community’s tenacious struggle for their own land and their right to be heard in their own voice.
Lucrecia Martel (Zama, R&A 2018) is a leading figure in contemporary Argentine cinema. Her first documentary explores themes familiar to the director: a critique of colonial history and social structures.
Oliver Tomar (translated by Moritz Müller)
Screenings
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Maxim 2Fri 18.9. at 20.15–22.19124 min, 1/3
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Kino Engel 1Sun 20.9. at 14.00–16.04124 min, 2/3
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Kino Engel 1Tue 22.9. at 18.30–20.34124 min, 3/3