The documentary short film Zapata cantos de piedra, by Diego García-Moreno, and Julieta Marias experimental film Salar la tierra made their world premiere at the International Festival of Films on Art in Montreal.
In an earthly land of geological and social cataclysms, Hugo Zapata, a sculptor, architect and poet, carves stone and processes the country’s convulsions until he turns them into art. He rescues remnants from the action of subterranean fire; from the magma that rises through the volcanoes and spreads across the earth’s surface, assimilating the living beings that lie in its path; from the earthquakes that fracture the tectonic plates; or, from the interaction of water and land that demands that the mineral world be acknowledged. Inspired by ancient civilizations, he creates forms that sustain memory and become lasting, ritual objects and symbols.
The short film Zapata cantos de piedra impels us to recognize what was written by the Earth before man began to write, and suggests that we take a pause to think about our geological time. The film received an incentive from the FDC call for documentary short films in 2016, and was produced and directed by Diego García-Moreno in co-production with Lamaraca Producciones, with photography by Sergio García Moreno, sound design by Sally Station, staging and general assistance by Juan Kai Mejía, general production by Lina Sampedro, original music by Paul Desenne, and color correction and mixing done at Guateque Cine.
The film’s global premiere took place at the International Festival of Films on Art (FIFA), an event dedicated to promoting and distributing films on art and artistic media which celebrated its 37th edition between March 19th-31st. Every year, the festival enables visitors to discover the latest documentary material on art, in addition to a selection of virtual reality and interactive works.
Diego García-Moreno, the film’s producer and director, specializes in documentary film direction and is a graduate of the Louis Lumière Film School in France. He is also the director of Lamaraca Producciones, the founder of Alados and a professor of film. His filmography includes titles such as Clan-destinos, La Tragedia: entre telones, Beatriz González ¿por qué llora si ya reí?, El corazón, Las Castañuelas de Notre Dame, Colombia Horizontal, Colombia con-sentido and Colombia elemental, among others.
The festival’s “Experimental” category featured the global premiere of Salar la tierra, a short film directed by Julieta Maria, a Toronto-based new media artist with a master’s degree from York University. Filmed in the Colombian town of El Salado, Salar la Tierra is composed of a series of shots in an empty field in front of a church where a performance takes place.
