News

European Film Tour 2015

The tour was again presented by our protagonists and the film´s director in cities like Paris, London, Berlin, Amsterdam, Munich, Innsbruck, Zurich, Wien, Barcelona, Madrid, Oslo, Helsinki, Toulouse, and Edinburgh, with an outstanding resonance both among the public and the press of the visited countries, most of them having their first contact with the Wixarika culture through our movie.

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians cited as successful case for independent screenings in 2014 in México

• The documentary directed by Hernán Vílchez ranks second in the Top 10 listing of Taquillómetro, the leading platform documenting independent film attendance.
• During 2015 more screenings will be held in Mexico and a European tour is planned.

As part of the 13th edition of the International Film Festival in Guadalajara (FICG) the Mexican Institute of Cinematography (IMCINE) presented the Statistical Yearbook of Mexican Cinema 2014, in which a thorough investigation of the Mexican film industry is presented, with the purpose that “the sectors that make up the industry have information that enables us to design strategies for the present and future scenarios.”

In the chapter on Distribution and Screening, in the section “Alternative Screening,” a case study is presented, which refers to screening strategies designed by Paola Stefani and Hernan Vilchez for Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians. The chapter begins with the following: “One of the alternative screening strategies used by budget filmmakers in Mexico is to bring projects to film clubs, festivals and public plazas, while allowing access to them online through digital platforms. Here is a case study that has successfully reached different target audiences, according to their possibilities of distribution.” Particular attention is given to the use of social networks and online exhibition that producers have engaged since May 2014, when the film was released in Real de Catorce, San Luis Potosi. “As part of the promotion, the production crew has sought to position the film on social networks and video playback platforms, where they offer teasers aimed at different niches of the public for multilingual audiences with subtitled videos. On the other hand, they have opted for online exhibition, available on the Vimeo On Demand platform, which has achieved 1,109 copies in 48 countries.”

In Taquillómetro’s case study, attendance was measured in four screening halls in three complexes: The 68, Cine Tonalá, Alcalá Theatre, and Museum of Contemporary Art of Oaxaca; Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians, placed second in attendance during 2014.

During the month of March, the documentary will be presented at the VII Exhibition of Socio-Environmental Film at the Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG) in Guadalajara, at the Alamos Mágico International Film Festival in Sonora and in independent screening halls in the city of Xalapa, and it will form part of the Third International Exhibition “Cinema at the Summit” of Cumbre Tajin 2015, in which two functions are given, with the presence of film protagonists and producer Paola Stefani.

During the months of April and May, Hernan Vilchez, with Jose Luis “Katira” Ramirez and his son Enrique will travel to various countries in Europe (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, UK, Spain, France,etc.) to publicize the documentary and the Wixárika message to protect life on the planet and the sacred place of Wirikuta.

Readers can consult the documentary’s Facebook and Twitter pages to follow the screening schedule and activities being organized.

https://www.facebook.com/HuicholesTheLastPeyoteGuardians
https://twitter.com/PeyoteGuardians

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Contact: [email protected]

WIXARIKA LEADERS TO FIRST MAJESTIC SILVER CORP: FOLLOW IDM MINING LTD EXAMPLE, ABANDON MINING PROJECT IN SACRED LANDS

VANCOUVER, B.C., Nov. 28, 2014 –­– Members of the production crew for the film Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians delivered a powerful message from Wixarika (Huichol) traditional authorities, revealing that another Vancouver-based mining company, IDM Mining LTD (formerly Revolution Resources) has abandoned plans to pursue a mining project in Wirikuta, the sacred land of the Wixarika people of Mexico, to which they have carried out their pilgrimages since time immemorial. The authorities provided new information regarding the dire situation with regard to water resources in the region and pleaded that First Majestic Silver Corp. follow the example of its competitor.

“We are pleased to be able to facilitate the communication between the Wixarika authorities and the leaders of First Majestic Silver Corp. in the context of our 20-city North American Film Tour,” said Hernan Vilchez, director of the film. “We believe that as the public has come to know the details of this case, they have made their wishes known, and we are pleased that IDM Mining has wisely chosen to bow to the public opinion.”

The letter was delivered to the film crew on the eve of their journey to Vancouver to present the film at British Columbia University, Simon Fraser University and Dogwood Centre in three public screenings and discussions. Accompanying the film are Vilchez and two Wixarika marakate or shamans who are protagonists in the film, José Luis “Katira” Ramirez and his son Enrique Ramirez.

The elder Ramirez, who along with his son serves as a spiritual guide for his people, stated: “For us it is a great honor, both to be received in this way by First Majestic President Keith Neumeyer, and to receive this message from the leaders of our people. It is not easy to be in this place, but we are praying for solutions, and we wish President Neumeyer a cordial salute, a long friendship and no problems.”

The letter from the Wixarika authorities emphasized the fragile nature of their sacred desert and the urgent importance of its preservation for the ongoing cultural survival of the Wixarika people, one of the tribes that have most successfully maintained its ancient spiritual traditions.

“We want to emphasize to you, First Majestic Silver Corp. shareholders, that the entire Universo Project – which was ongoing inside of Wirikuta, run by the Canadian company Revolution Resources – was totally cancelled by withdrawal of the company, probably because they decided to quit when they realized how problematical it is and will be to destroy a place with such a spiritual power as is Wirikuta,” the Wixarika authorities wrote in an official letter to First Majestic Silver President Keith Neumeyer, president and CEO; to Todd Anthony, director of investor relations; and to the members of the public. “Step back, renounce to your project of death and act in favor of life. Our people are defending life; we pray, we fast and we keep a vigil for our Mother Earth, for our older brother, the Híkuri-Venado, for our origin that is our present and also the future for all of our people.”

The Wixarika authorities also shared that the 3 aquifers in the zone are currently overexploited by 2 million cubic meters per year,, and that is without mining activity. “It is impossible to give even one more water concession, Moreover, it is a strong aggravating fact that the main silver vein that Project La Luz intends to exploit is placed at the same level as the groundwater layer. That guarantees that the water is going to be polluted, since it is impossible to leave it untouched while extracting tons of rock, dirt and water at that level to be able to work.”

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians has been packing venues throughout the Western U.S. and Canada since it began its six-week, 20-city tour on Nov. 5 in Houston. After its Vancouver presentations, the tour will spend a week in Arizona and another week in Northern California. It won Best Documentary Film by the Red Nation Film Festival, the premier showcase for Native American and Indigenous film in the United States.

For details about the various screenings visit www.huicholesfilm.com. You can also find information on Facebook: @Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians and Twitter: @PeyoteGuardians, and it can be rented online at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/huicholesfilm. Itinerary attached.

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Arizona

Phoenix

Dec 1 – Crescent Ballroom – 7 pm

Tucson

Dec 2 – The Loft Cinema – 7 pm

Sedona

Dec 3 – Sedona Film Festival – Mary Fisher Theater – 4 pm and 7 pm

Flagstaff

Dec 5 – Center for Indigenous Music and Culture – 7 pm

Colorado

Denver

Dec 6 – Mercury Café – 2 pm (Film crew will not be present)

Northern California

Fort Bragg

Dec 9 – Spirit House – 7 pm

Santa Rosa

Dec 10 – Arlene Francis Center – 7 pm

Mill Valley

Dec 11 – Throckmorton Theater – 7 pm

San Francisco

Dec 12 – CIIS – 7 pm (tentative)

A spirited start: Devine Interventios 2.0 launches in Montereal with Huicholes

Last night nearly 500 people packed into Concordia University’s H-110 Auditorium to see HUICHOLES: THE LAST PEYOTE GUARDIANS, and for those of us involved with Cinema Politica Concordia, it was one of the most memorable screenings we’ve had in eleven years. HUICHOLES chronicles the struggles of Mexico’s Wixárika people against a Canadian mining company by focusing on the traditions of intense spiritual connections this embattled Indigenous group has between humans, the animal kingdom and the plant world. The documentary, which is directed by Hernán Vilchez, was shot over several years with the community and is much more than a document of resistance: it is a breathtaking poem made in honour of the Wixárika people.

Cinema Politica selected HUICHOLES as one of its main Divine Docs—documentaries that embody the theme of social justice and spirituality—for this year’s edition of Divine Interventions: Documentary, Social Justice and Spirituality. HUICHOLES perfectly and provocatively captures the spirit of resistance and transcendence while offering positive steps toward reconciling humankind’s destructive force on each other and the planet. As such, it is a magnificent film to launch the second instalment of Divine Interventions, which is a sidebar program of films circulating throughout the CP Network between Fall 2014 and Winter 2015, with over 40 CP locals participating. The program also has an online component, where audiences can join in conversation, post reflections, and encounter more related media to the films and their diverse subjects.

At the screening last night we were joined by the director, Hernan as well Jose Ramirez and his son Enrique, who are shamans and featured in the film. Jose and Enrique performed a sacred ceremony as part of the introduction, inviting the audience to join them in this blessing and giving thanks ritual. They also performed a song on their traditional instruments and afterward displayed their handmade crafts outside of the theatre.

At the end of the film, just before the credits rolled, we all watched Jose walk down the aisle to the front of the cinema to stand in front of the bottom of the giant screen in the light of the projector, showing such pride in his work, his people and this fantastic film. Our audiences were clearly moved by this and by the whole event itself, and all leapt to their feet in a lengthy standing ovation that was the perfect show of appreciation and respect.

The post-screening discussion lasted over half an hour (not bad following a film that runs over two hours!) and was engaged, dynamic and intelligent: A perfect cap to a perfect evening.

Muchos gracias to Hernan, Jose, Enrique and to Tracy Barnett (a journalist based in Mexico who has been helping coordinate the North American tour of the film) for an incredible night that managed to powerfully capture the spirit of our Divine Interventions program and to embody exactly what it is we do at Cinema Politica: create community spaces that are defined not by the material borders around us, but by the imaginations, convictions and dedication of those who transgress borders. In this case it was exactly the moment where spirit meets action, and we’ll never forget it.

To learn more about Divine Interventions, and how you can win prizes by tweeting reviews and reflections of Divine Docs using the hashtag #DivineDocs, visit divinedocs.com.

CONCORDIA 25/11/2014

http://www.cinemapolitica.org/blog/concordia/spirited-start-divine-interventions-20-launches-montreal-huicholes

Cinema Politica: Mexico’s Huicholes worry that Canadian mining company will destroy their sacred lands

BY LIZ FERGUSON, SPECIAL TO THE MONTREAL GAZETTE, MONTREAL GAZETTE
NOVEMBER  24, 2014

Oh dear, yet another film about Canadian mining companies behaving badly. As a human being and a Canadian, I am sad that this is such a fertile topic for documentaries. Just a few days ago, I saw Marmato, about disruptions in that Colombian town when a Canadian company started buying hundreds of small gold mines there. 

On Monday, Nov. 24, 2014, Cinema Politica will show Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians. I haven’t seen it yet, but the trailer looks fascinating.

The Huicholes are an indigenous group in Mexico (they call themselves Wixaritari). They have lived in the area between the Sierra Madre Occidental and Zacatecas mountains, in the state of San Luis Potosí, since time immemorial. But the land that is sacred to them and the peyote that they use in their rituals are in danger, because that land also contains gold and silver deposits. In the film’s trailer a man from mining company First Majestic Silver says that the operation could provide jobs for 15 years. (Five hundred direct jobs, and 1,500 indirect ones.) That’s a relatively short time, in the grander scheme of things, and not that many people either, while the price to pay in environmental damage could be quite high. The area is very dry, but mining requires and pollutes lots of water.

An article on the web site of This Magazine  is quite informative, though it does date from 2011. “In the southern reaches of the Chihuahuan desert is an area known as Wirikuta, a sacred site for the Huichol people. Every year, hundreds of Huichol people, whose name for themselves in their own language is Wixáritari, leave their communities in Jalisco, Nayarit and other parts of Mexico and begin a pilgrimage to Wirikuta.”

“The Huichols are among the few indigenous groups in Mexico who were never successfully converted to Catholicism by Spanish colonizers, and their fidelity to their traditions is celebrated throughout the country. ‘I congratulate all of you, the traditional governors, the Wixárica union from the ceremonial centres of Jalisco, Durango and Nayarit, to all of you, for defending these holy places, these marvellous places,’ President Felipe Calderón said in a 2008 speech . . “

Director Hernan Vilchez and José Luis (Katira) Ramírez and his son Enrique Ramírez, the two Huichol spiritual leaders who appear in the film, are on a tour, showing the film in the U.S. and Canada, and hoping to gain some allies in their fight.  (On Wednesday, Nov. 26, the film will be shown at the University of Toronto, and on Thursday, Nov. 27, it will be shown at York University.)

Journalist Tracy L Barnett has written several articles about the film forthe Huffington Post and other publications.  She quotes the film’s director Hernan Vilchez: “This film is emblematic of what is happening to communities throughout the world – it’s not just about the Huicholes. Our hope is that we can raise awareness about these issues in Mexico but also in the communities where we are traveling.”

http://www.edmontonjournal.com/entertainment/movies/Cinema+Politica+Mexico+Huicholes+worry+that/10409694/story.html

A brief history of México inspired by the film Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians

A brief history of México inspired by the film: Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians by Hernán Vilchez. Sergio C. Muñoz
Background text to support my radio broadcast interview with Hernán: Listen: http://intelatin.podbean.com/e/huicholes/
The film will be playing on November 19 at Fullerton College and is also available on video-on-demand through Vimeo: http://www.huicholesfilm.com

Some might say that the Mexican Revolution which began on November 20, 1910, ended on February 05, 1917 when the Mexican Constitution created radical change for Mexico in four ways:

1. Ideology: It established a new set of goals and ideals to guide the nation’s life.
2. Politics: It called for a new, less centralized, more democratic structure of national and local govt.
3. Economics: It provided for a fairer distribution of the nation’s wealth and severe limitation of foreign ownership as well as agrarian and labor reform.
4. Social Affairs: It insisted upon the separation of church and state, universal secular education and respect for the equal rights of the Indigenous peoples in relation to all Mexicans. Whether or not this came to be is questionable but while mainstream media will attempt to convince you that México is a third world country capable of nothing positive, I am going to focus on the intellectual precursors to the Mexican Revolution in San Luis Potosí.When Porfirio Díaz was the dictator of Mexico from 1877 to 1911, railroad building and industrialization were key to generating social change and wealth in Mexico. Don Porfi added 15,000 miles in a tremendous rail expansion program. This program was financed mostly by US but also British and French foreign capital. The goal was to extract silver, lead and copper from the mines dotted throughout San Luis Potosí. Just after 1890, US based Guggenheim mining interests extended the mining transportation exchanges from Tampico to Perth Amboy, New Jersey.

At around this time, don Porfi gave control of the entire rail grid of San Luis Potosí and surrounding states to US businesses led by the Guggenheims. During this time, a few, shrewd Mexican businessmen brokered the sale of the federal rail grid to the American investors at a handsome profit. By 1910 Guggenheim mining interest in Mexico accounted for 54 million dollars of wealth and receiving 77% of Mexico’s mineral exports.In Mexico, at the time, you had the haves and the have nots. Among the haves were the shrewd businessmen we just mentioned but just below them were others who began to get squeezed out of the money play. On top of the peasants who were experiencing economic frustrations, downward mobility and outright exploitation, there arose a political force and a major intellectual movement to fight against these elite families in developing states like San Luis Potosí.

This force was composed of the indigenous folks, peasants, small property holders, artisans, urban workers, miners, small businessmen and at times even industrialists and hacendados. In 1908, a credit crisis brought on by corruption and mismanagement in San Luis Potosí, as in most of México, was accompanied by a drought and food shortages. As all this was happening, don Porfis braintrust, known as the cientificos, began to advise don Porfi that things were spiraling out of control and that a significant social change was necessary. Don Porfi refused and so a new leader was sourced and that individual was Francisco Madero. Madero led a charge against don Porfi and was relatively successful until he was shot dead by military officers outside the gates of a federal prison in Mexico City at the age of 39. His assassin, with 99% certainty, was the man who became the provisional president at this time, the General Victoriano Huerta. Once on the throne, Mexico’s revolutionary forces lead by Emiliano Zapata, Pancho Villa, Venustiano Carranza and Alvaro Obregon united against the common enemy: Huerta. Now, we jump to modern day México. We stay in San Luis Potosí but we head to the north in a Pueblo Mágico named Real de Catorce. On the perimeter of Real de Catorce live the Wixárika (Huicholes) and their sacred territories that are supported by their sophisticated creation myths and cosmogonies. On the perimeter of these sacred lands which have been supposedly protected by the federal government, the authority of the area has created 22 mining concessions to a Canadian mining corporation named First Majestic.First Majestic, like the Guggenheims before them, are extracting volumes of mineral wealth out of Mexico but using Mexican labor. 89 Billion dollars worth of wealth over the last 22 years and in return, the Wixárika and the impoverished mestizo population believe that they are left with a horrific environmental catastrophe and a baseless, non-diversified economy.

Spiritually, it is a problematic relationship as well because the environmental catastrophe has led to drought and the pueblo thrives on rain for the well-being of the cosecha which leads to the well-being of the children: Sanos. Contentos. Integrados. The Wixárika remain in struggle and through their petitions to madre lluvia, abuelo fuego and hermano mayor venado with caldo de becerro, sangre y chocolate, they roam the biodiversity of the desert with huaraches bendecidos in search of peyote which provides them with their ancestral DNA, their harmony and their understanding of life.

The history written above is edited by Sergio C. Muñoz from James Cockcroft’s Intellectual Precursors of the Mexican Revolution. I have also used elements from Gobernantes de Mexico by Juana Vázquez Gómez.

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians received the award for Best Documentary at the Red Nation Film Festival

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians received the award for Best Documentary at the Red Nation Film Festival, the premiere festival representing the work by and about indigenous peoples. 

The film Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians has won Best Documentary Film by the Red Nation Film Festival, the premier showcase for Native American and Indigenous film in the United States. The award was shared with The Life, Blood and Rhythm of Randy Castillo, by director Wynn Ponder.

The selection was the only Latin American film to be awarded.

Upon receiving the distinction, director Hernan Vilchez and producer Paola Stefani said: “This award is received on behalf of the Huichol people, bearers of the words and deeds of the spiritual struggle they launched to defend their sacred territory of Wirikuta, and the message they bear: the urgency of caring for life on the planet.”

They added: “We are grateful to all of those involved in the effort to carry the Wixarika message to all hearts. Thanks to the jury of the Red Nation Film Festival and all who support us in this collaboration between indigenous and non-indigenous peoples. We are one, all sheltered by the Mother Earth herself.”

Joanelle Romero, Executive Producer and Founder of the Los Angeles based Red Nation Film Festival, experienced a deep personal connection with the Huicholes film.

     “This is a very important film because it not only involves all the issues that we face (as Indigenous People) but the bigger picture is the spirituality that is key to my heart and the Festivals.  It is the power of our medicine through film in telling the truth as we walk with our ancestors.”

     The California premiere of the film screened at the Red Nation Film Festival in Beverly Hills on Nov. 7 and is making multiple stops in in the greater Los Angeles area, including two events at local colleges and a special community premiere hosted by various grassroots organizations.  Film director Hernan Vilchez and a Marakame (Huichol spiritual leader), one of the film protagonists, will introduce and discuss the film at 30+ screenings in 20 different North American cities. Its US premiere at Rice Cinema in Houston, Texas, packed the house, and subsequent stops in Austin, San Antonio, Taos, Santa Fe and Albuquerque were similarly well received.

The film was represented at the Red Nation Film Festival by the local screening committee, which organized the program, set the agenda and drew the connections between local issues and those portrayed in the film – and there are many, according to Felicia Montes of the spiritual artivist collective, Mujeres de Maiz, “Our Xican@ Indigenous and immigrant communities know the struggle of land, culture and spirituality and have a long relationship with this community- the screening will bring together these circles and issues once again.“

The documentary presents the emblematic case of the defense of Wirikuta, sacred territory to the Wixárika (Huichol) people against the threat of transnational mining corporations. The Wixárika people, native to the Sierra Madre, have since time immemorial made their pilgrimages to this land; now they find themselves at the forefront of a spiritual crusade to protect life, evidencing the internal contradictions in our materialistic world.

“This documentary combines stunning cinematography with engaged and compassionate storytelling to bring an underrepresented tale of resistance to Cinema Politica audiences and beyond,” said Ezra Winton, co-founder of the Montreal-based media arts organization.

The movie, which drew 3,000 people to a single showing in Mexico City, won awards in Argentina and brought a mining industry executive to tears in Chile, has been sought by viewers in more than 40 countries, many of whom are going on to organize showings in their own cities.

The film crew has organized an Indiegogo campaign to cover costs of the film and tour production and to continue carrying the message throughout the world At www.indiegogo.com – search words Huicholes Film.

For details about the various screenings visit www.huicholesfilm.com. You can also find information on Facebook: @Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians and Twitter: @PeyoteGuardians, and it can be rented online at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/huicholesfilm. Itinerary attached.

Huicholes North American Film Tour still on the road

Follow us at Facebook
And check, support and share the indiegogo campaign. We need your help

New Mexico

Santa Fe

Nov 14 – Museum of Indian Arts and Culture – 10 am & 2 pm
http://indianartsandculture.org/events/

Albuquerque

Nov 15 – La Plazita Institute – Screening and related events 12–4 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/859917817376178

Nov 16 – Indian Pueblo Culture Center – 1 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/293926300815496/
https://www.facebook.com/events/464100650394620

California

San Diego Area

Nov 17 – San Diego State University Library – 5 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/560329180768328/

Nov 18 – Chula Vista Public Library – 2 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/634828436629694/

Nov 18 – WorldBeat Cultural Center –  7pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1564519370434237

Los Angeles Area

Nov 19 – Fullerton College Campus Theater – 6 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/335023306703279

Nov 20 – Pasadena City College, Harbeson Hall – 6 pm

Nov 21 – Legacy LA – 6:30 pm

San Francisco Area

Nov 22 – San Francisco – ANSWER Coalition – 5 pm

Arizona

Phoenix

Dec 1 – Crescent Ballroom –7:30 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1509196222693857

Tucson

Dec 2 – The Loft Cinema – 7 pm

Sedona

Dec 3 – Sedona Film Festival – Mary Fisher Theater – 4 pm and 7 pm

Flagstaff

Dec 5 – Center for Indigenous Music and Culture – 7 pm

Denver
Dec 6 – Mercury Cafe Denver  –  2 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/778742385526876

CANADA

Montreal

Nov 24 – Cinema Politica/Concordia University Auditorium – 7 pm

Toronto

Nov 26 – University of Toronto – OISE Auditorium – 6:30 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/1491357387810247

Nov 27 – York University, Mirkopolis Theater – 7 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/904184312944769

Vancouver

Nov 28 – SFU Woodwards Auditorium – 6:30 pm
https://www.facebook.com/events/819958411367852

Nov 29 – Dogwood Centre – “What are we doing to care for our world’s life?” Community Dinner and networking with organizers – 3 to 8 pm

Bryan Parras interviewed Katira Ramírez

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians

Free Press Houston

The Wixaritari (Huicholes), are a pre-colonial culture whose territory spans 140,000 hecters (approximately 540 square miles) between the Sierra Madre Occidental and Zacatecas mountain ranges.  They Huicholes survived European disease, Spanish Conquest and Mexican societal encroachments, but now they face their biggest threat yet.  Canadian mining company First Majestic Silver purchased underground mineral rights in 2009 giving them access to the Huicholes most sacred site at Real de Catorce in the state of San Luis Potosí.

The small town of Real de Catorce was founded in 1779 shortly after silver was discovered in nearby mountains but indigenous peoples have lived in the region for thousands of years.  The Huicholes are direct descendants of those original inhabitants.  One of their ancient traditions is to make an annual pilgrimage to this region where they participate in religious ceremony in a sacred land they call “Wirikuta”.

I recently had the opportunity to talk with Huichol Shaman, JOSÉ LUIS “KATIRA” RAMÍREZ about this very topic and the long fight ahead as he and the Wixaritari enlighten us about the importance of ceremony and reverence for sacred sites. This all comes together in the documentary film Huicholes: The Last of the Peyote Guardians which will make its U.S. Debut at Rice Cinema, November 5th at 7:00PM. The films protagonist Katira and son Enrique Ramirez will be in attendance. Argentine film director, Hernan Vilches will also be in attendance for a Q&A after the film.

I spoke with Katira over the phone about the film.

HOW WOULD YOU LIKE PEOPLE TO IDENTIFY YOU?

Wixaritari – In our mother tongue from where our great grand parents, where our grandparents were born, it is a real name and original name. Wixaritari [is] the name of the people, if you speak of the person, in general, Wixarika.

TELL US HOW YOU BEGAN TO NOTICE PROBLEMS IN THE COMMUNITY?

So, it has been known for some time, within the 4 major indigenous communities in the area – Santa Catarina, San Sebastián, San Andrés Cohamiata and Tuxpan de Bolaños. These form the four indigenous communities and within this, we noticed territorial problems dealing with sacred sites and communal boundaries between the 4 communities as well.

HOW DO THE WIXARITARIA PEOPLE LIVE IN THE REGION?

Each community has existed for millions of years since our universe began. We were there since the beginning, not recently, but since the arrival of our essence, since the arrival of the viceroys. At the arrival of the time of the viceroys, they came from the ocean at San Blas, Nayarit, they went to populate different [places] and we now have different ethnicities. There in that community has important, universal connection with the sacred places, the four cardinal points, and to the center in the place of Tatewar,“Grandfather Fire” at the mountain there [between San Andrés and San Sebastián, in Santa Catarina]  and we serve as the responsible ones, the guardians.

WHY IS REAL DE CATORCE IMPORTANT AND WHY MUST THE SILVER STAY IN THE GROUND?

Yes, well, for us, our greatgrandparents, our grandparents, left there for us the formation of our universe, which we call “Llogachiban”[a university], because there are the books, magically invisible, that can’t be seen, but [are there] for the people who collect the medicine, because with their medicine they have visions and dreams through the universe.

Then, the mine, the gold is the center of the heart of humanity. If from me you take my heart, if a temple can be knocked down, well then, that is why we don’t want [Wirikuta] knocked down, we don’t want it worked on, because there will be pollution. We don’t want the little bit of water that is there to become contaminated and furthermore, the damage it would bring to the medicine, and the [toxic] dust, this would harm all the areas where there is medicine.

IS THIS THE MESSAGE YOU WANT THE AUDIENCE TO TAKE AWAY?

Well, yes, this is what we want everyone to know, all the communities, the international community so that all the children and all the grandchildren can grow to defend the environment.

THIS FILM WAS MADE AFTER A DIRECT REQUEST FROM YOU.  DO YOU FEEL THAT THE FILM DID YOUR COMMUNITY JUSTICE AND HAVE THE OTHER HUICHOL COMMUNITIES SUPPORTED THE FILM?

Uh-huh, well, the story is really funny, so we kinda bumped into each other, I don’t know where, I can’t remember, might have been in DF, and we ran into each other and out of necessity, I spoke to him about the community, because there wasn’t enough water and if it were possible to make a documentary about the community. So then, well, he said yes– I will get to work on this, but I have no one to sponsor me on this project, it will take a while, but I will work on it.

Later we agreed to get it done and we talked to the community about the topic and people commented; Yes, they wanted to be a part of it, no, some didn’t and so on, but it will turn out to be a good thing, because that way the thing can be recognized and one can support it because many people don’t know about that corner of the world – and that’s the way the idea started.

Then in 2009 the whole issue with the mines sprang up, we confronted this and invited the director to the pilgrimage…the next year– and that’s when we started to get to know one another. I couldn’t believe this was going to stir up ideas on such an important topic, a legacy  – and we can’t say that is a simple topic to cover, but it is a major documentary.

The community has responded well to the documentary and if there is an issue, if someone is not in agreement, I tell them, you think this is easy. This will be a good example, to inform our children, our grandchildren, so that they have something to follow when we are gone, so that they have a counsel, an experience for their future – this is the idea.

HOW SPECIAL WAS THAT MOMENT FOR YOU WHEN THE RAIN FINALLY CAME AND HOW DID THAT MAKE YOU FEEL?

Well, all the energy of the cosmos and the universe that expanded and moved and brought the rain…the scientists and experts, all of us, began making a little contribution. Thank god, now it has rained a lot.

It is important – when you think badly, then bad things happen, when you speak badly, then your parents feel this, when your parents speak badly their children feel the pain of whatever problem. Some places it doesn’t rain, in another there’s an earthquake. When you speak, your voice will be heard by god, and that is when there is change, thank God.

WHAT IS THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE VIOLIN AND MUSIC IN CEREMONY?  WHEN DID THE VIOLIN BECOME PART OF THE PEYOTE CEREMONY?

Oh, well it came from the beginning, the arrival of the prophecy, that mythology. That essence came from far away, long ago, beyond the world. That essence is from long ago…way before the world came into existence.  It came, walking, walking all of the kingdoms came this water, the one that is called “Maxakwaxi” – Whitetail Deer— who was always facing forward, and he arrives at the water’s edge in San Blas, Nayarit, which is at the arrival of all the prophecies, all the people of knowledge, and then there, Maxakwaxi takes out all of the flame with his little white tail, and plants there, different seeds, tobacco, amaranth, the 5 colors of the maize, the power of the authorities.

And there, and when he looks, there is a tree, and in the tree there are many different types of birds there, talking, and he says “this will be our magical drum, this will be our magical violin, and so, because of this, if you love a drum, if you love a violin, it will never cease to speak, it is the sound transformed, the song and chirps of birds, guacamaya (scarlet macaw), tzentzontle (mockingbird)—there are three birds that sing a lot—, and so, in that era, everything is born. The maracas, the drums, the violins, the canto (shamanic chants). Then this becomes the sacred seed, the sacred word we call it out of respect.

Then, some of us are followers of the ancestors’ footprints, their faces. We follow, we look for this – men of knowledge, of science, depending how you understand it— looking for enlightenment, looking for knowledge, looking for growth, strength for our families. We call it paritsutia the path begins until you arrive at the Cerro del Quemado (the mountain of Wirikuta), which for us is important.

Earlier, you asked me how I felt about all this, and I say, how should I feel? How should one feel when you are far from home? Courage and strength is what is required here, especially when one is away from family.  Having seen what has been happening in the last few weeks – with what is happening with violence, to women, to what has happened to the 43 education students who have disappeared [in Ayotzinapa, Guerrero], it is difficult. But, I hope that the great father, the great mother, the great son, the spirit, heart of the sky and the earth gives us blessings…to our struggle, our cause, nuestra lucha.

Thank you for talking with us, for helping this and for the future of all our families, for the promise of change…long live the spirit.

November 4, 2014  Free Presss Houston http://www.freepresshouston.com/huicholes-last-peyote-guardians/

Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians nominated Best Documentary Red National Film Festival

Nov 4, 2014 –­– The film Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians has been nominated for Best Documentary Film by the Red Nation Film Festival, the premier showcase for Native American and Indigenous film in the United States. The film ranks among some tough competition, going head to head with producer Johnny Depp in LaDonna Harris: Indian 101.

“This film is a very important film because it not only involves all the issues that we face (as Indigenous People) but the bigger picture is the spirituality that is key to my heart and the Festivals.  It is the power of our medicine through film in telling the truth as we walk with our ancestors,” said Joanelle Romero, Executive Producer and Founder of the Los Angeles based Red Nation Film Festival.

     The California premiere of the film will take place at the Red Nation Film Festival in Beverly Hills on Nov. 7 (screening details: https://www.facebook.com/events/ 837138496308143/) before making multiple stops in in the greater Los Angeles area, including 2 stops at local colleges and a special community premiere hosted by various grassroots organizations.  Film director Hernan Vilchez and two Marakate (Huichol spiritual leaders), the father and son protagonists, will introduce and discuss the film at 30+ screenings in 20 different North American cities.

They will be represented at the Red Nation Film Festival by the local screening committee, which will help decide the program, set the agenda and draw the connections between local issues and those portrayed in the film – and there are many, according to Felicia Montes of the spiritual artivist collective, Mujeres de Maiz, “Our Xican@ Indigenous and immigrant communities know the struggle of land, culture and spirituality and have a long relationship with this community- the screening will bring together these circles and issues once again.”

The news comes as the crew prepares for our US Premiere this Wednesday, Nov 5, at Rice Theater in Houston.

“The documentary does what all great art should do: bring people together and persuade them to act for a vital cause,” said Charles Dove of Rice University and former director of the theater. (Houston screening details here: https://www.facebook.com/events/1487363068207634/)

The documentary presents the emblematic case of the defense of Wirikuta, sacred territory to the Wixárika (Huichol) people against the threat of transnational mining corporations. The Wixárika people, native to the Sierra Madre, have since time immemorial made their pilgrimages to this land; now they find themselves at the forefront of a spiritual crusade to protect life, evidencing the internal contradictions in our materialistic world.

“This documentary combines stunning cinematography with engaged and compassionate storytelling to bring an underrepresented tale of resistance to Cinema Politica audiences and beyond,” said Ezra Winton, co-founder of the Montreal-based media arts organization.

The movie, which drew 3,000 people to a single showing in Mexico City, won awards in Argentina and brought a mining industry executive to tears in Chile, has been sought by viewers in more than 40 countries, many of whom are going on to organize showings in their own cities.

The film crew has launched a crowdfunding campaign to help defray the expenses of the film and tour at www.indiegogo.com – Search word: Huicholes film. For details about the various screenings visit www.huicholesfilm.com. You can also find information on Facebook: @Huicholes: The Last Peyote Guardians and Twitter: @PeyoteGuardians, and it can be rented online at https://vimeo.com/ondemand/huicholesfilm. Itinerary attached.

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US/CANADA FILM TOUR ITINERARY – Nov./Dec. 2014

USA

Nov. 7 – California Premiere: Red Nation Film Festival – Laemmle Music Hall Theater – 7 pm

Texas

Houston

Nov 5 – Rice Cinema – 7 pm

Nov 6 – East Side community screening – 7 pm

Austin

Nov 7 – 5604 Manor Community Center – 7 pm.

San Antonio

Nov 8 – Esperanza Peace and Justice Center– 6 pm

Nov 9 – San Antonio Public Library – Mission Branch – 2-5 pm

Nov 10 – San Antonio Public Library – Igo Branch – 2-5 pm

New Mexico

Taos

Nov 12 – Taos Mesa Brewing Co. – 8:30 pm

Nov 13 – Taos Center for the Arts – 7 pm

Santa Fe Nov 14 – Museum of Indian Arts and Culture – 7 pm

Albuquerque

Nov 15 – La Plazita Institute | Nov 16 – Indian Pueblo Culture Center – 1 pm

California

San Diego Area

Nov 17 – San Diego State University – 5 pm

Nov 18 – Chula Vista Public Library – 2 pm

WorldBeat Cultural Center – 7 pm

Los Angeles Area

Nov 19 – Fullerton College Campus Theater – 6 pm

Nov 20 – Pasadena City College, Harbeson Hall – 6 pm

Nov 21 – Legacy LA – 6:30 pm

Bay Area

Nov 22 – San Francisco – ANSWER Coalition – 6 pm reception – 7 pm screening

Arizona

Phoenix

Dec 1 – Crescent Ballroom – 7:30 pm

Tucson

Dec 2 – The Loft Cinema – 7 pm

Sedona

Dec 3 – Sedona Film Festival – Mary Fisher Theater – 4 pm and 7 pm

Flagstaff

Dec 5 – Center for Indigenous Music and Culture – 7 pm

CANADA

Montreal

Nov 24 – Cinema Politica/Concordia University Auditorium – 7 pm

Toronto

Nov 26 – University of Toronto – OISE Auditorium – 6:30 pm

Nov 27 – York University, Mirkopolis Theater – 7 pm

Vancouver

Nov 28 – SFU Woodwards Auditorium – 7 pm

Nov 29 – Dogwood Centre – “What are we doing to care for our world’s life?” Community Dinner and networking with organizers – 3 to 8 pm

US Venues working on confirmation

Denver, Colo. – Dec. 6-7

Oakland, Berkeley, San Francisco and Nevada City, Calif. – Dec. 8-15

Press Contact, USA & Canada Film Tour: Tracy Barnett | 210-867-9767 | [email protected]