Decolonization and Film: Jorge Sanjinés' Indigenous Proposal Today

Abstract

This article explores the legacy of Jorge Sanjinés’ cinema in current Latin American cinematography, specifically in Bolivia. The central idea argues that despite the favourable political situation Bolivia is at the present experiencing, with the arrival of Evo Morales to the Presidency in the year 2006, the declaration of Bolivia as a multinational State, and the growing prominence of aymaras and quechuas in the national political arena, indigenous film as envisioned by Sanjinés has not been fully developed. The article puts forward the difficulties which the national and international film industry face in incorporating a type of film that does not respond to the expectations of a mainstream public, makes no concessions to the Western viewer, and provides no cultural filters to pave the viewer’s understanding and persuade him or her cinematically.