Travel Peru, Peru Blog

Inés Agresott is easygoing and rather talkative and the most remarkable point is that she speaks with passion and great energy. Thus, her inner courage helped her make her relentless efforts pay off. She smiles and laughs all the time, and she may have a good reason for that: her sweet dream came true six years ago and it has definitely acquired a high reputation and esteem among film lovers not only around South America but also other continents. And for the sixth year in a row, Qosqo has become the capital of the International Short Film Festival 2009.

Just a little bit of History
When Inés first arrived in Qosqo from her native Colombia she met a french man who would eventually change the scope of this festival. At first, she confides, this was going to be just a national film festival. Come on, no way, this has to be huge, this has to be an international festival! was the reply of Joel Evrard the french manager of the Arqueologo Hotel and Divina Comedia Restaurant, two of the local businesses that sponsor this feast. As a mater of fact, he is the father of this festival, adds Inés who is in charge of the cultural association Delluc.
In addition to the Qosqo´s City Hall, the Instituto Nacional de Cultura (INC) and Colombia and Germany embassies´ help, there are now other organizations that promote this 3- day film meeting (see listing 1 below).

A Festival that Grows Every Year
Not only has the number of sponsors steadily grown but also the number of short movie makers that send their works to Qosqo. Last year, there were works from 27 countries. This year there are 37 countries and 354 short films in competition. Works from countries as far as Taiwan, Kirghistan, Iran, Israel, Australia, Russia, and Turkey are on the list (see listing 2 below for all countries). All the films compete under 3 sections: international, national and students films. There are also 3 categories: fiction, documentary and animation.

And as you watch good movies that last no more than 30 minutes, you can take advantage of this event and visit the 3 historic and touristic buildings where the festival is held. The Inca Garcilaso de la Vega´s museum was the house of this famous 16th peruvian chronicler, the Bernardo Saint Chapel a colonial building which is part of the INC, and the Municipal Theather, one of the most modern in Peru. In addition to these places, the festival is also held at the Precolumbian Art Museum or better known as MAP in the Plaza Nazarenas.
In Qosqo there are no movie theathers, but this city has four small but active cineclubs that promote independent works and also participate in this festival. They are AlucineClub at the American-Peruvian Cultural Institute (ICPNA), Cinema San Blas in the famous bohemian San Blas neighborhood, Video Puklla in Awaqpinta street beside the Temple of the Sun, and Legaña de Perro at the cultural center Qosqo Wasinchis.

As a bonus, the festival presents feature films from Colombia such as Crónica de una Muerte Anunciada, from the best-seller novel by the colombian writer Gabriel Garcia Márquez as well as a selection of peruvian movies. Workshops about the lastest digital technology and a congress about the peruvian movie industry are also part of this festival.

As I say good-bye to Inés, I believe that her spiritual force will make this festival one of the most important events for short film makers not only in Peru but also around the world.

Listing 1: Sponsors
Restaurants: Inka Grill, Pachapapa, Incanto, Greens Organic, Sara Café Organic Bistro.
Discos and Bars: Mama Africa Disco, Mushrooms Lounge and Bar
Others: Inca Rail, La Caravedo, Lion Film School, Khipu, Internacional Palomino, COSITUC, Video Cut Line, Fx Animation School, La Salle School, and D´Graficos SAC.

Listing 2 : Countries competing in the Festival
There are also movies from european and american countries such as Germany, Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Spain, Finland, France, Greek, Holland, the United Kingdom, Polland, Sweden, Switzerland, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, the United States, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Uruguay, Venezuela as well as Peru.