History at the Turn of the Century: Childhood and Memory in Recent Hispanic Cinema

1. History at the Turn of the Century: Childhood and Memory in Recent Hispanic Cinema Natalie Nix Dr. Vania Barraza-Toledo

2. Introduction • Many Hispanic film directors have turned the focus their films to narrating history through the eyes of children • El espinazo del diablo (2001) • Kamchatka (2002) • Machuca (2004)

3. Historical Context of Films • Spanish Civil War: 1936-1939 • Republicans vs. Rebels or nationalists • Resulted in dictatorship of Gen. Francisco Franco • Latin American Dictatorships: 1970’s • Liberal/communist vs. conservative • Conflict between political parties • Chile: dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet • Argentina: dictatorship of Jorge Videla

4. Reflecting Upon Past • The transition into a new millennium creates a time of self-reflection upon history and past events • By using children, films depict how history and memory influence construction of a personal and collective identity in Latin America and Spain • Commercial success of El laberinto del fauno presents the importance of this trend of introducing history through film to a broad public

5. Research Topic • The three films involved in this project depict how revisiting the memories constructed during traumatic times in Hispanic history is essential to the formation of contemporary Hispanic identity during the transition to the 21st century

6. El espinazo del diablo (2001) • Guillermo del Toro • Story of a boy living in Spain during the Spanish Civil War • After his father is killed in battle, young Carlos is brought to an orphanage where he avenges the ghost of a murdered orphan

7. Machuca (2004) • Andrés Wood • The story of a young boy living in Chile during the early 1970’s • Ignoring social constraints, Gonzalo Infante befriends a member of the working class, Pedro Machuca

8. Kamchatka (2002) • Marcelo Piñeyro • Explores the alternative realities that are created for children by their parents in times of crisis • Follows young Harry and his family as they flee from Buenos Aires to a remote location

9. Methodology • Analysis of Films • Extratextual • Intratextual • Categories of Analysis • Family Situations • Social Boundaries/Different Levels of Reality • Spatial Boundaries

10. Results: Social Boundaries/Realities • Kamchatka: alternative to reality created through games • Machuca: pre-set social boundaries are broken by friendship of boys • El espinazo del diablo: supernatural reality created by ghosts and superstitions

11. Discussion • Morals or lessons learned in each film • Importance of historical times augment the persistence of memories in children • Memories serve as constant reminders of events during growth of child, thus greatly influencing identity

12. Discussion: Films and Current Hispanic Identity • Films remind viewers of old experiences or present history to a younger audience • Without memories, formation of identity is greatly hindered • Strong historical moments combined with personal stories help create a personal and communal Hispanic identity

13. Conclusion • Connection exists between the hardships children faced during their experiences and the formation of who they become as adults • The identity of an individual is greatly influenced by the memories and experiences gained during childhood

14. History at the Turn of the Century: Childhood and Memory in Recent Hispanic Cinema Questions?