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August 2005
 Ana
Rosa Duarte (Maya) is a videomaker and a social anthropologist
of Mayan culture and identity at the Universidad Autónoma
de Yucatán, in Mérida, Yucatán. She writes
about cultural change among rural Mayan women in the Yucatán,
the growing importance of arts and crafts cooperatives in the
local economy, and Mayan self-representation through audiovisual
media. Duarte co-founded the media organization Yoochel Kaaj in
1998, together with Byrt Wammack. Yoochel Kaaj produces independent
video in rural communities. Most of Yoochel Kaaj's videos are
produced in Yucatecan Maya, which Duarte speaks fluently. Duarte
and Wammack co-founded the Geografías Suaves video festival,
which includes a regional competition for residents of southern
Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. One of Duarte's recent video projects
is Arroz con Leche, a documentary about the activities of four
Mayan women from across the region. Duarte is a doctoral student
in anthropology at the Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana,
in México City, México. She was a selector for the
2004 Media Arts Fellowships, awarded by National Video Resources.
Before becoming an academic, Duarte worked as a dressmaker and
in a garment factory. Duarte was born in Chocholá, Yucatán.
"The Mayan language sustains my culture, and cannot be translated
into Western languages without falling into folklore and sensationalism.
The Mayan language does not consist solely of words and sounds,
but also of expressive gestures and silences. Cultures live and
experiment. Their changes do not necessarily signify that they
are lost, but that they are becoming up to date, and this process
is not the territory of experts but belongs to all of us who live
the culture, as much to children and teenagers as adults."
Screened by NMAI
Image credits: Ana
Rosa Duarte - courtesy of the filmmaker
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