Return to Bolivia is a 2008 Argentine film directed by Mariano Raffo,[1] who also wrote the script in collaboration with Marina Boolls.

Return to Bolivia
Theatrical poster
Directed byMariano Raffo
Written byMariano Raffo
Produced byMarina Boolls
Felicitas Raffo
StarringJaneth Cuiza
Brian Quispe Cuiza
Camila Quispe Cuiza
Jhoselyn Quispe Cuiza
David Quispe
CinematographyMariano Raffo
Edited byMarina Boolls
Music byZelmar Garín
Distributed byPelela cine-CEPA
Release date
  • October 2008 (2008-10) (Tucumán Cine)
Running time
96 minutes
CountryArgentina
LanguagesSpanish
Aymara

The film was nominated for 22 awards and won four of them.

Plot edit

Recounts the journey to their country of origin of a Bolivian family who lives in the neighborhood of Liniers, Buenos Aires, with a greengrocer. Related as a road-movie, the camera follows a pair of Bolivians with their three children, traveling to the edge of the boundary between Jujuy Province in Argentina and Tarija, Bolivia, and then go to a village in the highlands between Oruro and La Paz.

Return to Bolivia is an auteur documentary film that tells the story of a Bolivian family in Buenos Aires that decides to return to Bolivia. The documentary is filmed in a verite style and it gives a personal account of the subject of immigration, allowing the characters to lead the story. The narrative is based on universal values using a clear style that brings the story very close to fiction.[2]

Production edit

Shot with limited resources and a minimal film crew that included the director and the film's producer and soundman, Mariana Boolls. This production won several international awards, including the award for Best Foreign Film Festival Icaro XI of Guatemala and the Best Documentary Festival Gualeguaychú. It received positive reviews, like the Buenos Aires Herald's critic:

(...)the intelligent narrative and the skilful editing make Return to Bolivia a remarkable documentary, not just from a technical point of view. Indeed, Return to Bolivia, more than just a camera following the travails of a group of people, is about life and death, death and life, the exploration of which is never easy.[3][dead link]

Cast edit

Awards edit

Country Year Festival
Argentina 2009 Best Documentary del Festival de Gualeguaychú
Guatemala 2008 Best Documentary Extranjero del XI Festival Icaro de Guatemala
Argentina 2008 Prize Best Image Festival de Tucuman Cine.
Argentina 2009 First Prize Zona Centro of Festival ARAN de Neuquen.
Argentina 2009 Grand Prize Federal Amonite (compartido) del Festival ARAN de Neuquen

References edit

  1. ^ "Return to Bolivia". returntobolivia.blogspot.com. Retrieved 2023-01-05.
  2. ^ http://www.esnips.com/user/pelela [dead link]
  3. ^ "Web Page Under Construction".

External links edit