Lionel Quintanilla de Estelí habla de sus experiencías como un alumno pobre y sus esperanzas por sus hijos bajo la revolución. / Lionel Quintanilla from Estelí, Nicaragua speaks about his experiences as a poor student and his hopes for his children after the revolution.
Varios segmentos breves. Aquí se ven vistas líricas y políticas de la vida diaria en Estelí y en Managua, Julio – Septiembre 1984. / Various brief segments. Lyrical and political views of daily life in Estelí and Managua, Nicaragua, July – September 1984.
The mothers of the heroes and martyrs of Estelí talk about their fallen family members, August, 1984. Experimental video made with Sandin Image Processor. / Las madres de héroes y mártires de Estelí hablan de la familia caida, agosto 1984. Estelí heróico, Nicaragua libre.
Un documental en cuatro “movimientos.” Nicaragua, Septiembre, 1984. Los campesinos en un cafetal, El Callao, ofrecen una visión intima y política de la vida rural. LA HISTORIA DE REYNA FLORES (14 min.); ENFRENTANDO ESCASECES (14 min.); LA NATURALEZA Y LA HISTORIA (25 min.); AGUA PURA (6 min.).
In September 1984, director Julia Lesage visited a coffee plantation with Nicaraguan camerawomen, Amina Luna and Miriam Carrero, and organizers from the ATC, the Nicaraguan salaried farm workers’ union. El Crucero gives an in-depth picture of that farm. The tape is organized in four “movements,” each in a different documentary style, to capture different aspects of life and politics on that farm. The use of different documentary styles provokes a reflection on how the US media convey information about other countries and cultures.
Troubadours presents a musical performance by the Nicaraguan folk singing group, Camayoc, which means “messenger” in Nahuatl, the language of ancient indigenous people in Central America. Groupo Camayoc taped this performance with Julia Lesage and Chuck Kleinhans outdoors in Estelí, Nicaragua, in September 1987. They play both their own songs and those of Carlos Mejía Godoy and Pablo Milanés.
In 1981 and 1982, Carole Isaacs and Julia Lesage visited Nicaragua and did in-depth interviews with women in the Managua area. Here Nicaraguan women speak about the topics of work, sexual politics, religion, family life, children, social participation, and defense.
Home Life was shot in Esteli, Nicaragua, in August, 1984. It is a city midway between Managua and the Honduran border whose people acutely felt the impact of U.S. supported contra raids. Videomakers Julia Lesage and Chuck Kleinhans and Seattle-based minister Randall Mullins lived with the people of Esteli for five weeks, and Randall made this tape with the Diaz family to introduce to his parish back home the Nicaraguan family whose life and love he had shared.