Lessons for a War
Director: Juan Manuel Sepúlveda Producers: Juan Manuel Sepúlveda, Armando Casas Pérez Cinematographer: Juan Manuel Sepúlveda Editor: Roberto Bolado Sound: José Rommel Tuñón, Alejandro De Icaza
Between 1982 and 1996, the Ixil and K’iche’ people took refuge in the mountains as a last resort to save themselves from the massacres carried out by the Guatemalan army, which took the lives of more than 200,000 indigenous people. After those fourteen years, the communities ended up settling in the northeastern part of the range, an area currently under siege due to its wealth of natural resources. This evocative documentary is a celebration of the resilience of people preparing to defend themselves against another coming war. A chant of hope from a community that will not give up.
Stunning and disturbing. Jay Weissberg, Variety
Entre 1982 y 1996, pueblos Ixiles y Quichés del norte de Guatemala resistieron refugiados en las montañas como último recurso para sobrevivir a las masacres ejecutadas por el ejército guatemalteco, que costaron la vida a más de doscientos mil indígenas. Luego de esos catorce años, las comunidades lograron establecerse en la parte nor-oriental de la Sierra, zona que actualmente está bajo asedio dada su riqueza en recursos naturales. Una celebración de la resistencia de un pueblo que se prepara para resistir a una guerra venidera. El canto de esperanza de una comunidad que no se dará por vencida.
Juan Manuel Sepúlveda was born in Pachuca, Mexico in 1980. His first documentary, La frontera infinita, won Cinéma du Réel’s Joris Ivens Award. He was the cinematographer of Año bisiesto, which won the Caméra d´Or at Cannes. Lecciones para una guerra received a Special Mention at the Morelia Film Festival.