Watch English version of video at http://vimeo.com/32511105

SYNOPSIS

Two hundred women perform an Afro-dance choreography in the streets of Buenos Aires exorcising a past of death and disappearance. Their bodies dancing to the drums conjure the memory of other bodies who are no more. A story told by its protagonists, who through their own personal recollections weave together a people’s collective memory.

Piedra libre is sponsored by the Mothers and Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, and by the National Secretariat of Human Rights. We feel very proud that the women we admire so much for their struggle to bring crimes against humanity to justice support us in this film venture. For more on Human Rights organizations and how the idea for the movie was born go to www.piedralibrepelicula.com.ar

WHY THIS CAMPAIGN NOW?

Almost two thirds of the movie has been shot and produced by us thanks to the passion we were able to pass on to an incredible team who generously offered their time, creativity, an expertise. But nearing the end, in order to finish shooting the film we need not only this (growing!) enthusiasm but a little money too. Our documentary assembles a people’s collective memory through six women’s personal stories and thus follows its protagonists to unexpected places of their childhood or family history. The campaign’s funds will allow us to shoot on location outside Buenos Aires, in places that resonate strongly with Argentina’s recent past, like Trelew, a small town in Patagonia, or Villa Constitución, strongholds of resistance against the dictatorship. We will also shoot the big final scene with over 100 extras in a unique location on the River Plate. And if our producers go beserk with their pledges and exceed the goal, then the ride towards post-producing and launching the film worldwide will be that much easier! Want to learn more about the film and the project? Please visit us at  www.piedralibrepelicula.com.ar and www.facebook.com/piedralibredocumental

I WANT TO SUPPORT PIEDRA LIBRE: WHAT DO I DO?

No pledge is too small! On your right you’ll see a list with pledges you may contribute and their corresponding rewards. We have put together a varied menu for all tastes and urge you to explore it and be tempted with our proposals. We want our producers to feel loved and pampered for helping us fulfill the dream of getting Piedra libre out for everyone to see around the world, because it’s a universal story.

To pledge, click on “I want to support,” choose a pledge, then the corresponding reward, and follow the steps that will lead you to PayPal payments. For those of you outside Argentina, we know some of our rewards will be impossible to get (unless you come visit Argentina, and why not?!). But we offer two solutions: you may gift your reward to a friend here or to someone who is travelling soon. Or we can figure out a make-up reward once the campaign is met. (Even if you choose “no reward” we will surely come up with something!)

THE BEST? IT’S A WIN-WIN GAME

All of us win with crowdfunding: we collect the funds only if the goal is met –or even exceeded!— by the end of the 30-day campaign. And of course, you’ll get your reward (even those that’ll have to wait till the movie is finished, but bear with us, we’ll have previews along the way so your wait is not unrewarded!) Now, if the goal is not met before the deadline then no money changes hands, and the sad part is, we won’t finish the movie yet… But there is no chance this will happen because we KNOW we have a great story to tell the world!

WHY ARE PLEDGES RATED IN DOLLARS?

It’s a way of simplifying transactions from all over the world. But if you are outside the US, don’t worry because your payment will be converted to your country’s currency, so you’ll know exactly how much you are pledging.

CAN I GIFT A REWARD?

YES! And it may turn out to be a very original birthday present for someone you love, like gifting a private music concert or a class of Afro-dance with one of the film’s protagonists.

WHAT IS CROWDFUNDING?

It’s an original way to support creators through funds that turn the backer into a direct producer of a creative project. It’s independent and based on empathy between creators and potential producers. The latter feel involved in a creative endeavor, not only for the incentives they receive if the goals are met, but more profoundly because it’s thanks to their support that creators will ultimately shoot their movie, publish their comic book, record an album, or launch their invention. Independent creators now turn more and more to alternative ways of raising funds and online platforms like www.idea.me help disseminate their campaigns, while at the same time ensuring that no money changes hands until the goal is met. Read more on http://idea.me/?siteLang=en_US

HOW DO I CONTACT YOU?

Glad you asked! And thanks for your interest. Please go to http://piedralibrepelicula.com.ar/en/contacto/ and leave us a message. Or you may write directly to our email addresses, also listed there. Oh! If you are a teacher in Buenos Aires, we have an interesting proposal to work in your classroom with a work-in-progress of the film, with art, music, or social science teachers. Plans to extend this teaching project to Argentina and the rest of the Americas are on the making! We will keep you updated.

Project by

Alejandra Vassallo y Pia Sicardi

(English bio below, don’t despair!)

Pía Sicardi es cineasta egresada de la ENERC y cantante, integrante del increíble cuarteto de mujeres de música latinoamericana El Culebrón. Su tesis Entrecenizas participó en varios festivales internacionales y ha trabajado en largometrajes documentales y de ficción como asistente de dirección y producción. Alejandra Vassallo es historiadora especializada en estudios de las mujeres y bailarina cofundadora del colectivo Oduduwá Danza Afroamericana, inspirador de este film documental, donde ha logrado reunir su pasión por la historia de las mujeres, el género y la danza. Cada una de las directoras asumió el desafío de conjugar visiones estéticas que provienen de distintos perfiles académicos y artísticos. Una cineasta que es música y una historiadora que es bailarina, de generaciones diferentes, hacen foco en las mujeres, la danza, los derechos humanos y una experiencia única sobre la transmisión y la creación de la memoria en la Argentina. Si querés saber más, entrá en www.piedralibrepelicula.com.ar/bio-de-las-directoras

Pía Sicardi is a filmmaker and singer, member of El Culebrón, an amazing all-women band devoted to Latin American music. Her thesis short film Entrecenizas was invited to various international festivals, and she has worked in several fiction and non-fiction feature films as assistant director and producer. Alejandra Vassallo is a historian (SUNY at Stony Brook) who specialized on women’s history. She is also a dancer, co-founder of the dance company Oduduwa Danza Afromericana that has inspired this film project and where she can finally combine her passion for women’s history, gender, and Afro-American dance. Each of the directors took on the challenge of combining aesthetic visions that arise from distinct academic and artistic fields. A filmmaker who is a musician, and a historian who is a dancer, from different generations, focus on women, dance, human rights, and a unique experience on the transmission and creation of memory. More at www.piedralibrepelicula.com.ar/bio-de-las-directoras