The Good Life

(La buena vida)
Jens Schanze | Documentary

2015 | 97 minutes | Germany, Switzerland

Jairo Fuentes, a charismatic young Wayúu leader, fights to protect his community from displacement caused by the El Cerrejón coal mine's rapid expansion.

Synopsis

The village of Tamaquito lies in the forests of Colombia. Here, nature provides the people with everything they need. But the way of life of the Wayúu is being destroyed by the vast and rapidly growing El Cerrejón coal mine. Determined to save his community from forced displacement, the young and charismatic leader Jairo Fuentes sets out to negotiate with the mine’s operators. They’re backed by powerful global resource companies such as Glencore, Anglo American, and BHP Billiton, and communicating with their representatives isn’t easy. The villagers are promised the blessings of progress, but the Wayúu place no value on modern, electrified houses – on the so-called better life. Instead, they embark on a fight to save their life in the forest, which soon becomes a fight to survive.

Citation
Main credits

Schanze, Jens (film director)
Schanze, Jens (screenwriter)

Other credits

Cinematography, Börres Weiffenbach; editing, Bernd Euscher; music, Victor Moser, Rainer Bartesch.


Citation
Cataloging
Keywords
,indigenous peoples,indigenous people,indigenous,native,native people,native peoples,aboriginal people,aboriginal,aborigine,indigene,indigeneity,tribes,tribal,tribal people,tribal peoples,economics,social class,money,capital,capitalism,class,economy,prejudice,intersectionality,inequality,poverty,income gap,wage gap,class warfare,elitism,snobbery,bourgeois,poverty,upper class,middle class,lower class,nouveau riche,mental illness,therapy,trauma,behavioral health,mental disability,psychology,psychiatry,social work,wellbeing,counselor,diagnosis,mentally disabled,mental incapacitation,mentally defective,mental handicap,mental defective,psychotic break,psychosis,psychoses,mentally sound,questionable mental health,environment,environmental,environmentalism,climate,climate change,global warming,habitat,ecosystem,ecology,eco,earth,planet,water,sustainable,sustainability,deforestation,agriculture,green,green economy,political science,micropolitics,macropolitics,political theory,political education,political movements,political thinking,political criticism,poly sci,polysci,political sci,political sciences,political history,history of politics,political systems,anthropologically,cultural anthropology,forensic anthropology,anthropologist,human nature,physical anthropology,ethnocentric,ethnography,functionalism,cultures,societies,human people,human society,functionalism,globalization,ideology,pragmatism,dogmatism,social change,society,south america,south american countries,countries in south america,argentina,bolivia,brazil,chile,colombia,ecuador,guyana,paraguay,peru,suriname,uruguay,venezuela,south american politics,south american culture,south american cuisine,south american education,south america in media,south american languages,south america history; "The Good Life"; Pragda Films
Clips
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Festivals

FReDD Festival Toulouse - Grand Prix du Festival; Gdańsk Documentary Film Festival - Grand Prix, Gate of Freedom Award; Boston Latino Film Festival - Best Documentary; EFA Documentary Selection for the European Film Awards - European Documentary; Bavarian Film Award - Best Documentary; FICCI Cartagena; Visions du Réel; Environmental Film Festival in the Nation’s Capital Washington DC

DIRECTOR: Jens Schanze

NATIONALITY: Germany, Switzerland

YEAR: 2015

GENRE: Documentary

LANGUAGE: Spanish; English; Wayuu; Indigenous languages

COLOR / B&W: Color

GRADE LEVEL: Upper Elementary School, Middle School, High School, College, Adults

SUBTITLE/CC: AVAILABLE

AUDIO DESCRIPTION: NOT AVAILABLE

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