ABOUT

On the 200th anniversary of Simon Bolivar’s liberation journey across Colombia, Bicentenario reflects on the far-reaching consequences of the Liberator’s legacy, a legacy kept alive through a wide range of intentional and unintentional rituals of remembrance. Summoning Bolivar’s spirit in the exact landscapes that witnessed the battles, Bicentenario reveals the contemporary social rituals that perpetuate the ongoing violence residing deep within the social and political unconscious. Two Hundred years after his campaign, Simon Bolivar’s spirit has become a mix of political mysticism, unquestioned doctrine and enigma - or perhaps a curse that has fixed itself in the collective imaginary of an entire continent. It is this curse that Bicentenario seeks to invoke, and perhaps exorcise. Notes: Bicentenario is the third of a trilogy of films tracing the journey of Simon Bolivar across Colombia in July 1819. (Part 1 and 2 are in development). Bicentenario is shot in the exact places Bolivar passed through on the exact days of his presence 200 years ago. In each town we contacted spiritual mediums who conjured Bolivar and guided our journey across the territory in search of his spirit. Sound recording and sound design were done using Electronic Voice Phenomenon methods which is a technique used by spiritists to contact the dead.