LA BUENA VIDA – THE GOOD LIFE

by Jens Schanze
  • 2015 Börres Weiffenbach
  • 2015 Börres Weiffenbach
  • 2015 Börres Weiffenbach

    Synopsis

    Jairo Fuentes is the young leader of the community of Tamaquito, a village in the forests of northern Colombia. For centuries, they’ve hunted in the mountains, foraged for fruit and reared hens, sheep and cattle.
    But the Wayúu community’s way of life is being destroyed by the El Cerrejón coal mine. This vast chasm extends for 700 square kilometres, making it the world’s largest open-cast coal mine. The coal is exported all over the world. In Germany, the United Kingdom and Israel, in the Netherlands, Turkey, Japan and the USA, coal from El Cerrejón feeds the power stations which generate the electricity to keep our lives fast-paced, bright and warm. Determined to save his community from the forced displacement which has already swept away other villages, Jairo Fuentes sets out to negotiate with the mine’s operators.

    Festivals

    awards: EFA Documentary Selection for the European Film Awards' European Documentary 2015;
    shortlisted for German FilmAward; Best Movie – Naturfilmfestival Neustrelitz, Bavarian Filmaward for Documentary
    festivals: Cartagena, Colombia; Visions du Réel Nyon, Switzerland; DOK.fest Munich, Festival Latino, Mannheim,
    Germany; Barcelona+Medellín, Colombia; Turin, Italy; Guth Gafa IFF, Ireland; Latinodocs Festival Toulouse, France;
    New Latin American Cinema, Cuba; Ekofilm, Czech Republic; LOLA@Berlinale