Educational Media Reviews Online

This documentary describes the creation of the soap opera, Sexto Sentido, the first work of its kind produced in Nicaragua. Sexto Sentido has been created by a group of Nicaraguan feminists using popular culture to transmit crucial information. It has become one of the most popular shows in the country ranked number 6 out of 26 soap operas. This telenovela (soap opera) is intended to educate the Nicaraguan population about social and political issues, democracy, respect, non-discrimination, human rights, domestic violence, acceptance of differences, and to publicize new laws available for women for their protection. Because there are no TV programs addressed specifically to young people in Nicaragua, this telenovela presents different behaviors and ways of living inspiring them to analyze and make healthy decisions and take control of their lives.

The film, Novela, Novela illustrates how this series started and how the writers, actors and viewers struggle with difficult subjects such as homophobia and domestic violence. Nicaragua is a country totally influenced by the Catholic Church and a national machismo, even though many political challenges have brought women into stronger positions in this society.

This film mentions that the topic of homosexuality and lesbianism are touched on for the first time in Nicaragua in open and respectful ways. Actors discuss how they feel when representing a gay character and how people address them when out in the streets. The public is interviewed about the series; they give their opinions and say what they have learned from it.

This documentary uses good archival footage of recent conflicts in Nicaragua. The picture and sound quality is good. It is in Spanish and English with English subtitles. It would be most suitable for academic departments of Latin American studies, women’s studies, gay and lesbian studies, gender studies, social work, communications, and human rights. This film is recommended because it is a very interesting documentary on an excellent project that was done with a very small budget.