The Cloud Forest (BOSQUE DE NIEBLA) 2017
Distributed by epf media, 324 S. Beverly Drive, PMB 437, Beverly Hills, CA 90212; 310-839-1500
Produced by Bambú Audiovisual, Cacerola Films, Viento del Norte Cine
Directed by Mónica Álvarez Franco
Streaming, 90 mins
College - General Adult
Cooperatives; Ethnography; Farming; Mexico
Date Entered: 02/10/2020
Reviewed by Bonnie Jo Dopp, Librarian Emerita, University of MarylandThis study of a community in Veracruz, Mexico that has established a farming cooperative could best be compared for Americans to The Biggest Little Farm. Both films describe earnest people who have formed cooperatives in order to work farms in 'earth ethic' ways, however difficult doing things strictly by hand and gathering enough people to help with planting and harvesting may be. Whether the next generation will follow is, of course, questionable. This program shows youngsters talking about social media but we never see them using electronic communication devices. Shown are one cell phone and one computer among people from middle-class upbringings who have decided to live high in the cloud forest, create thriving farms, and teach the ecological importance of their methods. A foggy program in Spanish with English subtitles that is so s - l - o - w to develop that viewers might nod off before becoming engaged. It does contain pretty pictures of mountain forest insects. It is available as a DVD or streaming.
Awards
Honorable Mention Director Mónica Álvarez Franco FICUNAM Festival International Film, Mexico; Winner Best Cinematography Downtown Los Angeles Film Festival (DTLA)