Villa del Cine
Encyclopedia
Fundación Villa del Cine (English: Cinema City or Cinemaville) is a state-owned Venezuela
n film and TV studio that was inaugurated on 3 June 2006 by Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
in the city of Guarenas
, near the capital Caracas
.
Villa del Cine is part of the Venezuelan government's Ministry of Popular Power for Culture. It receives funding for individual projects from the National Autonomous Center of Film (CNAC), also part of the same Ministry, described by the Inter Press Service
as an "independent film institute". Venezuelanalysis.com
says that Villa del Cine is an incentive to increase film production and to enable filmmakers access to materials, equipment and facilities, not just to provide funding. Also in 2006, the Venezuelan government set up a sister institution, Distribuidora Nacional de Cine Amazonia Films, (Amazonia Films) as an alternative to commercial networks. Amazonia Films distributes the projects created by Fundación Villa del Cine and has since acquired films from the South American region as well as Europe and Asia for the local market.
As of 2010, the president of Villa del Cine is filmmaker José Antonio Varela who also directed the organization's film La Clase
The executive director of Villa del Cine is Lubezka Luque.
as "savage".
An adviser to the government said, "For a country like Venezuela, it's really the only way to build a cinema infrastructure," noting that several countries, such as Mexico and Brazil, had taken the same route. The director of CNAC, which funds Villa del Cine's projects, said that the aims of Villa del Cine are to facilitate a variety of productions, ranging from short films targeting the youth audience to large cooperative projects in conjunction with the Mercosur
trade bloc in the region.
Francisco Sesto, the Minister of Culture who also made early contributions to the creation of audio-visual cooperatives in Venezuela, said the aim of Vilal del Cine is "... the transformation of the state and how people might become participants in the development of film through their own art".
and surround sound
, and could produce "five films simultaneously".
The complex cost more than US$13 million as of 2007, with a further US$11 million set aside in 2008; Venezuela Analysis describes it as a US$42 million project as of 2008.
Ville del Cine is part of the Venezuelan government's Plataforma del Cine y el Audiovisual (Film and Audiovisual Platform) of the Ministerio del Poder Popular para la Cultura (Minister of Popular Power for Culture). Villa del Cine receives funding for individual projects from the Centro Nacional Autónomo de Cinematografía (CNAC—National Autonomous Center of Film), also under the Minister of Popular Power for Culture, described by Inter Press Service
as an "independent film institute". It was founded in 1994 by the Ley de la Cinematografía Nacional (National Law of Cinematography) to promote, protect and encourage Venezuelan cinema, but is now governed by a new National Cinematography Law enacted in 2005, which requires film distributors in Venezuela to show 20% locally made films and also required distributors, broadcasters, pay-TV stations and retailers to pay a tax into the film fund Fonprocine. The Motion Picture Association of America
was critical of some of these moves.
Notable projects funded by the new studio are the story of Francisco de Miranda
—a revolutionary who played a key part in events leading to the Venezuelan War of Independence
from Spain, which was released in 400 movie theatres and beat Superman Returns
to the top of the box office in Venezuela; actor and activist Danny Glover's
directorial debut about Toussaint Louverture—leader of the Haitian Revolution
; and a short film about Simon Bolivar
. There has been controversy over the funding Glover has received for his biopic. Opponents say that the funding for the project outweighs the state budget for domestic films from 2003 to 2008 and directors Thaelman Urgelles, and the L.A.-based Jonathan Jakubowicz
, said that the quantity allocated to Glover's project was "excessive". The Culture Minister, defended the move since the funding did not come from Villa del Cine's standard funds but from what he called an "additional credit". He added that the funding will not be leaving the country, but will create jobs and provide valuable experience to the relatively youthful studios.
One of the most well known projects produced by Villa del Cine is the film La Clase
(The [Social] Class). Directed by José Antonio Varela in 2007, it is a romantic drama which contrasts the way of life between the upper and working classes. Varela became the President of Villa del Cine in March 2010, three years after the release of La Clase.
Hollywood filmmakers and actors have visited Villa del Cine. They include actor and director Tim Robbins
and the actors Kevin Spacey
and Sean Penn
. Robbins praised Villa del Cine for its support of film directors and is considering a film project in Venezuela.
describes Villa del Cine as "a state-of-the-art production house that is changing the face of Venezuelan cinema," but added that "Film-makers seem torn between working for the state with its huge resources and opportunities, and making a stand against what they see as the erosion of independent art." Supporters of the project believe that it provides "many people" who could not work in film making before with "an opportunity to work in the industry ..." The studios have been controversial with some Venezuelan film makers who fear it may harm independent media. Concern about the new National Law of Cinematography (2005) governing Villa was also expressed by the Motion Picture Association of America. Studio administrators say they are not politically motivated in which films they produce, with executive director Marco Mondarain saying:
"We are looking to make good films, no matter what the script. We really want writers and directors to come to us with their ideas. If they're good, we'll support them."
According to an article published by Jump Cut:
According to Luis Girón, CNAC's president as of 2007: "We don't lay out guidelines for a certain kind of film to be produced, we don't push a specific bias; we just want to be shown as we are." Filmmakers unions participated in CNAC's 2007 decision making process. In 2007, Oscar Murat, a project co-ordinator at Villa del Cine stated that politics do not figure in what films are produced. He said that Villa del Cine "received various proposals and of the ones which won commissions, none was linked with politics". In 2007 the International Labor Organization (ILO) of the United Nations asked the Venezuelan government to provide information on measures taken to prevent employment discimination by political ideology. The ILO was acting in response to a statement from the Venezuelan Culture Minister saying that employment at Villa del Cine could be restricted by political ideology. Several actors were threatened access to Villa del Cine if they did not adhere to government ideology. As of 2009 the ILO has received no response from the Venezuelan government.
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
n film and TV studio that was inaugurated on 3 June 2006 by Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez
Hugo Chávez
Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías is the 56th and current President of Venezuela, having held that position since 1999. He was formerly the leader of the Fifth Republic Movement political party from its foundation in 1997 until 2007, when he became the leader of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela...
in the city of Guarenas
Guarenas
Guarenas is a city in Miranda, Venezuela. It was established in 1621 as Nuestra Señora de Copacabana de los Guarenas. On February 27, 1989, a morning protest in this city over the recent nationwide hike in bus fares, spread to Caracas, the capital of Venezuela, which resulted in several days of...
, near the capital Caracas
Caracas
Caracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
.
Villa del Cine is part of the Venezuelan government's Ministry of Popular Power for Culture. It receives funding for individual projects from the National Autonomous Center of Film (CNAC), also part of the same Ministry, described by the Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service is a global news agency. Its main focus is the production of independent news and analysis about events and processes affecting economic, social and political development....
as an "independent film institute". Venezuelanalysis.com
Venezuelanalysis.com
Venezuelanalysis.com: Venezuela News, Views and Analysis is a news website, which describes its aim as being "to provide on-going news about developments in Venezuela, as well as to contextualize this news with in-depth analysis and background information...
says that Villa del Cine is an incentive to increase film production and to enable filmmakers access to materials, equipment and facilities, not just to provide funding. Also in 2006, the Venezuelan government set up a sister institution, Distribuidora Nacional de Cine Amazonia Films, (Amazonia Films) as an alternative to commercial networks. Amazonia Films distributes the projects created by Fundación Villa del Cine and has since acquired films from the South American region as well as Europe and Asia for the local market.
As of 2010, the president of Villa del Cine is filmmaker José Antonio Varela who also directed the organization's film La Clase
La Clase (film)
La Clase is a 2007 Venezuelan film that was produced by Venezuela's state-owned Villa del Cine and directed by José Antonio Varela...
The executive director of Villa del Cine is Lubezka Luque.
Aims
As of 2006, Hollywood productions comprised 86% of the Venezuelan film market. Chávez says the aim of Villa del Cine is to counter the lack of an alternative media and to “stimulate, develop, and consolidate the national cinema industry to encourage the Venezuelan people to draw nearer to their values and idiosyncrasies.” At the inauguration of Villa del Cine, Chávez said, "They [Hollywood] inoculate us with messages that have nothing to do with our traditions." Although he said some Hollywood films are "enjoyable", he criticized their portrayal of Native AmericansIndigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
as "savage".
An adviser to the government said, "For a country like Venezuela, it's really the only way to build a cinema infrastructure," noting that several countries, such as Mexico and Brazil, had taken the same route. The director of CNAC, which funds Villa del Cine's projects, said that the aims of Villa del Cine are to facilitate a variety of productions, ranging from short films targeting the youth audience to large cooperative projects in conjunction with the Mercosur
Mercosur
Mercosur or Mercosul is an economic and political agreement among Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Founded in 1991 by the Treaty of Asunción, which was later amended and updated by the 1994 Treaty of Ouro Preto. Its purpose is to promote free trade and the fluid movement of goods, people,...
trade bloc in the region.
Francisco Sesto, the Minister of Culture who also made early contributions to the creation of audio-visual cooperatives in Venezuela, said the aim of Vilal del Cine is "... the transformation of the state and how people might become participants in the development of film through their own art".
Organization and facilities
Villa del Cine employed 130 as of 2007, is spread over 2400 square metres (25,833.4 sq ft), and includes soundproofed studios equipped with lighting, audio and video equipment, casting and wardrobe facilities, and post-production while being stocked with modern digital film equipment. According to the Venezuelan government, as of 2006, Villa del Cine supported high-definition televisionHigh-definition television
High-definition television is video that has resolution substantially higher than that of traditional television systems . HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame, roughly five times that of SD...
and surround sound
Surround sound
Surround sound encompasses a range of techniques such as for enriching the sound reproduction quality of an audio source with audio channels reproduced via additional, discrete speakers. Surround sound is characterized by a listener location or sweet spot where the audio effects work best, and...
, and could produce "five films simultaneously".
The complex cost more than US$13 million as of 2007, with a further US$11 million set aside in 2008; Venezuela Analysis describes it as a US$42 million project as of 2008.
Ville del Cine is part of the Venezuelan government's Plataforma del Cine y el Audiovisual (Film and Audiovisual Platform) of the Ministerio del Poder Popular para la Cultura (Minister of Popular Power for Culture). Villa del Cine receives funding for individual projects from the Centro Nacional Autónomo de Cinematografía (CNAC—National Autonomous Center of Film), also under the Minister of Popular Power for Culture, described by Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service
Inter Press Service is a global news agency. Its main focus is the production of independent news and analysis about events and processes affecting economic, social and political development....
as an "independent film institute". It was founded in 1994 by the Ley de la Cinematografía Nacional (National Law of Cinematography) to promote, protect and encourage Venezuelan cinema, but is now governed by a new National Cinematography Law enacted in 2005, which requires film distributors in Venezuela to show 20% locally made films and also required distributors, broadcasters, pay-TV stations and retailers to pay a tax into the film fund Fonprocine. The Motion Picture Association of America
Motion Picture Association of America
The Motion Picture Association of America, Inc. , originally the Motion Picture Producers and Distributors of America , was founded in 1922 and is designed to advance the business interests of its members...
was critical of some of these moves.
Projects
According to Villa del Cine's president, in the four years since its founding the organization made 26 documentary and fictional films and supported even more independent films, with 12 productions scheduled for 2011. Villa del Cine has filmed in all 24 Venezuelan states.Notable projects funded by the new studio are the story of Francisco de Miranda
Francisco de Miranda
Sebastián Francisco de Miranda Ravelo y Rodríguez de Espinoza , commonly known as Francisco de Miranda , was a Venezuelan revolutionary...
—a revolutionary who played a key part in events leading to the Venezuelan War of Independence
Venezuelan War of Independence
-The First Republic:Criollos resented the mercantilist policies of Spain. Trade was only allowed in Pacific ports which was a terrible burden for Argentina, Paraguay and the Caribbean colonies. This is significant as Cuba and Puerto Rico were forced to allow free trade in 1763 by Britain and...
from Spain, which was released in 400 movie theatres and beat Superman Returns
Superman Returns
Superman Returns is a 2006 superhero film directed by Bryan Singer. It is the fifth and final installment in the original Superman film series and serves as a alternate sequel to Superman and Superman II by ignoring the events of Superman III and Superman IV: The Quest for Peace .The film stars...
to the top of the box office in Venezuela; actor and activist Danny Glover's
Danny Glover
Danny Lebern Glover is an American actor, film director, and political activist. Glover is perhaps best known for his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise.-Early life:...
directorial debut about Toussaint Louverture—leader of the Haitian Revolution
Haitian Revolution
The Haitian Revolution was a period of conflict in the French colony of Saint-Domingue, which culminated in the elimination of slavery there and the founding of the Haitian republic...
; and a short film about Simon Bolivar
Simón Bolívar
Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...
. There has been controversy over the funding Glover has received for his biopic. Opponents say that the funding for the project outweighs the state budget for domestic films from 2003 to 2008 and directors Thaelman Urgelles, and the L.A.-based Jonathan Jakubowicz
Jonathan Jakubowicz
Jonathan Jakubowicz is a Venezuelan filmmaker, whose film Secuestro Express was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the British Independent Film Awards and was a New York Times "Critics' Pick" in 2005.-External links:...
, said that the quantity allocated to Glover's project was "excessive". The Culture Minister, defended the move since the funding did not come from Villa del Cine's standard funds but from what he called an "additional credit". He added that the funding will not be leaving the country, but will create jobs and provide valuable experience to the relatively youthful studios.
One of the most well known projects produced by Villa del Cine is the film La Clase
La Clase (film)
La Clase is a 2007 Venezuelan film that was produced by Venezuela's state-owned Villa del Cine and directed by José Antonio Varela...
(The [Social] Class). Directed by José Antonio Varela in 2007, it is a romantic drama which contrasts the way of life between the upper and working classes. Varela became the President of Villa del Cine in March 2010, three years after the release of La Clase.
Visits by western filmmakers and actors
Several politically progressiveProgressivism
Progressivism is an umbrella term for a political ideology advocating or favoring social, political, and economic reform or changes. Progressivism is often viewed by some conservatives, constitutionalists, and libertarians to be in opposition to conservative or reactionary ideologies.The...
Hollywood filmmakers and actors have visited Villa del Cine. They include actor and director Tim Robbins
Tim Robbins
Timothy Francis "Tim" Robbins is an American actor, screenwriter, director, producer, activist and musician. He is the former longtime partner of actress Susan Sarandon...
and the actors Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey
Kevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
and Sean Penn
Sean Penn
Sean Justin Penn is an American actor, screenwriter and film director, also known for his political and social activism...
. Robbins praised Villa del Cine for its support of film directors and is considering a film project in Venezuela.
Analysis
The BBCBBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
describes Villa del Cine as "a state-of-the-art production house that is changing the face of Venezuelan cinema," but added that "Film-makers seem torn between working for the state with its huge resources and opportunities, and making a stand against what they see as the erosion of independent art." Supporters of the project believe that it provides "many people" who could not work in film making before with "an opportunity to work in the industry ..." The studios have been controversial with some Venezuelan film makers who fear it may harm independent media. Concern about the new National Law of Cinematography (2005) governing Villa was also expressed by the Motion Picture Association of America. Studio administrators say they are not politically motivated in which films they produce, with executive director Marco Mondarain saying:
"We are looking to make good films, no matter what the script. We really want writers and directors to come to us with their ideas. If they're good, we'll support them."
According to an article published by Jump Cut:
Villa del Cine offers support to veteran filmmakers like Román Chalbaud and Luis Alberto Lamata while it enables young filmmakers like Efterpi Charalambidis or Hernán Jabes to make their first projects. The sharp increase in the number of features produced by Villa del Cine over the last years is unquestionable proof that this form of Government support has stimulated media production in the country in terms of the number and variety of films, and it has proven a valuable alternative to the Hollywood and neoliberal models of production.
According to Luis Girón, CNAC's president as of 2007: "We don't lay out guidelines for a certain kind of film to be produced, we don't push a specific bias; we just want to be shown as we are." Filmmakers unions participated in CNAC's 2007 decision making process. In 2007, Oscar Murat, a project co-ordinator at Villa del Cine stated that politics do not figure in what films are produced. He said that Villa del Cine "received various proposals and of the ones which won commissions, none was linked with politics". In 2007 the International Labor Organization (ILO) of the United Nations asked the Venezuelan government to provide information on measures taken to prevent employment discimination by political ideology. The ILO was acting in response to a statement from the Venezuelan Culture Minister saying that employment at Villa del Cine could be restricted by political ideology. Several actors were threatened access to Villa del Cine if they did not adhere to government ideology. As of 2009 the ILO has received no response from the Venezuelan government.