“Soy Andina” Now on YouTube
Back in 2008, I befriended a New York filmmaker who had made an intriguing documentary set in my newly adopted country. Mitch Teplitsky’s “Soy Andina” traces the journeys of two New York women who travel to Peru to connect with their heritage through dance.
The movie was broadcast on Latino PBS’s Voces series and has since been screened at hundreds of film festivals and universities around the world. Its message of celebrating diverse cultures through artistic expression is more powerful now than ever.
Not long ago on social media, Mitch posted that people can view Soy Andina for free on YouTube for a short time. It’s his way of cheering folks up during the pandemic.
Today, I sat down again and watched young Cynthia Paniagua kick it up with the Afro-Peruvian dancers of Chincha, interspersed with Nelida Silva’s determined efforts to host her home village’s fiesta patronal. It was a delight.
Mitch has asked that if you like the film, please consider leaving a donation for El Centro Comunal Latino, a grassroots organization helping immigrant individuals and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and who have little or no access to unemployment compensation, government relief or health insurance.
Barbara
I am an American writer who lived in Lima for seven years (2007-2014), where I covered Andean traditions, melting glaciers and daily life in the capital for Miami Herald, MSNBC and Huffington Post. I now live and work in northern Florida where I champion climate change advocacy and compassionate, affordable eldercare.
