Dec. 2007. Nicolás, early twenties, has his life before him. He’s part of Europe’s student elite, living in Paris, up to study in London a master’s degree in architecture.
Then, in “Concert for a Single Voice,” from Peru’s Alejandra Carpio Valdeavellano, the past suddenly catches up with him. Just before Christmas, he learns his mother Diana has been released in Lima after serving 18 years for membership in an organization that took up arms against Peru’s government.
Yet Nicolás has inherited the family house in Lima, whose sale could finance his studies. He just has to fly there and sign some papers, although this means re-meeting Diana. Nicolás still boils with resentment at Diana for putting her political ideals before motherhood. Or, “You said you were fighting for a better life for Peruvian children,” he reproaches Diana. “You should have wanted to give ME something better!” Nicolás tells her, finally expressing his contained fury.
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“Concert for a Single Voice” will be presented the week at Sanfic Industria’s Ibero-American WIP, a showcase of 10 titles in post-production from Latin America and Spain. Taken one way, it turns on the collateral damage suffered by relatives of activists who fought Peru’s governmental forces and how the consequences of the conflict still roil to this day.
More centrally, however, in Nicolás reproof and Diana’s explanation of why she joined a terrorist org. – “I couldn’t remain indifferent with so much suffering,” she says – “Concert” seems to suggest that everybody can have their reasons: Nobody’s totally wrong. And if they are, in part, it may be that they are simply badly informed.
“Despite everything that can separate us – human beings are able to connect, no matter how different we are or however opposed our ideas,” Carpio tellsPvNew.
Produced by Peru’s Invisible Producciones, “Concert” stars Paris-based Peruvian Denzel Calle (“Mont Blanc”), Monserrat Brugué (“Princesas”), and Paul Vega (“La Restauración”). Recipients of grants from Ibermedia and Peru’s Ministry of Culture, producers Norma Velásquez and Carpio are currently working in partnership with Cyriac Aurial at France’s Rémora Films to seek funding to finalize the film and also plan a European release.
PvNewtalked to Carpio in the run-up to Sanfic Industria’s Ibero-American Work in Progress, unspooling from Aug. 20 in Santiago de Chile.
”Concierto Para Una Sola Voz” belies its title by suggesting that many people can have reasons for behaving like they do. Nobody has a monopoly on truth. Could you comment?
I believe reality, in general, is usually quite complex. We always find that there are different ways of looking at the past, the facts, at history. But if we talk about an internal war like the one experienced in Peru, the scale of complexity is much greater. In spite of this, in Peru there are various power groups that seek to impose a single truth, a hegemonic discourse of our history. These discourses present a partial truth, make only one side visible, and attack those who delve into the truth. Attempting to speak of a single truth is to deny “the other” (person).
The film begins refreshingly in France as the spectator adopts Nicolas’ point of view towards Diana. His education about how she was tortured in prison is the audience’s as well.
Exactly. The film shows us how Nicolás discovers that the truth he knows is only partial. He also discovers information that leads him to question his own personal history. At the same time, he is discovering the past of his country from different points of view, and the viewer accompanies him in understanding this complexity.
Could you situate your film in the context of Peruvian cinema? Have there been a lot of films about Sendero Luminoso, its members, and its treatment by governmental security forces?
In the last 40 years, there have been several films and audiovisual works that have touched on the issue of armed conflict. I believe that “Concert For A Single Voice” is situated in a moment in which new ways of looking at the conflict are being proposed. No longer from that time, but from the present, from how we are today in relation to the conflict, how time passes, but some wounds are still open. These new ways of looking also seek more personal narratives from the familiar, the everyday, the intimate.
What guidelines did you have for directing “Concierto,” if any?
I think the main thing was to transmit closeness to the characters, situations that felt very day-to-day,very real, especially in relation to family conflicts. Our family relationships are always full of everyday details, food, jokes, small negotiations. My compass was to focus on those details.
You could argue that a new generation of women directors is breaking through in some countries in Latin America, such as Brazil. Would that be the case in Peru?
Completely. Peruvian cinema has had several female directors who have paved the way for several decades. In recent years, Peruvian cinema has won important international awards thanks to female filmmakers, such as Claudia Llosa, Melina León, among many others. I believe that women filmmakers in Peru are gradually making our way, still with difficulty, but growing a lot through mutual support and collaboration, for example, through NUNA, the association of women directors of Peru. Collaboration and networks among women are helping a lot in the development of films made by women. However, there is still a long way to go to be truly representative.
“Concierto” takes place partly in France. How was it financed, however?
The film was almost 100% financed by incentives for cinematography from the Peruvian Ministry of Culture. We tried to get financing in France, but unfortunately, we didn’t get it. Shooting in France was difficult because the budget we had was really low, so we had to make magic to complete the shooting plan there. We even shot in the Paris subway without permits, but we were able to take advantage of the context of the World Cup and the distraction of the security guards in the subway. We had many anecdotes, all for the love of cinema.
