Ochoymedio: A Platform for Ecuadorian Filmmakers and Artists

8:01:00 a.m. 

A force promoting the arts and cinema of Ecuador, Ochoymedio in Quito is a premiere venue for national and international festivals. 

Since its founding in 2001, the Ochoymedio cinema has served cultural force and provided a platform for Ecuadorian and international artists and filmmakers. Embracing the motto of “beyond the mall,” Ochoymedio strives to support the national film industry as well a series of international festivals on a regular basis.

Named after Italian Director Federico Fellini's 1963 film 8 ½, the organization was founded by a group of Ecuadorian producers and artists, who sought to promote the culture of film and create an open environment for those artists seeking to share their work.

Director of programing of the center, Lucas Taillefer, told teleSUR English, “It is the house of Ecuadorian artists, whether they are filmmakers, dancers, playwrights, it is the house of the artists of Ecuador.”

The outdoor patio and colorful walls featuring murals of various artists creates an inviting atmosphere for the public coming to enjoy the diverse selection of handpicked films shown in the center's 2 theaters. It is the premiere venue for showings of independent homegrown and international films in Ecuador, often bringing directors from abroad to share their processes and discuss in open forums the nature of their work.

The center organizes the annual Bajo Tierra festival, which shows 30 national short and feature films and brings together filmmakers from across the country. It is also an organizer of the contemporary dance festival Alas de la Danza, translated as Wings of Dance, which goes beyond Ecuador's borders to attract dancers worldwide. Other film festivals hosted by Ochoymedio are The Place Without Limits, which is LGBT in focus, the French Film Festival, the documentary festival EDOC, and a European film festival.

The Ochoymedio concept expanded to the cities of Guayaquil and Manta, where independent films produced in Ecuador and abroad are shown to interested audiences. The organization is a member of the International Confederation of Art Cinemas, Europa Cinemas, and the Latinopolis network, connecting the cinema to the global film community.

Taillefer said, “The simple fact that Ochoymedio exists as a space and is an open space to the production and national cinema, to the Latin American artists, to the Latin American filmmakers, already, just this, that is a support by itself, because it wants to transmit that they will always have a space here.”

(Fuente: TeleSur)