J. Michael Seyfert | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 1959 (age 63–64) |
| Nationality | Mexican |
| Occupation(s) | Director, photographer |
| Website | www |
J. Michael Seyfert (born 1959) is a German Mexican documentary film director best known for the documentaries Rent a Rasta and Bye Bye Havana. Among other awards, at the Atlanta International Documentary Film Festival, Seyfert was awarded Best Post-Production for Bye Bye Havana in 2006, and Best Director for Rent a Rasta in 2007. [1]
Seyfert began his professional life 1977 as music industry writer and photographer with Fachblatt Musikmagazin , a Cologne, Germany based monthly for which he subsequently worked as Los Angeles bureau chief.
In 1992 Seyfert relocated to New York City to work as interactive media content producer and internet entrepreneur. As Creative Director Seyfert took major brands such as Steve Madden (company), Le Cordon Bleu and RE/MAX of New York online. [2]
During the early days of costly dial up internet access Seyfert developed and trademarked a "Free Internet" model [3] wherein an advertiser driven portal would absorb the user's cost of dial up service. This model was later adapted and its trademark acquired by Freei Networks famous for its Baby Bob commercial. [4] FreeiNet eventually transferred its assets to NetZero.
In early 2000 the U.S. Federal Reserve increased interest rates six times and the economy began to lose speed, also resulting in the burst of the Internet bubble.
Seyfert relocated to a rustic Baja desert village applying his acquired internet related skills to practice his own brand of freedom as geography was no longer an inextricable element of the workplace.
From 1995 and until 2007 Seyfert developed the high traffic portal Baja.com the sale of which he would use to finance an off-grid documentary film production company [5] focusing on Latin America.
In 2002 Seyfert's vision for a cartel-free filmmaking enterprise began to take shape while exploring Latin America's inequities through the eyes of its dispossessed people: Widows of the Guatemalan ethnocide known as The Silent Holocaust near Rabinal, site of some of the bloodiest massacres in Guatemala's Civil War, coca farmers and abandoned Tungsten mine workers in the Bolivian Andes, an Amazon tribe being driven from the rain forest by loggers and oil companies, dreadlocked Jamaican descendants of slaves selling sex to middle aged women and the reclusive Rastafarian Mansion Bobo Ashanti of Bull Bay appeal for repatriation to Africa, recicladores dwelling on a 150-hectare Mexico City mega garbage dump and resilient Cubans in their daily struggle to survive in the ruins of Central Havana, 10-year-old street children living among deported American Mara Salvatrucha gang members in a devastated El Salvador and heavily armed Brazilian favela gangsters in their quest for humanity. Seyfert's films are entirely self-funded and produced with rudimentary tools and have remained relevant long after they were made. [6] [7] [8] They are the subject of citation in academic articles [9] [10] and dissertations.
Portland State University "Issues of Authenticity in Small Scale Tourism: A Study of the McDisney Experience". [11]
"The Rastafarian Movement in Jamaica" Masaryk University, Czech Republic. [12]
(2004) Carlos Alberto Montaner of Foreign Policy calls Seyfert's film "A colorful and sobering picture of the Cuba that Fidel has left behind". [13] The film premiered on March 2, 2006 at New Hampshire International Film Festival [14] and screened at select venues around the world, including the 20th Fort Lauderdale Intl. Film Festival. [15] and 8. Festiwal Podróżników na Głodówce. [16] Bye Bye Havana was broadcast four times on Free Speech TV Dish Channel 9415 in the United States and on Mongolian National TV and continues to figure prominently among post-revolutionary documentaries. [17]
(2005) The Waorani are an ancestral nation in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Since Oil Companies have entered their territory, the Waorani have made deals, *oil for a pack of noodles and two soccer balls*, deals in exchange for nothing. The film was released in English, [18] German and Spanish [19] broadcast in Mexico on Canal 22 and screened at 6th Albacete Film Festival [20] 2006 - Castilla-La Mancha, Spain and Festival du Cinéma de Paris 2006. [21]
In order to prepare for the production of this film, Seyfert studied Sabela, the language only spoken by the Waorani. He compiled a "Spanish - Sabela" dictionary republished in the book "Los Huaorani del Cononaco" by Hernán Paz in 2007. [22]
(2006) Jamaica Documentary covering the phenomenon of middle-aged women traveling to Jamaica for sex [23] each year as well as culture context in the Atlantic Slave Trade and history of the Jamaican Rastafari movement. [24] [25]
Rent a Rasta screened at Institute of Contemporary Arts in London on September 13, 2007, "A skillful, thoughtful and illuminating examination of the sex tourism industry in Jamaica, where white women come to sleep with young local 'rastatutes'". [26]
On September 5, 2013 The Huffington Post's Caitlyn Becker interviews Seyfert about Rent a Rasta on Huffpost Live. [27]
(2007) Short documentary about El Salvador street children who live among thousands of Mara Salvatrucha gang members deported from the United States.
(2008) Latin America migration documentary. [28] The film premiered on August 24, 2008 at Atlanta Underground Film Festival. [29] and won the Best Director Award at the 2nd Annual Montezuma [30] International Film Festival in Costa Rica November 14, 2008
(2009) The documentary follows men meeting mail order brides in Bogota's thriving matrimony industry.
(2010) Short film portrait of a small town Mexican truck tire changer reflecting on his grandiose life.
(2012) A satirized documentary about poverty and the asymmetric resistance flourishing in Rio de Janeiro's favelas. [31]
From 1996 to 2005 Seyfert worked with British rock musician Roger Bunn, [32] first guitarist of Roxy Music as American editor of MIHRA, The Music Industry Human Rights Organization based in London. [33] In 2003 Bunn was narrator of Bye Bye Havana as well as contributor to the film's soundtrack from his posthumously released album Piece of Mind. [34] [35]
In 2003 Paul Cooke, founding member and drummer of the British smooth jazz rock band SADE collaborated with Seyfert on several projects including the soundtrack of Bye Bye Havana. [36]
In 2008 Bolivian cinematographer and Smithsonian Bicentennial Medal recipient Jorge Ruiz contributed to Seyfert's film Opposite Land [37] historic footage taken on Lake Titikaka in 1950 to juxtapose Seyfert's contemporary footage of Titino floating island and reveal 50 years of stagnation.
Jamaican culture consists of the religion, norms, values, and lifestyle that define the people of Jamaica. The culture is mixed, with an ethnically diverse society, stemming from a history of inhabitants beginning with the original inhabitants of Jamaica [the tainos] The Spaniards originally brought slavery to Jamaica. Then they were overthrown by the English. Jamaica later gained emancipation on 1 August 1838, and independence from the British on 6 August 1962. Black slaves became the dominant cultural force as they suffered and resisted the harsh conditions of forced labour. After the abolition of slavery, Chinese and Indian migrants were transported to the island as indentured workers, bringing with them ideas from their country.
Hip hop music arrived in Cuba via radio and TV broadcasts from Miami. During the 1980s hip hop culture in Cuba was mainly centered on breakdancing. But by the 1990s, with the collapse of the Soviet Union and the onset of the Special Period, young raperos, exposed to foreign tourists whose wealth highlighted their struggle, turned to rapping to affirm their cubanidad and advocate for further revolutionary reforms.
Cinema arrived in Cuba at the beginning of the 20th century. Before the Cuban Revolution of 1959, about 80 full-length films were produced in Cuba. Most of these films were melodramas. Following the revolution, Cuba entered what is considered the "Golden age" of Cuban cinema.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) rights in Cuba significantly advanced in the 21st century. Following the 2022 Cuban Family Code referendum, there is legal recognition of the right to marriage, unions between people of the same sex, same-sex adoption and non-commercial surrogacy as part of one of the most progressive Family Codes in Latin America. Until the 1990s, the LGBT community was marginalized on the basis of heteronormativity, traditional gender roles, and strict criteria for moralism. The Cuban revolution eradicated profit incentives, and the superficial yet crucial tolerance of LGBT persons by the strongly homophobic Cuban society quickly evaporated. Therefore, those who did not fit the mold of the societal construct were deemed as either outcasts or as bourgeoisie. It was not until recently that the attitudes and acceptance towards LGBT people changed to be more tolerant.
The Havana Film Festival is a Cuban festival that focuses on the promotion of Latin American filmmakers. It is also known in Spanish as Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano de La Habana, and in English as International Festival of New Latin American Cinema of Havana. It takes place every year during December in the city of Havana, Cuba.
Pavel Giroud is a Cuban film director based in Madrid, Spain.
Prostitution in Cuba is not officially illegal; however, there is legislation against pimps, sexual exploitation of minors, and pornography. Sex tourism has existed in the country, both before and after the 1959 Cuban Revolution. Many Cubans do not consider the practice immoral. In Cuban slang, female prostitutes are called Jineteras, and gay male prostitutes are called Jineteros or Pingueros. The terms literally mean "jockey" or "rider", and colloquially "sexual jockey", and connotes sexual control during intercourse. The terms also have the broader meaning of "hustler", and are related to jineterismo, a range of illegal or semi-legal economic activities related to tourism in Cuba. Stereotypically a jinetera is represented as a working-class Afro-Cuban woman. Black and mixed-race prostitutes are generally preferred by foreign tourists seeking to buy sex on the island. UNAIDS estimate there are 89,000 prostitutes in the country.
Descemer Bueno is a Cuban singer, songwriter, and record producer. His first professional gigs were playing bass with Cuban troubadour Santiago Feliú.
Telmary Díaz, better known as simply Telmary, is a Cuban rapper, musician, and spoken-word artist.
Havana, Cuba, is a host city to numerous events and festivals.
Catherine Murphy is a U.S. filmmaker, activist and educator, best known for her documentary film MAESTRA about the 1961 Cuban Literacy Campaign. Her work principally focuses on social justice and literacy in the Americas. Murphy founded The Literacy Project in 2004 and Tres Musas Producciones in 2009.
Andres "Andy" Señor Jr. is an American actor, stage director and filmmaker.
Bye Bye Havana is a 2005 fast-paced stream of consciousness documentary that presents a vibrant portrayal of Cuban life. The film juxtaposes commercialism with vintage anti-communist propaganda and the elementary difficulties that everyday Cubans face. Directed by J. Michael Seyfert the film was shot and edited in Cuba over the course of 2 years. For its enduring images, Carlos Alberto Montaner of Foreign Policy calls Seyfert's film "A colorful and sobering picture of the Cuba that Fidel has left behind".
Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America is a documentary produced by the Rolling Stones that documents their Latin America tour in 2016. Olé premiered on 16 September 2016 at the Toronto International Film Festival. The initial trailer for the film was uploaded on the band's official YouTube channel 7 September 2016, with a United States trailer released 10 November 2016. The documentary was released on DVD and Blu-Ray 26 May 2017. Both Olé Olé Olé!: A Trip Across Latin America and the related Stones' concert film Havana Moon were directed by Paul Dugdale.
Elisabetta Perut Bozzolo is a Chilean journalist, film director, producer, and screenwriter best known for the documentaries Un hombre aparte and La muerte de Pinochet. Both of these were made in collaboration with Iván Osnovikoff, a director with whom she has done most of her audiovisual work in the documentary field.
Aymée Regla Nuviola Suárez is a Cuban singer, pianist, composer and actress, nicknamed "La Sonera del Mundo". She is also known for having played Celia Cruz in the Colombian telenovela Celia.
Chicago Boys is a Chilean documentary, written and directed by Carola Fuentes and Rafael Valdeavellano and released in November 2015. The film tells the story of the Chicago Boys, a group of Chilean economists trained at the Catholic University of Chile who, after conducting graduate studies at the University of Chicago under professor Arnold Harberger, return to their country and, after Augusto Pinochet's military dictatorship (1973–1990), become the main ideologues of the neoliberal economic model in Chile.
Ernesto Daranas Serrano is a Cuban filmmaker. Daranas' three feature films have had unprecedented success in Cuba and were submitted to the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film. Daranas is a Latin Grammy nominee for Best Long Form Music Video and a recipient of the King of Spain Award. His filmography includes Sergio & Sergei (2017), starring Ron Perlman, and Behavior, often considered the greatest Cuban film of the 21st century.
The Havana Film Festival New York (HFFNY) is a film festival, based in New York City, that screens cinema from across Latin America with a special focus on Cuba and its film industry. It is a project of The American Friends of the Ludwig Foundation of Cuba, a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization with the mission of building cultural bridges between the United States and Cuba through arts projects.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link){{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |