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Dancers returning to Peruvian roots in documentary by Experimenter
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
By: Tristan Roberts, OurWorld
Mitch Teplitsky tells story of two New York dancers who navigate between cultures
Mitch Teplitsky is close to completing Soy Andina, a documentary film on cultural exchange and navigation, a film that has roots in his experience as an Experiment in International Living group leader (Mexico, 1991). The film, which documents over several years the very different returns of two New York women, both dancers, to their Peruvian roots, is set to be released this summer.
"This project is rooted in friendship that is about 18 years old," said Teplitsky, a marketing and fundraising consultant who is the former marketing director for the Film Society at Lincoln Center. "I was looking for someone to practice Spanish with before going to Mexico as a group leader for The Experiment. I was introduced to Nelida Silva, who had emigrated from Peru a year earlier and we became friends."
In the late 1990s Silva, a dancer, decided to return to her birthplace in the Andes and host the traditional festival of her village. Teplitsky, who had gotten to know Silva's Peruvian immigrant community, decided to travel with her and make a documentary. Raised by his immigrant Jewish grandmother, "I was interested in stories about navigating between different cultures," he said.
After working on the film for a number of years, another dancer with more distant Peruvian roots, Cynthia Paniagua, discovered the project. After Silva and Paniagua, who was looking for a connection to traditional dance, danced together, it was Paniagua's turn to move to Peru and study dance. Teplitsky followed, and continued to film.
Now, Teplitsky is aiming to finish the film by this summer. "It's about taking the viewer to another culture, another world," he said. Discussing the influence of The Experiment on his work, he said, "direct exchange is the number one thing, but I think films are right behind that as a device to really foster some sense of what other people are like. I’m trying to not 'exoticify' this culture, but to show how much we have in common." Among many corporate, institutional and individual sponsors of his film, Teplitsky has received support from several World Learning alumni in the New York area.
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