Dance of Three (29 minutes)
by Marika Stanford-Moore, MVA 2017
Kaley and Klay are expecting their first child and, like an increasing number of couples in Los Angeles, are planning a home birth with the support of a doula. Doulas are non-medical birthing coaches who provide continuous emotional support and education during prenatal, labor, delivery and post-partum care. Dance of Three focuses on the role of the doula, whose support and advocacy make up an essential part of the birthing team. In contrast to Western biomedicine, which treats pregnancy as an illness, Kaley and Klay view pregnancy as a mother-centered event and work with their doula, Arielle, to make birth a positive, empowering and educational experience. This visual ethnography follows Kaley, Klay, and Arielle from pre-natal care through delivery, detailing the values and practices of alternative birthing and the young couple’s struggle to have a voice in their birthing process. Dance of Three reveals that doulas do not aim to remove birthing from the context of Western biomedicine but, rather, to reintroduce a model of female empowerment into the system.
Faces of Redemption (30 minutes)
by Luli Garcia, MVA 2017
The film: Faces of Redemption, explores the lives of Alicia Cass and Tameika Clikk-Dillon as women who come from the gang infested streets of South Central, L.A. Both women talk about their past lives as Crip gang affiliates and how they navigated the patriarchal aspects of gang life. While these women have very distinct journeys, a key component that sets the foundation for their success is their faith. Throughout the film, both women hold their faith responsible for their ability to deal with the incredible struggles they faced while trying to establish stability for themselves and their children. Moreover, as the film unfolds, viewers will bear witness to the various milestones that Cass and Clikk-Dillon experience, which have motivated both women to speak out against gang violence, women’s rights, and become active in their congregations as preachers. As women who come from the same roots, these powerful stories tell a tale about redemption from a life of chaos, while serving their communities in various ways. While Cass and Clikk-Dillon reflect on their present lives, they never forget where they came from and are determined to help other young women facing the same crossroads in their lives.
The Pursuit of Hope in Higher Education (28 minutes)
by Dayna Jessie Meyer, MVA 2017
This film is about three students on a journey to pursue hope in higher education. Anthropologist Cheryl Mattingly defines hope as “…most centrally involving the practice of creating, or trying to create, lives worth living even the midst of suffering, even with no happy ending in sight (2008:15). Unlike the Western idiom ‘a means to an end,’ hope works as way of inhabiting the present moment while working towards a brighter future. Hope, thus, is not a means to an end but resonates as a way of persisting in higher education, despite the challenges that are often met with despair. How do college and graduate students continually persist in the shadows of insurmountable institutional and personal challenges? This driving question beckons each person’s journey of self-knowing and is illuminated by ephemeral moments of hope (Miyazaki: 2004). The Pursuit of Hope in Higher Education offers a glimpse into the lives of three individuals grappling to apprehend the “sparks of hope” (Miyazaki: 23) within the contours of their private and public lives as students. Through mental health conditions such as bipolar disorder, depression, and the psychological stress induced by systemic and institutional racism, the journeys of Tyeisha, Terence, and Daniel are explored.
Thee Commons: Ni de Aquí, Ni de Allá (31 minutes)
by Jack Sample, MVA 2017
Thee Commons: Ni de Aquí, Ni de Allá is a short ethnographic film about Thee Commons, a self-described “psychedelic cumbia punk” band from East Los Angeles. The band was founded by Los Hermanos Pacheco, David and Rene, two first-generation, Mexican-American brothers who have partied and played music with each other since childhood. Their syncretic style is the consequence of an upbringing spent alternating between backyard quinceañeras and hardcore shows. It is a direct synthesis of their artistic experience as Angelenos: psychedelic tones that continue to resonate from the late sixties, cumbia rhythms that dominant Latin American dance parties, and a punk rock ethos that drives their community oriented “Do It Together” worth ethic. Thee Commons are consistently rated as one of the best live bands by local music press and 2017 is poised to be their biggest year yet: a new self-released album, headlining shows at home and across the border, and a featured set at this year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival. Thee Commons explores the acculturative process that inform the band’s vibrant stylistic bricolage alongside the experience of being young, educated, and creative Latinos working towards independent success.