Ecuador: La Poderosa Media Project
In the summer of 2011, I had finished my first year at The University of Texas at Austin. Studying abroad had been a goal of mine, and an opportunity presented itself to me. At the time, my two passions were film and my Latino culture. La Poderosa Media Project was a great way to see another part of the world while building my resume in film – a very selfish reason given what a huge impact this summer would have on me.
Like a traveling newbie, my parents and some friends met at the airport to bid me a farewell. Super dramatic, I know, but this was the first time I’d be traveling alone, only my 3rd time on a plane in all of my 18 years of life, and gone for 2 months. Oh yeah, and no cellphones, only cyber cafes.
Bahía de Caráquez, Manabí, Ecuador
Here’s What I Learned
1. Culture matters
Because it protects the memories and history of people who are often forgotten. Throughout this experience, I ate food I had never had, heard languages I didn’t know, and met people with stories I had never been told. Without these, I don’t know if the love for my own culture would have developed. There had always been an appreciation for my Mexican Heritage, but there wasn’t the love where I sought out the language or the music. Part of coming to Ecuador was being taught Spanish and South American culture and politics by Chio, our teacher and one of the project’s principles. Seeing how much respect and love the people in our short films and the students in our workshops had for Ecuador made me want that for my own culture. We exchanged colloquial terms in Spanish and urban legends. I’m forever greatful. Let’s not forget the songs that make me nostalgic for these moments.
2. Ecuador was full of voices we rarely hear
La Poderosa Media Project made short films every year with students that ranged in ages from 13 to 27. These students were in charge of shooting film, creating story lines, writing scripts, finding actors and locations, and more. It’s very impressive! Their stories ranged from poignant, to funny, to dramatic. But these were all very real in expressing and showing a day in the life. There were Ecuadorian people, Ecuadorian locations, Ecuadorian slang, and Ecuadorian stories that made up these films, and that was beautiful. Living in the USA, it’s very easy to forget that movies can be made in another language and filled with people who aren’t blonde, blue-eyed, or light skinned.
3. South America is beautiful
Enough said.
4. Surfing is not an easy task
In a short amount of time, we had already made friends with some of the locals, including Bahia Surf Club. These guys were fearless and willing to teach us how to surf. We must have been out there for 2 or 3 hours trying to just stand and ride one wave, even if it was for only 2 seconds. Ultimately, I did ride a wave…for about 3 seconds. Worth it!
5. These were people I wanted to keep in my life
Staying in touch with people who live in an entirely different country is difficult, no question. Thankfully, there’s Skype, Gchat, Facebook, Instagram, etc. I was certainly closer to some students from our workshops than others and even with some of the locals. A simple “Feliz Cumpleaños, amigo!” goes a long way, I think. I couldn’t just forget how some of them took me on adventures that I haven’t forgotten. Or even how some of them introduced us to their family and took us into their home to just talk about life and what we want for our futures. Gracias a tí, Bahía de Caráquez, por darme amigos como ellos.
