Chovoré

Partager :

Note of intent

Bolivia, a large country in territory and very small in economy, has very little history of warfare. However, a large part of the state budget is allocated to the Armed Forces. From the perspective of 3 young cadets, I am interested in understanding the country from this institution. The setting of the story is a jungle area in southeastern Bolivia, near the border with Brazil. An area where the agricultural frontier is increasingly expanding at the expense of virgin forests.

Synopsis

In Roboré, a forgotten town in the Bolivian Amazon, Larachi (18), Gutiérrez (18) and Valenzuela (19) begin compulsory military service along with 97 boys. Days pass slowly in the middle of extreme heat where military exercises and punishments test the cadets. Monotony changes with the news of forest fires approaching town. Thousands of hectares of virgin forest, indigenous communities and hundreds of species are in danger. The regiment is prepared to contain the fire, but they are sent without any proper tools. The military and politicians minimize fires, avoid the attention of the press and boycott arrival of real help. The fire exposes power abuse and the interest in maintaining a cruel order shared by drug trafficking and agribusiness. An order that the young cadets begin to question.

Visual concept

As far as the scene allows, the shots should be long and uncut, focused on the characters, feeling them very close, regardless of the fact that parts of the dialogue are off. In crises like these, I think that time stands still, minutes seem like hours and hours like days. That’s something I want to convey. Cut only when it’s really necessary to move on to another state of mind. The camera has to mimic the characters, it has to go through the same difficulties and risks.