A Penn State faculty member and award-winning filmmaker’s documentary on child poverty has been chosen as an official selection for festivals in Milan, Italy, and Brisbane, Australia.
Boaz Dvir, assistant professor of journalism in the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications, will screen “El País de la Eterna Primavera" (Land of the Eternal Spring) on Nov. 16, at Italy’s SOUQ Film Festival at the Cloister of Piccolo Teatro Grassi in Milan and as part of Australia’s online Colortape International Film Festival on Jan. 4.
Dvir directed, produced and filmed “El País,” following photojournalist Jason Henry (The New York Times) and writer Erik Maza (Town & Country, Baltimore Sun) as they traveled to Guatemala’s most infamous landfill, Teculután. Edited by Penn State film-video alumnus Allan Guerrero, the short documentary showcases Henry’s striking Teculután photographs. The film began its festival run in October at the International Film Festival Manhattan.
At Teculután, Dvir filmed Henry and Maza trying to maintain their composure as they capture children searching for shreds of sustenance in a monstrous heap of human and animal waste and burning ash.
“There’s no time in this 4-minute film to provide any answers, only raise questions,” Dvir said. “It’s up to the audiences to see the questions, which range from equity to poverty to immigration to the environment, among other current global issues.”
Dvir has won awards for his films “Jessie’s Dad” and “A Wing and a Prayer” and has had his work distributed by Amazon, Hulu, Netflix, PBS and other outlets. Before joining the faculty at the Bellisario College, Dvir taught international journalism at the University of Florida.