Download Ways of Being Home event postcard
Granite Falls, MN: On Thursday, November 11 from 7-9 p.m., The Department of Public Transformation, WE CAN! Collective and Pioneer PBS will present a screening of the film "Ways of Being Home: Between Northfield and Mantrata," an intimate cinematic portrait of two small town — one in Mexico and one in Minnesota - providing an evocative audiovisual meditation on the experience of Mexican immigrants living and working in rural America. The film screening will be followed by a discussion with the Director, Cecilia Cornejo Sotelo, moderated by Pioneer PBS editor and videographer Esmeralda Ziemer.
Participants can join in person at the Pioneer PBS Studio (1 Pioneer Drive, Granite Falls), or stream the event online. This event is free and open to the public; registration is requested. Light snacks will be provided and masks will be required for in-person attendance. To register for the in person or online event, please visit tinyurl.com/waysofbeinghome.
“Ways of Being Home” Film Screening + Director’s Talk is part of the WE CAN! (Women’s Empowerment Creative Action Network) Event Series presented in partnership with the Department of Public Transformation and Pioneer PBS. This event is supported by the Arts Midwest GIG Fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This series is also funded in part with a grant from the Southwest Minnesota Arts Council made possible by the voters of Minnesota, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
About “Ways of Being Home:” Vivid cinematography, richly layered soundscapes, short animated sequences, and a constellation of testimonies introduce audiences to Maltrata, an agricultural town nestled in the mountains of Veracruz, Mexico, and to Northfield, a college town in southern Minnesota where many Maltratans have immigrated and settled. By means of a nonlinear narrative and a camera that thoughtfully yet viscerally meanders between everyday scenes in both towns, Chilean-American director Cecilia Cornejo Sotelo, shows the complexities of, and contrasts between, these places. Filmed amidst increasing violence and political unrest in Mexico and the rising anti-immigrant sentiment that took hold during and after the 2016 U.S. presidential election, the voices of fiercely determined and hard-working women coalesce to offer a nuanced portrait of a transnational community. Ultimately, the film is a testament to the resiliency and ingenuity of uprooted people as they craft a life and a home fostered by ritual, relationship, and community rather than solely by geography.
About the Director: Cecilia Cornejo Sotelo is a documentary filmmaker, artist, and educator engaging rural communities in southern Minnesota in a multilayered exploration of home and belonging. Locally rooted yet globally minded, her work examines notions of belonging and the immigrant experience while exploring the traces of historical trauma on people and places. An inaugural recipient of the 2020 McKnight Fellowship for Community-Engaged Artists, Cecilia’s work has received support from multiple organizations, including the Minnesota State Arts Board, the National Association of Latino Arts and Culture, and the Jerome Foundation. Her film work has shown at venues such as MoMA’s Documentary Fortnight, the Minneapolis/St. Paul International Film Festival, Cine las Americas (Texas), L’Alternativa (Spain), InVideo (Italy), Melbourne Latin American Film Festival (Australia), Puerto Vallarta International Film Festival (Mexico) and Festival de Cine Pobre (Cuba). More info at: www.artelamilpa.com
About WE CAN! Collective - The Women’s Empowerment Creative Action Network (WE CAN!) is a collective of artists from Southwestern Minnesota who use art to promote women, people of color, new American and Indigenous community members in our region. WE CAN! creates community, conversation, and curiosity with local and visiting artists of all disciplines. WE CAN! creates rural spaces of equity, racial and environmental justice, and solidarity with our urban neighbors. WE CAN! all have a voice in our artistic and cultural homes. And we want YOU to join the movement!
About Pioneer PBS - Pioneer PBS is an award-winning, viewer-supported public television station dedicated to sharing local stories of the region with the world. For more than 55 years, Pioneer PBS has served its rural audience through a mix of local and national programs rich in cultural heritage, diversity and educational opportunities. www.pioneer.org
About Department of Public Transformation (DoPT)- The Department of Public Transformation is an artist-led organization that works locally and relationally to develop creative strategies for increased community connection, civic pride, and equitable participation in rural places. www.publictransformation.org
The WE CAN! Event Series is supported by the Arts Midwest GIG Fund, a program of Arts Midwest that is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts, with additional contributions from the Minnesota State Arts Board. This series is also funded, in part, with a grant from the Southwest Minnesota Regional Arts Council made possible by the voters of Minnesota, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.
