1ST PLACE - Latest Generation Film Contest

1ST PLACE

Following her Rhythm - Who was Sylvia del Villard?

Naia Wakai Torres

San Juan, Puerto Rico

Director's Statement:

"I grew up most of my life living in the center of the Puerto Rican neighborhood in Chicago, where the sound of the spanglish and echoes of our caribbean rhythms reaffirmed our existence. When I was 18, I decided to move back to Puerto Rico to pursue my higher education in dance and audiovisual production. During these past few years, I’ve created artistic and educational programming open to the community in Puerto Rico and Chicago. Whether curating performance spaces, creating short films, or giving classes, my work has been grounded in encounters that seek to embrace collectivity. In Puerto Rico, I founded the first student-led dance association at my university, a space where students could reclaim movement as a language of cultural memory and self-expression. That year I also participated in a research and performance project on the life of Afro-Puerto Rican dancer and activist Sylvia del Villard, embodying her voice to explore the intersections of blackness, resistance, and representation. This project furthered my interest in Sylvia del Villard as we spent 3 months researching her life and studying her movements. As my dance program celebrated their 10 years, they dedicated it to Sylvia del Villard where we had performances dedicated to her and her story. As an interdisciplinary artist, Sylvia's story means a lot to me as I keep growing in my individual disciplines, I look up to her and her work as a cultural agent. In the past few years Sylvia’s name was heard by many for the first time and I hope as more performers keep expanding in their practice, Sylvia’s name is never forgotten. My vision for the future is rooted in the belief that cultural preservation is a form of resistance, and through telling those stories, we can build more just and empathetic societies. With this documentary, I hope to continue bridging film, research, performance, and tradition to amplify voices that may have not been heard before."

Quotes from Reviewers:

"Phenomenal. Engaging, fun to watch, the use of archival footage blended with multimedia art was engaging and colorful. It was a well-paced but thorough overview of Villard's life and honored her work through the filmmaker's own bout of technical passions and artistry."

"Great use of mixed media. Good music and informative."