Independent cinema in a community of less than 500 inhabitants

CineToo is the first independent cinema in the whole state of Oaxaca. It is located in the village of San Pablo Guelatao.

Guelatao is a village where the cultural movement started in the 80s. The first radio stations in the region were established here, as well as a TV station that emerged in the 90s. It was a place where a lot of musicians and other artists were active. Older generations in Guelatao still remember screenings in the open air.

CineToo wanted to be a continuation of those times. "It was also an act of resistance. In the logic of individualism where everybody is with their own mobile phone, leaving the cell phone behind and watching movies together is an act of resistance," explains Luna Marán, a cinematographer, producer and photographer from Guelatao in a radio show Cinegarage.

Five years before CineToo was inaugurated, Luna Marán established a project called Aquí Cine, which became a network of community cinemas. She made a short documentary that toured around various villages, together with other movies by other authors. What she realized was that people were interested in cinema, and even more so if it was about them and their issues. "There was a necessity that we see characters from our villages on the screen," she says.

Space created for children and youth

CineToo has its door open every morning and then again in the afternoon. A big catalogue of movies is available at one of the tables in a little coffee shop before entering the screening hall. You are free to choose whichever movie you want to watch, unless somebody is already waiting for his choice to be screened. An entrance fee of 25 pesos (a bit more than 1 EUR) comes with popcorn and you are free to take your coffee inside the hall, if you wish so.

While waiting for your cup of coffee or a movie to start, a leaflet on every table teaches you the basics about how to protect your privacy online.

"The goal of CineToo was to contribute to the cultural aspect inside the community and that the people can reinforce their values through movies. We also wanted the cinema to be a space for children to entertain themselves and for the youth to enjoy this space to reinforce what they learn at school," says Carmen Morales, who is in charge of the cinema.

In Guelatao, there is also a boarding school for children from other villages in the region and the cinema aims to provide a space to learn for them as well. There are regular free screenings for these students.

Luna Marán states that cinema has a very important role in the lives of the youth. "It is important to see other worlds out there and get to know ourselves through those worlds," she said in 2016, when CineToo was inaugurated.

Indigenous people making cinema

Like many other cultural spaces and communication channels created in Sierra Juárez, Cine Too is also a project for and by indigenous people.

Apart from screening movies from all around the world and all kinds of genres, Cine Too is also a space where events and workshops for the youth happen, where they can express themselves. The aim also is to create movies by indigenous people about the issues that matter to them so that they are represented in cinematography.

Luna Marán established a project called CineToo Lab where she invited 20 people with ideas for audiovisual projects. The nearly year-long program supported young people with a scholarship and classes where they could learn how to execute their ideas. At the end, the results were screened in Cine Too.

Another project connected to Cine Too is Campamento Audiovisual (Audiovisual camp) that every summer attracts tens of young people who want to learn how to make movies. The result of a three-weeks long camp are movies made by indigenous youth that are later on screened in different villages, including Guelatao.

Who is the cinema for?

Spending time in the cafeteria of CineToo, it is obvious that the majority of the people who come to enjoy movies, are not locals. In the morning, there were debates and screenings for university students from Europe who came to Oaxaca to learn about communality. In the evening, a Japanese movie is on program, chosen by a family who is staying in Guelatao to give classes about cinema.

Carmen Morales admits that after the first few months since the cinema opened in 2016, people in the community lost interest in it and nowadays, it is mostly enjoyed by visitors who come from outside. "People here do not like cultural cinema," Morales says, referring also to the offer of the movies in the cinema. You hardly find Hollywood movies on the list, yet those who are fans of indie movies and documentaries, will love this place.

"In the communities, cinema does not fit the logic of life. In the cities, cinemas have become a space to meet because there are no other opportunities like that. It is not the case in the villages," Marán adds in the mentioned radio show.

What keeps the cinema alive is not the income from the entrance fee; it is the coffee shop that is a part of the space. It is a community space where people meet to have a coffee from an espresso machine and French-style crepes.