'Scars on Earth' arrives, a documentary that narrates the armed conflict in Colombia

Prejudice and stigmatization are just two problems that thousands of ex-combatants have to face on a daily basis who, after the signing of the Peace Agreement in 2016, decided to return to civilian life through the Development Programmes with a Territorial Focus (PDET) and thus lead a life away from war.

For this reason, and in order to reduce the exclusion of which a large part of the reinserted population falls victim, the documentary 'Scars of the Earth' was produced and directed by filmmaker Gustavo Fernández. And it is that his work was so important in the footage that, in addition, he did the research that led to the script made for this project.

Four voices of ex-combatants make up the documentary that seeks the spectator's reflection on their experiences and the entire burden of the armed conflict they carry on them. These reinserted persons were located by Fernández himself in the Territorial Spaces for Training and Reincorporation -ETCR-, where they built their own homes under the support of the Agency for Reincorporation and Normalization.

Janeth, William, Fabian and David are the four protagonists of the documentary; all of them with a hard story that they began to forge as children, when they decided to join the ranks of the extinct FARC out of necessity as a result of state neglect, out of conviction or because of 'playing war'. All also with a goal of building a family without forgetting their Farian roots.

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Each testimony spontaneously contributed to the construction of the narrative, and according to the director, there were several factors in common between the four stories, and it was from that that that that the documentary began to be spun, delving into their stories to the point of evoking intimate memories, corresponding to their past lives.

Now, with regard to its realization, 'Scars of the Earth' was filmed between 2016 and 2020 in five different locations: Icononzo -Tolima-; Macanal -Boyacá-; Puerto Asís -Putumayo-; Neiva and Bogotá. A titanic work that Fernández did in conjunction with Guateque Cine and under the support of the distribution of Danta Cine.

Check out the trailer of the documentary:

In addition, the director points out that the 118-minute feature was born in an atypical way, as it was the result of an impulsive act that began negotiations between the government and the extinct FARC, generating as an immediate effect the fact of grabbing a video camera and approaching several passers-by who passed through the Parque de the Hippies, seeking to know the reactions to the historical dialogues.

After passing the 'electoral tusa' after the triumph of No in the 2016 plebiscite, the lens of his camera caught, a year later, the transfer of ex-combatants to reincorporation spaces, a sign that the Agreement was bearing its first fruits, until 2017, when the first murders of social leaders and former combatants were known such as Dimar Torres, who was killed by army men.

Its premiere will be this Thursday, March 17, and will be screened at specific points in several cities around the country. In Bogotá, the Cinematheque Distrital will be the main stage, while in Medellín it will be launched at the Museum of Modern Art. In Cali, La Tertulia will be the venue for its first screening.

In the cinematheque of the country's capital, it will be released at 7:00 p.m. and the tickets, which can be purchased on the TuBoleta website, cost six thousand pesos.

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