Of the many films NAICA has had the pleasure of seeing this past week at Sundance, the documentary Cocalero has been one of our favorites. The film is a portrait of enigmatic Bolivian presidential candidate, Evo Morales and his journey to become the country’s first indigenous president.

But of course, the film is much more than that. Evo’s role in the documentary is a segue for the viewer’s introduction to the people behind his campaign: from the Coca farmers of Bolivia to indigenous grassroots campaigners to Anglo-Latin pop stars.

The documentary is an informal, organic mixture of verité shots, natural lighting and casual interviews. Juxtaposed next to this is the fact that the film is a nearly flawless edit. It is this mixture of chaos and order that makes Cocalero so beautiful and intriguing.

[Look and Listen]

Upon seeing the film, we knew we had to talk to the director. Twenty-six year-old Alejandro Landes is a graduate of Brown University and is Columbian by way of Brazil and Ecuador. He took the time to sit down with NAICA and humor our pseudo-political questions as well as regale us with tales of Evo and the people of Bolivia.

Check out our interview with him in the video player at the top of our blog and visit the film’s website at www.cocalerofilm.com.

[image courtesy of www.cocalerofilm.com]