Tag: Peru

Is There Gold To Be Found With Kayara, A Peruvian Animated Film?

A rare animated look at the Incan world, Kayara blends a familiar coming-of-age structure with a thoughtful historical lens. The result is an engaging adventure about identity, resilience, and a civilization fighting to preserve its spirit.

Kayara Movie PosterThe ancient Incan world is fascinating not only because of where it existed within the cosmos, but also because, as a mountain community, the way its people communicated between villages is worth examining too. While there are plenty of scholarly publications on the subject, seeing that world brought to life through animation is incredibly rare. Now there’s Kayara, the latest entry to deliver not only a strong coming-of-age tale, but also a historical glimpse into this culture’s past.

My first exposure to this world came through The Mysterious Cities of Gold; I don’t count The Emperor’s New Groove, since it’s more sitcom-oriented than folklore-driven. While The Road to El Dorado is more about the arrival of the Spaniards, I still wanted to know more. Thanks to Shout! Studios’ commitment to bringing world animation to their growing catalogue of releases, I was pleased to check out Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon (review), made by Peruvian animation studio Tunche Films, and their next work proves just as enlightening.

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Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon is Finally in North America!

Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon is an inspiring fantasy movie adventure of a young heroine and her thrilling journey to save the endangered Amazon rainforest.

Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon
Available to view on Amazon Prime or purchase

Ainbo: Spirit of the Amazon is finally here in North America, on home video, courtesy of Shout! Kids. I’ve looked at this movie a while back (review link), and what I offer is a quick look at the bonus material that’s included in the DVD release:

From the Press Release:

AINBO: SPIRIT OF THE AMAZON is an inspiring fantasy movie adventure of a young heroine and her thrilling journey to save the endangered Amazon rainforest. Directed by Jose Zelada and Richard Claus (The Little Vampire and The Thief Lord) with a Peruvian-Dutch co-production among Tunche Films (Lima) and Cool Beans (Amsterdam), AINBO: SPIRIT OF THE AMAZON is a strikingly visual and colorful animated movie bolstered by vibrant storytelling, a strong young female lead character, fascinating folklores, and the relevant theme of deforestation and environmental conservation.

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Top Ten Animated Picks to Look Out For in 2021!

Evangelion 3.0 + 1.0 Movie PosterBy Ed Sum
(The Vintage Tempest)

In the animated front, the films I’m really excited for are from China. Getting the news from this country is tough, and the studios are mum about what’s next in the Fengshen Cinematic Universe! I tried contacting a Vancouver studio supposedly involved and they never responded.

Because of the pandemic, a lot of production work shifted to either finishing at home or was put on hiatus. The workflow may well have slowed down too. Thankfully, there’s some good news: one particular Japanese animated title is coming very soon.

I’m hopeful the international release is not too much later.

Evangelion: 3.0+1.0
Thrice Upon a Time
Jan 23 (Japan)

The Rebuild tetralogy was on infinite hold when Hideaki Anno was off building Shin Godzilla. Anyone who has seen the original anime will know the general premise–young teens saving the Earth from a holy battle–but with the Illuminati like conspiracies going on, they are locked in an even different secret war. However, this reboot is huge, and it’s one I’m refusing to see one by one over several years. The wait is finally over so fans can see this re-imaging in its entirety.

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