Screening and Discussion: Theatre of War

In 1982, Argentina and UK fought the Malvinas Falklands War. The war ended with the British military victory and took about 1.000 lives, both British and Argentinean. While the conflict took place years ago, the sovereignty of the islands is still in dispute.

Theatre of War (2018) tells the story of how six veterans from the Malvinas/ Falklands War came together to make a film. Almost thirty-five years after the conflict, three British and three Argentine veterans spent months together discussing their war memories and then rehearsing their re-enactment.

This film is a way of showing the whole social experiment of making an artistic project with one-time enemies of war: the auditions to find the protagonists, the first meetings and discussions with them, the theatrical re-enactments of their memories in different scenarios: a swimming pool, a construction site, a military regiment. All the scenes in the film are at the same time authentic and artificial. Sometimes it looks like it’s happening for the first time, sometimes it’s a highly rehearsed situation.

The film playfully switches between reality and fiction, spontaneity and acting. It explores how to transform a soldier into an actor, how to turn war experiences into a story, how to show the collateral effects of war. The movie brings together former enemies to perform their wartime and post-war nightmares.

Learn more at http://lolaarias.com/proyectos/teatro-de-guerra/

Minefield (2016) is a project that reunites Argentine and British veterans from the Falklands/Malvinas war to explore what is left of it in their heads 34 years later.

In a film set turned into a time machine the ones who fought are teleported into the past to reconstruct their war and aftermath memories. Lou Armour was on the cover of every newspaper when the Argentines took him prisoner on April 2nd and is now a special needs teacher. Rubén Otero survived the sinking of ARA General Belgrano and has now a Beatles tribute band. David Jackson spent his time at war listening and transcribing radio codes and now listens to other veterans in his psychology practice. Gabriel Sagastume was a soldier who never wanted to shoot and is now a criminal attorney. Sukrim Rai was a Ghurka who knew how to use his knife and works currently as a security guard. Marcelo Vallejo was an aimer for mortar and is now a triathlon champion. The only thing they have in common is that they are veterans. But what is a veteran; a survivor, a hero, a madman? The project confronts different visions of war bringing together old enemies to tell one single story.

Minefield looks into the marks left by war, the relationship between experience and fiction and the thousand ways of representing memory.

Learn more at http://lolaarias.com/proyectos/campo-minado/

The Drapkin Studio is located on the second floor of the Wallace Dance Building at the Lewis Arts complex.

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