Sandeep Balhara
Poland, India
2014 | 00:13:15

“Cotton Dreams” is story of Radhabai Marape, whose husband committed suicide on 22nd July 2013. She has been trying to cope up with the newborn hardships in her life, along with her 5 children. The debt, which forced her husband to end his life, is now haunting her. In the backdrop of this underdeveloped village Thangoan’s non-human conditions, we get to see an sad love story of a couple. According to National Records Bureau, more than 250,000 Indian farmers have committed suicide in the last 15 years—the largest wave of recorded suicides in human history. As a result of new economic reforms in late 90s in India, Indian cotton farmers were thrust into competition with the international market, which forced them to use expensive biotech inputs. These inputs came with the promise of producing higher yields and providing greater resistance against pests. They often fail to live up to these promises, driving farmers into further debt as they failed to produce enough crop to make up for rising input costs. Drastic climate changes also create havoc on already suffering farmers. Often the only way out is to take on more loans and buy more inputs, which in turn can lead to even greater debt. Indebtedness is a major and proximate cause of farmer suicides in India.

Raúl de la Fuente
Spain
2013 | 00:27:00

Life is really tough in the bleak Cerro Rico mining district in Potosi, Bolivia. This is true for the men risking their lives going down into the mine shafts looking for silver ore, and also for the women, who are viewed by men as fair game. Lucia (40), Ivonne (16) and Abigail (17) talk about their daily lives, in which they are constantly dealing with violence, much of it sexual. Lucia works as a night guard and often has to protect herself by setting off TNT. She wanders the inhospitable area accompanied by a pack of dogs. Ivonne always carries rocks with her to throw at potential attackers. But they are not even safe at home. "You can’t even trust your own brothers and father," Ivonne explains. Abigail is the only woman in the area who goes down into the mines herself. She knows that as a minor she is not officially allowed to work there, but nobody has ever told her about her rights. The camera follows her down the pitch-black shafts, where the miners pray to a demon. “There’s no god in the mine,” says Abigail. In an area where not even weeds can grow, these tough and vulnerable women survive with a mix of courage and dynamite.

Yotam Feldman
Israel, France, Belgium
2013 | 00:58:00

In the past decade, the Israeli military control over 3.75 million Palestinians has become an economic endeavour that is considered the key element to the Israeli wealth. The means used by the military against Gaza and in the West Bank are exported worldwide. The film shows how the military occupation is a national business enterprise so valuable that the State of Israel cannot afford to lose. Yotam Feldman: the Israeli economy has become dependent on the massive security market. Governments act in hypocrisy when they purchase Israeli arms used against Palestinians, but criticize Israeli violence.