About the Video

Now available in a new DVD version that includes additional footage of Dia de los Muertos celebrations in Michoacan, Mexico, and photos of the celebration in Guatemala, the Philippines, and Mexico.

Calaveras is a 30-minute documentary on the altars that are built to remember and honor the deceased on the Day of the Dead. Popular in Latin America and parts of Asia, this tradition is based on the belief that the spirits of the dead return from the underworld each year for one day only. In recent years, the celebration has been adopted in many U.S. cities and the themes of the altars have evolved, so that they now are used to call attention to social concerns.

One of the altars depicted in the film was composed of 13,468 matches, one for each victim of AIDS in the Bay Area. It was set on fire on December 1st, the Day Without Art, to honor the memories of those who have passed on.The film also depicts two traditional altars for deceased fathers, one by a Chicano who has celebrated Dia de los Muertos all his life, and one by an African-American woman who is new to the tradition. The audience also meets Herminia Albarran Romero, a Mexican woman who has been building altars since she was a small child. She discusses her feelings on the importance of retaining the roots of the tradition to ensure that it does not become confused with Halloween.

Calaveras has been screened at many museums in conjunction with Day of the Dead ceremonies and has been incorporated into the curriculum of colleges and universities around the country. It is also being used as a tool by bereavement coordinators and K-12 teachers whose students have lost classmates to gang violence. Calaveras was chosen for screening at their annual meeting by the American Anthropological Association which awarded it a Commendation for Excellence. Calaveras also won the award for Best Documentary film at the Saguaro Film Festival and an Honorable Mention in the Documentary category at the Smoky Mountain Film Festival. The film was also featured at the Arizona International Film Festival and the Festival der Nations in Austria and has been broadcast on Independent Visions, Bay TV, and DUTV in Philadelphia.

About the Filmmaker