Films & Videos Featuring India, Cameroon, Russia, And Venezuela Get The Green Light At Atlas Network’s Lights, Camera, Liberty
The four winning finalists of the 2023 Lights, Camera, Liberty Film Pitch Competition are:
India’s Centre for Civil Society, represented by Simranjyot Kaur
Centre for Civil Society (CCS) has long championed the cause of India’s street vendors, who have historically lacked the liberty to operate free of government harassment and as part of the country’s formal economy. As an attorney working at the Centre, Simranjyot Kaur seeks to advance the legal rights of these microbusinesses. CCS’ greenlit production will take audiences on a journey following one of India’s street vendors as the hero working to overcome government interference in their daily business.
Free Russia Forum, whose pitch was presented by Olga Zogorodnikova, a Russian expatriate currently living in Lithuania
Olga Zogorodnikova is a filmmaker and social media content creator focused on engaging young Russians opposed to the dictatorship from both inside and outside her home country. Using the power of narrative cinema, Free Russia Forum will tell the story of a young Eastern European woman whose life changes when she comes to know the Russian refugees in her community displaced by authoritarianism and war in their homeland.
Uruguay’s Center for the Study of Contemporary Open Societies (CESCOS), represented by Victor Navarro
CESCOS envisions a Latin America that prospers through liberal democracy and the rule of law, just as their home country of Uruguay has achieved. In their new film, CESCOS Fellow Victor Navarro says the organization will share stories from a tragic icon of Venezuela’s authoritarian regime—El Helicoide—a striking facility in central Caracas that was built to be used as a shopping mall, but became a notorious prison for Venezuela’s state intelligence agency.
Nkafu Policy Institute from Cameroon, represented by Epoh Séverin
In Cameroon, government policies make access to private health insurance unaffordable, putting health care out of reach for many Cameroonians, even at state-run hospitals and medical centers. Nkafu Policy Institute Senior Graphic Designer and Technical Lead Epoh Séverin says their new film will share personal stories of the unconscionable state of health care in Cameroon, what it means for the human dignity of patients and their families, and a better way forward for the country’s health system.
The 2023 Lights, Camera, Liberty Film Pitch Competition semi-Finalists are:
Ukraine’s Bendukidze Free Market Center, represented by Nataliya Melnyk
Bendukidze’s new documentary will inspire audiences with the courage and resilience of the Ukrainian people in the face of the accelerated Russian invasion of their country. The film will be a call to the freedom-loving people of the world to stand with Ukraine and liberal democracy in a pivotal struggle against authoritarianism.
Burundi’s Centre for Development and Enterprises Great Lakes, represented by Aimable Manirakiza
Women in Burundi do not have secure land property rights, impoverishing families and preventing the world’s poorest country from enjoying the benefits of personal freedom and economic opportunity. The team at CDE Great Lakes will use video to tell stories of how the economic empowerment of women, through the right to own and use land, can raise up people and families throughout Burundian society.
Hungary’s Civitas Institute, represented by Zoltán Kész
As a former member of the Hungarian Parliament committed to classical liberal principles, Civitas’ Zoltán Kész plans to document the rise of populism and authoritarianism in Hungary, and how the takeover of government by illberal leaders threatens the well-being of current and future generations.
Institut Ostrom Catalunya, based in Spain’s Catalonia region, and represented by Albert Torelló
Energy prices are rising in Catalonia as the region’s energy infrastructure ages and the European continent tries to declare independence from fossil fuels that originate in Russia. Institut Ostrom Catalunya will tell the real stories of Catalonians who struggle to get by under current energy policies and how removing government restrictions on affordable sources of renewable energy can help address the problem.
Libera Bolivia, represented by Juan Pablo Chamón
Libera Bolivia is returning to the program after being recognized as a finalist in the 2022 Lights, Camera, Liberty Film Festival for their short documentary Sabemos Vender Bien, a look inside the life of vendors at a street market in El Alto, Bolivia. Libera Bolivia’s Juan Pablo Chamón now aims to take the project to the next step, growing their short teaser documentary into a miniseries on the people and policies that can help street vendors build more prosperous lives for themselves and their communities.
