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Production Company: Gentosha, Mother&Children Producers: Maeda Katsuhiro, Fukuda Makoto, Matsui Hiroko Director: Aoike Kenji Super Vision: Jesús Silva,Murata Eiichi Photography: Tsunematsu Ryuhei Sound: Yano Katsuhisa Editing: Muramoto Masaru Song and Arrangement: Minowa Hitoshi Narrator: Kusano Daigo 1990 / Color / 16mm / 99 min |
| Benposta Children's Republic sits on a 200,000m2 site in the outskirts of the Galician city of Orense in Northwestern Spain. There Father Silva established a community based on the fundamental principles of "study," "work," "living," and the children's own political participation. The community has its own school, factory, permanent tent for circus performances, church, lodgings, and a town hall managed by the children. They themselves come from all over the world and do various kinds of work in order to be self-sufficient. The main source of their income is the performances of the "Los Muchachos" circus. This film presents interviews with Benposta founder Father Jesús Silva and delicately portrays the labor, lifestyle, and study that culminates in the circus performance. Images are accompanied by a detailed narration that makes the background to the performance clear. We can glimpse this even more strikingly in the episode in which a child presents the problem of taking care of a dog to the "children's government." As the students who graduate from the community spread out in various countries, Benposta itself is gradually emerging on the world stage. The film ends with a circus performance. |