The Foreign Service Journal, February 2010

38 F O R E I G N S E R V I C E J O U R N A L / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 1 0 produced a continuous loop for the exhibition on backstrap gauze weav- ing, an ancient Mayan textile art form still practiced in rural Alta Ve- rapaz, Guatemala. “Manuela & Esperanza” focuses on two backstrap weavers, one in Chichicastenango and the other in San Antonia Aguas Calientes, who accepted the challenge of weaving a huipil on-camera during a three-month period. The two master weavers expertly share secrets of the art of backstrap weaving at its finest and most colorful. They also offer touching in- sights into their own lives and hearts, as they struggle daily to support their families and keep their culture alive. “Splendor” and “Manuela & Esperanza” were both selected for screening at the American Anthropologists Association’s Society of Visual Anthropology’s Annual Film Festival. All ETD documentaries are produced with both English- and Spanish-language narrations, and are therefore useful in a wide va- riety of educational programs. We’ve received grants from the Puffin Foundation of New Jersey, the Augostino de Rossi Foundation of Massachusetts and numerous donations from private supporters. In addition to the Web site, our DVDs are available through gift shops at the Smithsonian, the Hearst Museum and the University of Pennsylvania Museum, among others. Our next project, “Saving the Weavers: Small Assis- tance Programs for Women and Children in Highland Guatemala,” will be released this year. Work is well under way for subsequent documentaries on picb’il (ancient gauze weaving) in Guatemala and Mexico, agave fiber (maguey/cabuya) weavings of Guatemala and Ecuador, and the knotting of wide borders on flecas (shawls) found in a region around Cuenca, Ecuador. Long live Chapter Three! ■ F O C U S The 56-minute film shows the resplendent color and ample talent of Mayan weavers.