From self-portrait to the portrait of a generation in Latin American cinema: genesis, staging and meaning

Abstract

This article concentrates on the consideration of the cinematographic self-portrait as a generational portrait, using some recent Latin American productions as starting point for its analysis. It puts forward the idea that it might be one of the more powerful meanings of such works and as such could explain the frequency of the self-portrait turning into their main subject matter. The author also undertakes the analysis of the creation of the audiovisual self-portrait, its staging and meaning, intending to offer tools for the identification of the creative strategies and resources developed by audiovisual authors in the last few years. She also examines the links between audiovisual portrait and literary autobiography, in order to understand which elements integrate their creative genesis and how their staging is produced. Finally, she puts forward some possible key events that contribute to explain the context where the audiovisual self-portrait becomes a generational portrait.