About Us
Our vision is to create a dramatic fictional narrative based on the cosmology, artistic traditions, icaros (songs) and stories of the Shipibo-Konibo people of the Peruvian Amazon.
The purpose of this film is not to formulate an anthropological or reductionist view, but as a collaboration with the Shipibo people, creating a forum where Shipibo stories can be shared and traditional knowledge can be imparted to the world to expand awareness. Additionally, as we screen the film and talk about the project, we will raise awareness of the importance of protecting the Amazon rainforest, as the source of this knowledge and the home of the Shipibo people.
THE SHIPIBO PEOPLE
The Shipibo-Konibo are an indigenous people of the Peruvian Amazon with a rich culture and complex spiritual traditions. They have thrived in near isolation from the outside world; thereby maintaining their cultural practices and system of living for many thousands of years.
Created under the guidance of the Shipibo people, this film seeks to share authentic indigenous wisdom in a contemporary animated format. This film is inspired by the stories and songs of the Shipibo people, elders and healers, and come from engaging with them, listening to their oral tradition, and creating a forum where Shipibo stories and teachings can be shared with the rest of the world.
The following individuals are a selection of Shipibos we would like to acknowledge for their support and assistance with this project:
This project has been blessed and endorsed by Maestro Juan Agustin Fernandez, Shipibo leader at the Cantagallo pueblo in Lima, Peru and Secretary of the Shipibo cultural organization la Asociación de la Comunidad Urbana Shipibo Konibo de Lima Metropolitana (ACUSHIKOLM)- the Association of the Urban Community of Shipibo-Konibo in Metropolitan Lima.
Maestra Justina Cerrano Alvarez is a Shipibo Master Healer with 37 years experience with Ayahuasca and other plant medicines. She lives near the village of Contamana, Peru. Justina uses her close connection with the plant and “chaikonibo” spirits existing in the universe to aid those in the ceremony space for profound healing.
Maestro Armando Cerrano Alvarez was trained in Ayahuasca healing from a young age alongside his sister Justina. Armando currently practices in Contamana, Lima and worldwide. Armando has a medicinal garden in Contamana where he teaches his apprentices about different plant medicines and their uses.
Elmer Inuma Pezo- Elmer is a visionary artist and the President of Barin Bababo, an artist collective of Shipibo youth that has presented artwork internationally. He is also the Ucayali Region Coordinator for the NGO “Vida”, which seeks to protect the environment in Peru.
Partial proceeds of this project will be used to implement local projects that engage Shipibo communities in the preservation and promotion of their culture.
We are currently seeking out organizations in Peru as potential strategic partners to work with us to foster a sense of community and ensure that the Shipibo people will benefit from the returns of this project. If your organization is interested in partnering with us, please contact us at: icaro@songoftheamazon.com
As part of this project, we have worked with the following individuals and organizations:
Reshin Bima (Layner Mori Huayta) is an artist of the Shipibo-Konibo indigenous tribe of Peru. His paintings depict Amazonian landscapes and shamanic visions that are inspired by rituals performed with the use of certain plant medicines (rao), in particular ayahuasca, traditional to the Shipibo-Konibo culture. Reshin Bima was born in the Native Community of Santa Clara, located along Lake Yarinacocha in the Ucayali region. In his native Peru, Reshin Bima has exhibited in an array of galleries, including at the National Museum of Peru (Museo de la Nación) in Lima and The Temple of the Sun (Qorikancha) in Cusco, and he has participated in numerous art fairs, murals, workshops and social projects. Currently, he is living in California where he continues to create art and promote the preservation of his cultural traditions. Pscicopompo Perro Negro – A Cultural Association for the arts and education that enables children and youth to promote and protect the cultural wealth of distinct native and indigenous groups through the medium of animation.
Jativina Productions
Jativina is a Shipibo word meaning “for everyone”, conceptualizing something given that is meant to be shared with the entire community. In this spirit, Jativina Productions came together in collaboration inspired to create Song of the Amazon, as an innovative platform from which the stories of the Shipibo people can be shared with the wider world.
The initial conception and pre-production of Song of the Amazon originated from a partnership between filmmakers Eric Lake and Athena Gam, Shipibo visionary artist Reshin Bima (Layner Mori Huayta), and NGO project manager Jasara Rani Calandrella.
PRODUCTION TEAM Athena Gam has worked in professional theater with influential playwrights such as Athol Fugard, August Wilson and television series creator, producer and playwright Jon Robin Bates. As a screenwriter contracted with Vanguard Films, Athena wrote Oz Wars, a dark retelling of the classic Wizard of Oz story with Oscar nominated stop-animation director Mike Johnson (The Corpse Bride) slated to direct. Athena’s script for Alien Rock Band was co-developed with Eurythmics musician and notable music producer Dave Stewart. This script attracted John Stevenson, director of the Oscar nominated animated feature, Kung Fu Panda. John Stevenson signed on with Vanguard as director and producer for Alien Rock Band and also for the live action feature Atomic Circus, a script Athena wrote and developed.
Eric Lake has worked on animated feature films for Warner Bros., Fox, Starz Media, and Disney. He was instrumental in setting up animation studios in London, UK and Vancouver, Canada for Vanguard Animation. During his recent development deal with John Williams and Vanguard Animation, Eric Lake oversaw development of Alien Rock Band and produced the stop animation “look-of-picture” teaser trailer for Oz Wars.
During their time working in Hollywood, Athena Gam and Eric Lake became inspired to make films that enlighten, rather than play off of fears or numb audiences with mindless entertainment. The creative team resolved to step outside the boundaries of standard big-screen paradigms and ignited by their personal spiritual journeys, Athena and Eric began to develop uplifting, innovative and evocative films.