''Mayan Renaissance'' is a 2012 American

documentary film A documentary film or documentary is a non-fictional motion-picture intended to "document reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction, education or maintaining a historical record". Bill Nichols has characterized the documentary in te ...

by director Dawn Engle about the

Maya peoples The Maya peoples () are an ethnolinguistic group of indigenous peoples of Mesoamerica. The ancient Maya civilization was formed by members of this group, and today's Maya are generally descended from people who lived within that historical re ...

of Guatemala and

Central America Central America ( es, América Central or ) is a subregion of the Americas. Its boundaries are defined as bordering the United States to the north, Colombia to the south, the Caribbean Sea to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. ...

. It describes the ancient

Maya civilization The Maya civilization () of the Mesoamerican people is known by its ancient temples and glyphs. Its Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in the pre-Columbian Americas. It is also noted for its art, ar ...

, the conquest by Spain during the 1520s, hundreds of years of oppression, and the modern struggle by Mayans for self-determination and a Mayan renaissance. Its première screening at the

United Nations Headquarters zh, 联合国总部大楼french: Siège des Nations uniesrussian: Штаб-квартира Организации Объединённых Наций es, Sede de las Naciones Unidas , image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004.jpg , im ...

was on 16 May 2012UN Premiere of Mayan renaissance
PeaceJam. Retrieved: 2012-09-22. and its broadcast première on Colorado Public Television was on 6 June 2012.Mayan Renaissance – Program Details
Colorado Public Television. Retrieved: 2012-09-22.Mayan Renaissance
Colorado Public Television. Retrieved: 2012-09-22. The film contains interviews of 1992

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

winner,

Rigoberta Menchú Rigoberta Menchú Tum (; born 9 January 1959) is a K'iche' Guatemalan human rights activist, feminist, and Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Menchú has dedicated her life to publicizing the rights of Guatemala's Indigenous peoples during and after ...

, a Mayan

indigenous rights Indigenous rights are those rights that exist in recognition of the specific condition of the Indigenous peoples. This includes not only the most basic human rights of physical survival and integrity, but also the rights over their land (inc ...

activist and politician, and other Guatemalan and foreign contributors. It was awarded the ''Best Colorado Filmmaker Documentary Award'' at The Film Festival of Colorado in July 2012. The documentary is the first of a planned ten-part ''Nobel Legacy Film Series''.Synopsis
Mayan Renaissance. Retrieved: 2012-09-22.

Cast

* Javier Payeras *

Adolfo Pérez Esquivel Adolfo Pérez Esquivel (born 26 November 1931) is an Argentine activist, community organizer, painter, writer and sculptor. He was the recipient of the 1980 Nobel Peace Prize for his opposition to Argentina's last civil-military dictatorship (1 ...

* Rosalina Tuyuc *

Jody Williams Jody Williams (born October 9, 1950) is an American political activist known for her work in banning anti-personnel landmines, her defense of human rights (especially those of women), and her efforts to promote new understandings of securit ...

* Elisa Facio * María Faviana Cochoy Alva * Gerardo Gutiérrez * Luz Méndez * Claudia Samayoa * Pedro Celestino Yac Noj

Additional cast

* José Basillas * Benjamin Borjes * Anibal Garcia * Sandra Monterroso * José Antonio Otaolaurruchi * Fernando Rodas * David Rutherford (voice)

References

External links

* 2012 films 2012 documentary films American documentary films American independent films Documentary films about historical events Documentary films about indigenous rights Documentary films about politics Documentary films about race and ethnicity Films set in Guatemala 2010s English-language films 2010s American films {{hist-documentary-film-stub