Chevolution
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''Chevolution'' is a 2008 documentary film which examines the history and legacy of the photo ''
Guerrillero Heroico ''Guerrillero Heroico'' ( en, "Heroic Guerrilla Fighter") is an iconic photograph of Marxism, Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara taken by Alberto Korda. It was captured on March 5, 1960, in Havana, Cuba, at a memorial service for victims of the ...
'' taken by famous Cuban photographer Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez. This image has thrived for the decades since
Che Guevara Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...
's death and has evolved into an iconic image, which represents a multitude of ideals. The documentary explores the story of how the photo came to be, its adoption of multiple interpretations and meanings, as well as the commercialization of the image of Ernesto "Che" Guevara. ''Chevolution'' uses historic images and a multitude of artists, musicians, photographers, actors, academics, friends, fans, and acquaintances to explore the contrasting themes of "communism and capitalism, idealism and opportunism, art and commerce and how they have interacted and operated on the same materials during the past half century."


The photographer

In the documentary ''Chevolution'', Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez is an essential character in the creation and reproduction of Che as an icon. Alberto Korda was a well-known Cuban fashion photographer and socialite. The documentary explains how after capturing a powerful image of a poor infant Cuban girl, which he titled La Niña, he decided to leave the fashion world and use his photographic talent to promote and document the
Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in cou ...
. Korda began taking pictures for the propaganda newspaper ''Revolución''. The documentary also provides an anecdote about Korda asking Che if he could take his picture, Guevara responded by asking Korda where he was from and if he had ever cut sugar. Korda informed him that he was from Havana and had never cut sugar. Guevara stipulated that once Korda had cut sugar cane for a week, he would be free to take Guevara's picture.


The photo

''Chevolution'' commemorates when Korda snapped the photo at the massive funeral in the Plaza de Revolución for those who had died in the bombing of a boat carrying weapons from Belgium, '' La Coubre'', in Havana Harbor. Korda was fortunate to captured only two photos of Guevara that day and after submitting them, the newspaper chose not to use them. One of the two photos included the ''Guerillero Heroico''. Living in communist Cuba, copyright laws were non-existent so Korda initially obtained no rights to the portrait.


Evolution of image

''Chevolution'' explains how the politically radical, outspoken, and self-proclaimed communist
Giangiacomo Feltrinelli Giangiacomo Feltrinelli (; 19 June 1926 – 14 March 1972) was an influential Italian publisher, businessman, and political activist who was active in the period between the Second World War and Italy's Years of Lead. He founded a vast library o ...
was the first to mass-produce the photo by producing hundreds of thousands of posters of the image. Feltrinelli printed these posters with “copyright Feltrinelli 1976” in the bottom left hand corner giving no credit to Korda. This has caused some controversy as some, including Korda, claim that Feltrinelli made a lot of money from the image while others contest that this is simply not true. The documentary also emphasizes that it is unclear exactly when the first time the image was used. The photo gained widespread notoriety after Guevara's death in Bolivia. Critics in the documentary claim that at Guevara's funeral
Fidel Castro Fidel Alejandro Castro Ruz (; ; 13 August 1926 – 25 November 2016) was a Cuban revolutionary and politician who was the leader of Cuba from 1959 to 2008, serving as the prime minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976 and president from 1976 to 200 ...
used the image on a banner, which served as a backdrop as he delivered Guevara's eulogy. Throughout the late 1960s, worldwide student movements, and the Civil Rights Movement in the United States utilized the image as a symbol of struggle, rebellion and revolution. ''Chevolution'' describes the moments in which after a visit with
Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre (, ; ; 21 June 1905 – 15 April 1980) was one of the key figures in the philosophy of existentialism (and phenomenology), a French playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer, and litera ...
, Korda gave the French philosopher a copy of the photograph; Sartre in turn gave it to artist Jim Fitzpatrick. In the documentary Fitzpatrick shares that after hearing the story of Guevara's murder he was devastated and very sad. He then decided to add his artistic touch to the image in an effort to ensure that Guevara's legacy lived on. In a style known as pop art, he set the black and white portrait of Guevara against a red backdrop with a gold star on his beret. Fitzpatrick purposely chose not to copyright the image, as he states that he wanted it to "breed like rabbits" The documentary describes how by the 1990s the image had evolved from one used as a form of protest to one used to make a profit. Korda felt that he too should share in the profit of the photo and hired lawyers to attain the copyright image. While Korda did not want to keep people from using it all together, he did want to limit what kinds of messages and products the image was used in an effort to keep the image from being used for commercial or inappropriate purposes.


Production

Louis Lopez and Trisha Ziff directed ''Chevolution'', a documentary that honors the longevity of Che Guevara's photo taken by Alberto Korda. It was released in theaters on 1 April 2008 and released on DVD on 19 January 2010. It has a running time of 1 hour and 26 minutes. The film provides commentary from a variety of perspectives including: actors
Antonio Banderas José Antonio Domínguez Bandera (born 10 August 1960), known professionally as Antonio Banderas, is a Spanish actor and singer. Known for his work in films of several genres, he has received List of awards and nominations received by Antonio Ba ...
and
Gael García Bernal Gael García Bernal (; born 30 November 1978) is a Mexican actor and producer. He is best known for his performances in the films '' Bad Education'', '' The Motorcycle Diaries'', ''Amores perros'', ''Y tu mamá también'', ''Babel'', '' Coco'', ...
, the author of "Che Guevara a revolutionary life"
Jon Lee Anderson Jon Lee Anderson (born January 15, 1957) is an American biographer, author, investigative reporter, war correspondent, and staff writer for ''The New Yorker'', reporting from war zones such as Afghanistan, Iraq, Uganda, Palestine, El Salvador, Ir ...
, the American rock band
Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...
guitarist
Tom Morello Thomas Baptist Morello (born May 30, 1964) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and political activist. He is best known for his tenure with the rock band Rage Against the Machine and then with Audioslave. Between 2016 and 2019, Morello ...
, photographers Jose Figueroa and Laborio Naval, artists
Shepard Fairey Frank Shepard Fairey (born February 15, 1970) is an American contemporary artist, activist and founder of OBEY Clothing who emerged from the skateboarding scene. In 1989 he designed the " Andre the Giant Has a Posse" (...OBEY...) sticker cam ...
and Jim Fitzpatrick, and long-time friend
Alberto Granado Alberto Granado Jiménez (August 8, 1922March 5, 2011) was an Argentine–Cuban biochemist, doctor, writer, and scientist. He was also the youthful friend and traveling companion of Che Guevara during their 1952 motorcycle tour in Latin Amer ...
.


Representation

In the ''Chevolution'' documentary the image of Che Guevara is demonstrated as one that has survivability and has had presence throughout historic events such as social movements and demonstrations. The image of Che conveys different meanings depending on the people, where and at what period in time is being used. He represents people involved in movements who are empowered by him. The
Zapatistas Zapatista(s) may refer to: * Liberation Army of the South The Liberation Army of the South ( es, Ejército Libertador del Sur, ELS) was a guerrilla force led for most of its existence by Emiliano Zapata that took part in the Mexican Revolut ...
for instance, continue to harvest the seed that Che left instill in them and continues to have meaning. Che is the ultimate icon for rebels. Chevolution examines the importance of interpretation of the famous and mass-produced image of Che Guevara, which his due to the lack of copyright. The lack of copyright is also argued to reflect the ideals of Che in regards to capitalism. Che, as discussed in the documentary, represents the people and their struggle. Che has been adopted in social and political struggles. The image has taken on many different meanings through its multitude of representations.


Commercialization

The Che image and idealization continues to carry powerful meaning and is mass-produced with various interpretations that evolve over time. In the documentary ''Chevolution'' the image is described as a symbol that represents something unique to each individual and cause. The documentary describes how its multiple meanings and interpretations are displayed through the different forms of art and
commercialization Commercialization or commercialisation is the process of introducing a new product or production method into commerce—making it available on the market. The term often connotes especially entry into the mass market (as opposed to entry into ear ...
of the portrait. Through various art forms it has been and continues to be modified and reconstructed to have different meaning or manipulate its representation. Commercialization of the image has expanded to pictures, swimming suits, beer, wallets, socks, shirts, cigarettes, even in cartoons such as ''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...
'' and ''
The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...
''. The commercialization of Che in all forms has contribute the recognition and persistence of the icon. Che was a devout Marxist who rejected the corporate model and capitalism. ''Chevolution'' also discusses how capitalist society has overtaken the Che image and whether or not it reflects his ideologies.


Che tattoo

In the documentary a young Cuban man is captured being tattooed with the face of Che on his arm. He says that as Cubans they are told stories and constantly talked about Che in school at an early age, which gave him the childhood inspiration to get a Che tattoo. Che serves as an icon that represents the struggle of the Cuban people and a heroic freedom fighter. The documentary also illustrates how the image of Che reflects heroism to Cubans and how it is intertwined with Cubanness.


Comparing Che with Christ

''Chevolution'' also discusses the interpretation of Che's death and the images that showed him lying dead on a piece of cement in Bolivia. The interpretation was the comparison of Che with Jesus Christ. As dramatic as it is, the documentary discusses how this comparison happened immediately after images of a lifeless Che were released. Che repeatedly claimed his solidarity with the people's struggle and believed in victory by any means possible. The documentary also compares the cause of Jesus' death and comments on the idea of collective guilt felt amongst many as Che died for people's freedom. Chevolution talks about Che's image as a sacred icon in Bolivia and how Bolivians revere him as a saint. The documentary highlights the significance in recognizing the interpretation of Che in Vallagrande, Bolivia. In Bolivia people refer and pray to Saint Ernesto de la Higuera, although the Catholic Church does not recognize
Ernesto Che Guevara Ernesto Che Guevara (; 14 June 1928The date of birth recorded on /upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Ernesto_Guevara_Acta_de_Nacimiento.jpg his birth certificatewas 14 June 1928, although one tertiary source, (Julia Constenla, quoted ...
as a Saint. Che has also been seen as a representation of Christ. Che's beret is interpreted as his crown of thorns, which becomes Che's crown of thoughts. The documentary shows Armando Krieger, an Argentine composer who plays a piano piece meanwhile there is a female singing in an angelical voice in words that praise Che. This religious aspect of society reflects the power of Che, his ideals, image, and the hope he provided the poor and less fortunate.


Political icon

''Chevolution'' also discusses the usage of Che's image by
Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (often abbreviated as RATM or shortened to simply Rage) is an American rock band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1991, the group consists of vocalist Zack de la Rocha, bassist and backing vocalist Tim Commerfor ...
on the 1992 single, "
Bombtrack "Bombtrack" is a song by American rock band Rage Against the Machine. It is the opening track on their self-titled debut album. Like most of Rage Against the Machine's songs, the song's lyrics discuss social inequality, proclaiming that " land ...
". In ''Chevolution'', Tom Morello, guitarist of the band, explains how the use of Che's image on instruments on stage represents a 5th member. Che represents the bands political ideas and is used in a radical context. Morello also says to believe that Che's image is a public domain piece and people as a whole own the image. Che represented and still represents poor, powerless and marginalized people who want freedom and their human rights to be respected. Che's ideals did not die when he died, they live on through his image. Shepard Fairey a well-known artist contributes to the documentary by stating that the image of Che has become an important aspect of pop culture and culture creation. Shepard talks about his own recreation or exploitation as he refers to his interpretation of the image. Participating and commenting on this specific politically influential image Fairey explains that his reproduction of the image conveys the continuing revolutionary message that Che represents. He also talks about his work within the capitalist system and emphasized on the consumption of Che’s followers and how his creation adds to the many others that exist. The many different forms of admiration for Che have contributed to his legacy and in this case the documentary provides a vast array of songs dedicated to Che. Throughout the documentary the following songs are played, “El Che 2007” by Armando Krieger and performed by Roberto Falcon, “Che Guevara T-shirt Wearer” by Luke Hoskins and performed by The Clap, “Hasta Siempre” by Carlos Manuel Puebla and performed by
Boikot Boikot is a Spanish left-wing punk rock band. History The band started in 1987 playing at bars, parties and every type of dive. After a pair of adjustments to the band's lineup they recorded two albums with the label Barrabás. They made th ...
.


References

*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cz6tqWFCy-E *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMDCaKcceKM *https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LzJLkjJg_Qw
''The Cuban Reader''

''e Guevara: A Revolutionary Life''
{{Che Guevara Documentary films about Che Guevara Documentary films about the visual arts