Gabriella Garcia Pardo on ‘Fenced,’ Named Most Promising U.S. Doc at Ji.hlava Film Festival: ‘There’s Something Funny About Human Obsession With Control’

As a supporter of Gabriella Garcia Pardo‘s “Fenced,” I find her perspective deeply resonant, especially given her personal background and experiences growing up in Miami, a city that is deeply rooted in borders and boundaries. Her ability to delve into the complexities of fences, which can be both protective and divisive, reflects a profound understanding of human nature and our relationship with the land and each other.

As a passionate film enthusiast, I recently had the privilege of chatting with Gabriella Garcia Pardo, whose thought-provoking documentary “Fenced” was awarded the New Visions prize at the Ji.hlava Film Festival for its promising U.S. doc status. In our conversation, we delved into her fascinating project that brings to light something we often overlook yet are intimately familiar with: fences – structures that can serve as barriers or boundaries, depending on one’s perspective.

The director explains to EbMaster that it’s not straightforward to label them as good or bad, nor is it simple to design a world where such boundaries are completely removed. Moreover, they offer a feeling of home, which resonates with me deeply as someone who has always yearned for a sense of belonging,” the director expresses.

Hailing from Colombian ancestry, she spent her childhood in Miami, a city rich in cultural divisions and geographical limits.

As a cinema enthusiast, immersing myself in the vibrant tapestry of Central and South American, as well as Caribbean immigrants, I’ve always felt this sense of existing in multiple worlds. This film delves deeply into our complex relationships with the earth and each other. Regrettably, it reveals a profound brokenness within both.

In “Fenced,” she conducts interviews with a variety of individuals. This includes Jason Baldes, who leads the Wind River Tribal Buffalo Initiative, as well as members of the American Fence Association.

I aimed to avoid portraying a superficial division between heroes and villains, like ‘cowboys and indians,’ or North versus South. The United States can often be reduced to stereotypes, even to simplified roles, which goes against the entire message of the movie.

She’s striving to make an “accessible” film.

I aim to make the characters feel relatable. In one narrative thread, we’ve been exploring a team who gather barbed wire. One member, Delbert Trew, manages the Devil’s Rope museum. Their passion for their land is palpable, and it’s evident in his dedication. However, their home was once forcefully taken from another, creating an unsettling contradiction within this story.

To Garcia Pardo, as well as those she’s conversing with, fences symbolize both aggression and restraint, yet they also convey a sense of protection and nurture.

I find it intriguing, almost ironic, how humans cling to control and establish rigidity where flexibility might be more appropriate. It seems illogical that we insist on drawing straight lines across naturally curved terrains. There’s a touch of the absurd in our persistence to repeat this behavior.

At present, she’s on a hunt for broadcast collaborators in both the United States and Europe. Her goal is to make the movie “Fenced” available not only in cinemas, but also in towns that don’t host film festivals.

Our aim is to create a movie that brings people together through shared laughter and discomfort. We want this journey to feel authentic, reflecting the boundaries we’ve all encountered in life, whether physical or metaphorical. Although the story takes place in the U.S., these barriers and divisions are not exclusive; they transcend geographical lines.

All these months in, she still comes across fascinating stories.

A fence construction company brought a team from Central America to erect a new fence, six feet from an existing one, in front of an old stadium. Initially, they justified their work as part of their duties, but soon, the conversation shifted towards immigration and the significance of crossing the border to reach the United States for them,” she reminisces.

In the trailer, a line is said: ‘There won’t be any more land; some have it and others don’t.’ Their reaction to this was: ‘The rich are simply unwilling to share with the less fortunate.’ Various interpretations of these statements can be found in our daily lives. Some argue that it’s for preservation, but preservation from whom is unclear.

Garcia Pardo plans to delve into a specific type of fear experienced by individuals who are compelled or choose to physically transgress boundaries.

She explains that for her, the concept is similar to the act of crossing unauthorized boundaries, which carries a deep and intriguing history. The characters we’ve created are those who transgress these boundaries as a means of exploring limits. She acknowledges that conveying such apprehension in a visual, interactive, and sensory manner has proven difficult.

“There’s this big case about corner-crossing. Some [Missouri] hunters put up a ladder to cross from one side of public land to another [navigating the checkerboard layout] and the owner of the private land on the other corner is suing them for $7 million because they crossed his airspace. He’s coming at them in a very aggressive way. Not with a gun, but through a legal system.”

Titled “Fenced,” this upcoming film directed by Jonna McKone and co-produced by Wenjing Xu, with Sebastián Pinzón Silva serving as story consultant, is set to debut in December 2026. In the interim, Garcia Pardo will continue probing for more answers or attempt to provide solutions to the unexpected queries that arise.

She chuckles as she shares, ‘A friend of mine wondered if I view marriage as another kind of barrier.’ This movie will lead you on numerous thought-provoking tangents.

This illustrates quite clearly how potent such boundaries can be, regardless of whether they’re marked by something as tangible as metal or wood.

2024-11-04 23:47

Gabriella Garcia Pardo on ‘Fenced,’ Named Most Promising U.S. Doc at Ji.hlava Film Festival: ‘There’s Something Funny About Human Obsession With Control’

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