Writer-director Juan Antin reportedly labored for 14 years to create his animated production Pachamama, named for the Andean goddess of the earth, which is now available to stream on Netflix.
The feature follows a 10-year-old boy with dreams of becoming a shaman. One day, his family’s village in the Andes is visited by an Incan tax collector, who takes all their crops and a small golden statue they believe brings them good fortune. The boy must team up with a girl named Naira to go on a quest to retrieve the idol, drawing on the help of a great condor known as Pachamama for guidance. The first trailer lays out this plotline, as well as giving us our first glimpses at Antin’s unique animation style. The bright colors and line work are reminiscent of the textiles of the region, lending a sense of history to the visuals.
Pachamama looks utterly beautiful and unlike anything aimed at children today. And while it’s not necessarily evident from the trailer, Antin says he hopes to promote an ecological message with the film. Overall, the movie seems to take a complex history – Andean villagers struggling under the dominion of the Incas, who themselves are on the verge of being pillaged Spanish conquistadores – and makes it accessible and entertaining to a young audience.
Check out the trailer below:
Pachamama is now available to stream on Netflix.