About Us
Otro Sur Foundation is an independent organization that seeks to promote cultural exchange between Africa and Latin America, with the objective of stimulating thedevelopment, mutual knowledge and dissemination of culture and the arts, thus contributing to break the stereotypes that tend to simplify the social complexities of our countries.
Otro Sur draws on our cultural and historical ties, stimulating the creation of audiences and identifying potential cultural markets, little explored in connection between these two regions of the Global South, so rich and dynamic in their production of artistic creation.
Otro Sur was created in 2014 when it held the First Colombian Film Showcase in South Africa, A Visual Journey to the Other South. Two years later, it was legally constituted. Its members have more than 15 years of experience in the development of cultural projects in Africa and Colombia, including the production of other audio-visual screenings, as well as radio and musical exchanges, such as the presentation of the South African avant-garde rock band Blk Jks at Rock al Parque festival in Bogota, the participation of the independent label.
Llorona Records in Moshito Music Conference in Johannesburg, and the tours in Southern Africa of the Colombian bands Sidestepper, Bomba Estéreo and Orquesta La 33.
Otro Sur created and produces the MUICA African Film Festival in Colombia, Muestra Itinerante de Cine Africano – MUICA, since 2015, and it has participated in festivals and cultural platforms in several Colombian cities, as well as in other countries in Latin America, Africa and Europe.
FOUNDING TEAM OF FUNDACIÓN OTRO SUR; MUICA
AFRICAN FILM FESTIVAL
SALYM FAYAD
Co-founder and co-director of the Otro Sur Foundation and the MUICA African Film Festival in Colombia Cultural producer, documentary photographer and reporter based in Johannesburg, South Africa, since 2008. He has worked on topics related to popular culture and music, cinema and the arts, migration, conflict and social issues in different regions of Sub-Saharan Africa. Manager of cultural events and tours of musicians and artists in Colombia and Southern Africa, and author of articles on the cultural scene on the continent.
www.salymfayad.com
ÁNGELA RAMÍREZ
Audio-visual communicator, producer of creative documentaries, promotional, institutional and experimental videos and for cultural television. Her documentaries Welcome a Tumaco and Mama Goema, the music of Cape Town in Five Movements, won the Best Documentary award at film festivals in Colombia and South Africa.She has been curator, producer and jury of film showcases and festivals. She has managed and coordinated social and environmental transformation projects around issues such as racism, colonialism, food sovereignty and gender violence. Professor of audio-visual studies at universities and technical schools in Cartagena and Cali. Creator of the Africa ReXiste workshop, on the beginnings of African cinema and its impact on the history of the continent.Co-founder and co-director of the Otro Sur Foundation and of the MUICA African Film Festival in Colombia.
MARCELA GUERRERO
Born and raised in Bogota, Colombia, Marcela Guerrero Casas is passionate about cities and public space. Marcela holds a Masters in Public Administration and International Affairs from Syracuse University and has worked in policy and advocacy for over a decade. Marcela moved to Johannesburg in 2006 and worked in Zimbabwe, Swaziland and Kenya before moving permanently to Cape Town in 2011. In 2012, Marcela co-founded Open Streets, a citizen-led organization working to transform how streets are perceived, utilized and experienced; largely inspired in Bogota’s Ciclovia.
MARCELA ASCENCIO
Cultural producer and filmmaker with experience in biographical and historical documentaries. Director of Colombianas, A Collective Biography, a web documentary project about the experience of being a woman in her own country, launched in 2018. Born in Bogota, passionate about travelling and exploring different cultures, has lived in Colombia, France, Brazil and Spain, where she is currently based. Explorations on dance of African origins awakened her interest in the continent’s history and cultures.