In this week of "Tuesday of Chilean Series" we are showing Illicit Trade, a production that travels the vast territory of Chile discovering the truth behind important ancient treasures.
Illicit Trade, carried out by Diego Breit and David Guzmán, is a series that presents a powerful historical look at the cultural roots of Latin America, one that has been plundered and kidnapped, ending up in the hands of wealthy European museums or collectors. The documentary series, of 6 episodes, embarks on a rescue of these key artifacts to the identity of our territory. With extensive research and astonishing cinematography, we follow cases of illegal trade in high-value goods, such as mummies, fossils, logging millennia of trees, camelid hunting, among other things.
Funded by the National Television Council (CNTV) and broadcasted by La Red, this production offers a historical view at the colonial, cultural and economic plunder that Chile has lived through for years. Touring the vast territory of our country, the discoveries of ancient treasures and how to locate them is the key mystery of the series, a great contribution both audiovisual and sociological. In regard of some of the objects, we know nothing because those who found them remained silent; while others, have crossed the border to be sold on the black market of culture.
Diego Breit, producer of the series, is a Chilean documentary filmmaker and founder of the production company Glaciar Films. He produced the short films Catafalque and Vienna waits for you, invited to hundreds of film festivals and receiving more than 20 awards. Catafalque (2010), was premiered at the Clermont-Ferrand International Film Festival and participated in the section "New Directors/New Films", at the Museum of Modern Art in New York (Moma). He has also participated in more than 40 exhibitions around the world. Vienna waits for you (2011), was screened at multiple genre festivals, including the Shanghai Film Festival in China, the Mile High Horror Film Festival in the US, and the Montevideo Fantástico in Uruguay. He received the Best International short film award at the Catacumba Horror, Fantasy and Science Fiction International Film Festival in Godella, Spain. The digital distribution of the short film, directed by Breit, reached more than 6 million views.
Breit currently leads its production house focusing on documentaries in all forms and formats. In 2016 he participated in the Venice Biennale of Architecture with the project "Andes Shadow". Currently, he directs Civilization in co-production with the ARTE/SWR channel and also produces Alien Island, the second feature by Cristóbal Valenzuela, who in 2018 toured the world with his documentary Stealing Rodin.
