THE STORY A film in production by Mitch Teplitsky, this is the dazzling story of two New York women raised in different worlds — an immigrant folk dancer from the Andes, and a modern dancer from Queens, NY — who return to Peru in search of roots and dance. After 15 years in New York, Nelida Silva returns to her birthplace in the Andes to fulfill a lifelong dream and host the fiesta patronal — an astonishing week of dance, music, and ritual from Incan times. But Neli's changed, and so has the village. What's it like to go back to the Andes when you've become a New Yorker? Two years later: Cynthia Paniagua, a dancer raised in Queens by a Peruvian mom, embarks on her own Peruvian journey after meeting Neli — determined to "quench a burning desire to know the real Peru, to unearth the mystery of the dances." Does she find what she's looking for? Well, you'll have to see the movie! Soy Andina is an exuberant cross-cultural road trip, bursting with traditional music and dance rarely seen outside the country. But the core story is intimate and universal: a yearning for roots and connection in turbulent times. More information: http://www.soyandina.com
