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“13 Pueblos” by award winning Mexican filmmaker Francesco Taboada Tabone chronicles citizens from 13 Morelos villages and their struggle against environmental degradation from human misuse and industrial and commercial projects brought on by NAFTA. To keep from plummeting into poverty under this new system they had three choices—joining guerilla forces, drug trafficking or immigration. Instead, these 13 pueblos, or villages, led by a Council of Elders, joined forces and began protesting.

Taboada sees his films as a platform to instigate a grassroots change throughout the wider community. “Los pueblos have a strong oral tradition,” he said. “We have to promote this knowledge throughout communities. You will never find this kind of movie in commercial theaters in Mexico or the United States. But you may find it on a small street projected on blankets.”