Negotiating Neoliberal Demands on Contemporary Cinema: The Role and Influence of the Socially Committed Film Producer in Peru

The range of opportunities available to Latin American filmmakers since the late 1990s has enabled the flourishing of cinema production in this region. This chapter focuses on identifying the socially committed contemporary film producer as key to the progress made in an increasingly neoliberal economic and political landscape. The main case study is Enid “Pinky” Campos, producer of some of the most significant Peruvian productions of recent years—Días de Santiago, NN, Magallanes—in terms of their critical, commercial and funding success both within and beyond national borders. Crucially, it asks whether a deeper understanding of the role of the producer might reveal an alternative way of negotiating the evolving relationships, tensions and power dynamics between Latin American cinema and global markets.