The Role of Film Festivals in Promoting Social Justice: Authorship, Disruption, and Innovation at the CineMigrante Film Festival (Buenos Aires, Argentina)

Abstract

This paper revolves around Migration Film Festivals as a rich and interdisciplinary fertile subject of inquiry and analysis at an international scale. Its primary aim is to conduct an in-depth analysis of CineMigrante, Festival de Cine y Formación en Derechos Humanos (CineMigrante, Film Festival and Training in Human Rights), held in Buenos Aires (Argentina) since 2010. It serves as an invaluable case study for the understanding of the significance of film festivals in advancing social justice, cultivating community involvement, and championing migrant rights. Its pioneering methods and influence render it a crucial blueprint for analogous endeavors globally. The theoretical framework focuses on the concept of authorship to highlight how social innovation has a lot to do with the creativity and disruptive capacity of a film festival. A comprehensive mix of quantitative and qualitative methodologies is employed, encompassing formal content analysis of the festival catalog and detailed examination of the structural, visual, and para-visual elements present on the festival's website, media platforms, and textual materials. The study variables under consideration include curation criteria, programming activities, interactions with the media and local community organizations, corporate image, and communication strategies. Results show that CineMigrante's social success is based on its disruptive and innovative dynamics to reach audiences, challenge narratives, and act as a catalyst for social transformation.