Lucila Carballo delved into a Mexican mystic for her Master of Arts creative work project, a short documentary filmed on location in Oaxaca. Carballo represents the Anthropology Department in the seventh episode of the College of Liberal & Creative Arts’ video series, “Next Stop.”
Idalia and the Niño Santo follows the life of a 31-year-old Mazatec shaman in rural Oaxaca. Idalia often conducts healing rituals through a hallucinogenic mushroom called the niño santo, which translates to “holy child.” She also works for the Mexican government as a liaison between pregnant Mazatec women and their midwives and doctors.
“I think Idalia is a very interesting character because she is navigating these different paradigms: the animist, the scientific, the Catholic,” Carballo says. “What I hope to show, through this intimate portrait, [are] the larger historical and social tensions regarding ethnicity, Westernization and alternative conceptions of the self.”
Carballo adds that she hopes her film sparks discussion about indigenous feminine identities.
LCA Next Stop
LCA Next Stop features interviews with students and faculty in the College of Liberal & Creative Arts. Enjoy showcases of schools and departments from multiple perspectives.
Where should we stop next? Please let us know if you would like us to showcase your school or department by leaving a comment on the video. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to learn more and spread the word.
Video directed, edited and shot by Hannah Anderson. Produced by the College of Liberal & Creative Arts’ Communications Team.
Links
- Anthropology Department
- LCA Next Stop: Anthropology, Part One
- LCA Next Stop: Comparative and World Literature
- LCA Next Stop: Art
- LCA Next Stop: Music
- LCA Next Stop: Design
- LCA Next Stop: Philosophy
Photo: A Mazatec shaman performs a healing ceremony, in student Lucila Carballo’s documentary Idalia and the Niño Santo. Photo courtesy of Lucila Carballo.