By Madhuri Dey
Nov. 25, (THAINDIAN NEWS)The documentary film “La Vida Loca” which has been shot by photojournalist and documentary filmmaker Christian Poveda and distributed by Fandango has been slated to be released sometime in early 2010. The film is based on the life and activities of the “la dieciocho”, or the Mara 18, the gang that thrives in Street 18, one of the poorest areas of Salvador, and is known for their violence and merciless escapades. Dealing predominantly with the members of the gang and their day to day life, the film also documents the effect the gang has on the youngsters who attempt to model their lifestyle in the bloody footsteps of the outlaws.

The film features three members of the gang. There is “Little One”, a young mother at 19,and with a tattoo that says the number 18 covering one side of her face. The other two are Moreno, the male member, and Wizard, another young mother. The film traces the life of these three as they recount their incorporation in the gang and their participation in it’s activities. Of these, Wizard, whom Poveda was helping to with an eye replacement that she had lost in a fight, gets killed before the film ends. The film documents three murders out of seven Poveda witnessed in the course of making the film.

Hard hitting and dark, with gritty details, the film won accolades from the various festivals it visited, including the San Sebastian. Poveda himself was murdered, possibly, a few days after he had completed the film. He was found dead inside a car in a parking lot in Salvador. Though unfortunate, that somehow explains the anger he had incurred from the Mara 18 on account of his too graphic film.