This beautiful short film, inspired by a myth from the Bolivian lowlands, was created by a group of Bolivian animators in collaboration with The Animation Workshop of Denmark. When Abuela Grillo (Grandmother Grasshopper) sings, it rains, and in a country marked by water shortages, the film is a response to the privatization of Bolivia’s water resources by foreign corporations. The Cochabamba water wars of 2000 saw massive protests by the indigenous community to retain access to their water supply, which eventually pressured their government to revoke the international contract.

Screened first in Denmark at a Bolivian Climate event, Abuela Grillo has since been shown in Cochabamba at the World People’s Conference on Climate Change and the Rights of Mother Earth, a justice-focused alternative in response to the shortcomings of the 2009 U.N. Climate Conference. With music by the renowned Bolivian singer Luzmila Carpio, traditional Quechua singing weaves indigenous melody through the film, further illuminating the cultural roots of this fight for the universal right to pure water.

All movements have their artists, and it is their work that marks the victories and struggles with a powerful sense of love, determination and creativity.

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