In 1954 Alfredo Stroessner became the President of Paraguay through a coup. Strossner would stay in power for 35 years becoming the longest-run dictatorship in Paraguay. Then on February 3, 1989 Stroessner was driven out of power just as he had come into it, with a coup (NBC).

Now Juanjo Pereira created a documentary diving into Paraguay at the time of Stroessner’s regime. The film is Pereira’s feature-length directorial debut and is titled Under The Flags, The Sun or Bajo Las Banderas, El Sol. From The Hollywood Reporter Pereira states, “though I [Pereira] did not live through these events, they feel ever-present.” Pereira used found footage that was thought to be lost in the film. Compiled together are newsreels, public television broadcasts, propaganda films and declassified documents. Pereira expressed his purpose to make the film was to “piece together found archives and understand how that era shaped society, my [Pereira’s] contemporaneity, thoughts and emotions” (THR). He also explained that the people of Paraguay are silent due to fear about the history of dictatorship in the country. The film breaks the silence and reveals the true history of Paraguay under Stroessner’s rule. 

At the 75th edition of the Berlin Film Festival the film will premiere as a part of the Panorama Dokumente program. The film is one of the few documentaries in the festival as well as a rarity for films from Paraguay in the festival.

 The trailer is now available.