Introduction

UNIMA Three Americas Commission

• The idea of ​​a UNIMA Three Americas Commission arose in 2016 at the 22nd UNIMA Congress in Tolosa/San Sebastián, Spain, approved and formed that same year. Since then, and after going through a pandemic, the cultural, political, and socioeconomic vectors have been changing, along with our Commission, to address the particularities of each region, but always seeking the national, continental, and global union of our members, together with the appreciation of our puppet art, in all its forms.

Latin America Subcommission

• The idea of ​​creating the Latin America Subcommission is based on the observation of an affinity and need for closer collaboration between Latin American countries, given that social problems are often shared, as well as similarities in linguistic, historical, religious, political, and financial capacity issues, which create a greater bond between the countries of the region than with the countries of the North.

The objectives of the commission

• To offer representation, information and support to the puppetry movement in the Americas: North, Central and South.
• To promote the creation and operation of national groups or centers that house the puppetry field, its production and its local needs.
• To promote professional training, communication, regional and international exchange, and the projection abroad of the continent’s puppetry work.
• To value the existing puppetry heritage – sometimes thousands of years old – while opening the doors to contemporary creation.
• To promote activities of artistic diffusion, professional training, festivals, research, and practices derived from the applications of puppetry, seeking the development of our art in all its forms.

Projects

Representation

• A lot of lobbying and management work has been carried out to achieve the greatest possible representation of developing countries at UNIMA’s international events, Councils and Congresses.
• At the upcoming 24th UNIMA International Congress, to be held in Chuncheon, Korea, in May 2025, we will have 5 Latin American councilors and representatives to attend: Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Costa Rica and Cuba.
• Likewise, we are working to achieve the online presence of the American member countries during the Councils and Congresses, as well as their right to vote.

Communication

• Through an Editorial Board, this Secretariat is in charge of the creation and digital edition of “La Hoja Titiritera” (fourth stage), a bilingual magazine (Spanish/Portuguese) for dissemination around the art of puppetry, objects and animated forms, which has been of great value in articulating activities, disseminating achievements and strengthening ties. Its biannual publication with content increasingly closer to professional and academic training and valuable practical experiences has been an interesting stimulus among members and the general public.
• We promote among the National Centers and affiliates the importance of sharing information in a plural and transparent way.
• We promote the constant affiliation of new members to UNIMA.
• We encourage the generation of actions and activities through the Secretariats of Professional Training, Heritage, Festivals, Education and Therapy.

Festivals

• An intense work of surveying Spanish and Portuguese-speaking festivals has been carried out, in order to have a geographical, statistical and visibility understanding of institutional and independent events in Latin America.
• The publication of this census in the first issue of La Hoja Titiritera will allow hundreds of members to approach events and programming in their countries and abroad, thus projecting their activities and facilitating the offer for programmers.
• The management of this Secretariat has achieved that 7 countries, 9 festivals and 8 puppet theatres sign the International Cooperation Agreement between International Puppet Festivals and Twinning of Puppet Theatre Halls in Ibero-America. This agreement establishes a framework for collaboration to develop shared projects of management, programming, creation, consolidation of corridors of circulation of artists, research, training, dissemination and residencies, among others.

Heritage

• Since its creation in October 2023, we have worked on two complementary lines of action. The first is the realization of an inventory of the puppet heritage in our continent, which includes its material form: museums and independent collections, as well as forms of puppet theatre that can be considered intangible heritage.
• The second line of action is the realization of seminars with specialists in different topics, which include, for example, the Brazilian Mamulengo, the MUTIBO – Colombian virtual museum, or the legacy of Javier Villafañe.
• The National Puppet Museum of Tlaxcala, Mexico, held a very important seminar due to the knowledge shared: digitization, cataloging, stabilization and safeguarding processes of documentary, photographic and material heritage.
• We hope that in the future, with funding, we will move from virtual to in-person forms when conducting our seminars.

Professional Training

• Survey of Training Programs: Identify and document educational institutions, workshops, courses and training programs in the field of puppets, both in formal contexts (universities, art schools) and non-formal ones (community workshops, workshops within festivals, etc.).
• Network Building: Facilitate communication and collaboration between institutions and professionals in the field of puppetry, promoting an enriching exchange that allows for the growth and development of new teaching methodologies.
• Promotion of Good Practices: Collect and share successful experiences in the training of puppeteers, creating a resource bank that serves as a guide for new educational initiatives.
• Promotion of Cultural Diversity: Highlight the richness of the different traditions and styles of puppeteers in Latin America, promoting respect and appreciation of the diverse traditional cultural manifestations, in constant dialogue with contemporaneity.

Education and Therapy

• Recognize and promote the value that the art of puppetry and animated forms have in areas such as health and well-being.
• We propose the realization of a preliminary diagnosis that detects Latin American groups and researchers who use them in areas such as education and therapy.
• Conduct national and international seminars and alliances that allow for the sharing of experiences, specialized publications, and academic theses by professionals in the field in public or private institutions of formal and non-formal education, and in therapeutic processes for the treatment of mental health.