Sentinels of Silence

Centinelas del silencio (Eng. about Guardian of Silence) is a Mexican short documentary by Robert Amram from the year 1971. It is the only short film which won two Oscars and therefore resulted in a change of nomination rules.

Action

The film gives an insight into the culture and monuments of the Mexican natives. Witnesses of their culture are spread all over Mexico. This is followed by shots of Teotihuacan, with its sun and moon pyramid and Tulum, which was once described as a large city and of which only remnants have been preserved. The narrator notes that the Indians - Olmecs, Zapotecs, Toltecs, Chichimecs Mayangna and Aztecs - had one thing in common: They believed in the Sun as the center of the universe. Here are pictures of the hieroglyphics of Monte Albán, the earliest known text that was found on the American continent, and its decryption has not yet succeeded. Followed by pictures of Chichen Itza, as well as recordings of the local Cenote Sagrado, which is presented as a place of sacrifice for the god of water. There are pictures of Mitla with its Greek -style building ornaments shown, and Palenque, a Maya center that will make it clear that the Maya were a highly civilized people presented. The question of why Palenque was flee, would also help today's civilization, to avoid errors. With Uxmal on the Yucatan follows the last presented site of the Maya and the place that the Maya docked after their escape from Palenque. Particular attention is paid to the Adivino pyramid, which is referred to as the last great masterpiece of Maya, and on the Governor's Palace complex. The narrator concludes that it had been scratched in the explorations of the natives of Mexico only on the surface.

Production

Centinelas del silencio was shot on location at numerous archaeological sites in Mexico. In addition to ground shots of the film contains mainly aerial photographs that were shot from a helicopter. Narrator of the film is Ricardo Montalban. The film was shown, among others, in May 1971 at the International Film Festival in Cannes.

Awards

At the International Film Festival of Cannes 1971, the film was shown in competition for the Palme d'Or for Best Short Film. Centinelas del silencio 1972 won two Academy Awards: for Best Short Film and Best Short Documentary. It was the only short film in the history of the Oscars, which was awarded two prizes. This led to a revision of the regulations, so that short films were allowed to be nominated in 1972 only one of the two categories.