Montreal’s “Princz” of Travel offers launches unique film series

Spotlight on Travel – Mike Cohen

He may just be one of Montreal’s foremost experts on travel. Andrew Princz has travelled to over 50 countries and has contributed to such publications and outlets as CNN Traveller, the Wall Street Journal and the CBC program Dispatches. He is also the author of numerous travel guides including Frommers Budapest and The Best of Hungary, and he is now working on an update for Fodors.com’s Guide to Cuba. Princz specializes in tourism promotion and development in developing and post-conflict countries.

Montrealers will now have an opportunity to gain from Princz’s expertise firsthand as boutique film-screening venue CinemaSpace, at the Segal Centre for Performing Arts and travel and tourism site ontheglobe.com have launched a monthly travel and film series, Travels ontheglobe.

The presentations consist of illustrated talks, multimedia presentations and film screenings hosted by cultural navigator Princz, who takes you around the globe. From the towering peaks of the mysterious Peruvian Inca settlement of Machu Picchu to dancing on the outskirts of the Angolan capital of Luanda to the discovery of the real Kazakhstan and its beautiful mountainous terrain, gorges and archeological sites. This is Travels ontheglobe.

Travels ontheglobe will accompany viewers to magical places that have become iconic, and others that may become just that. This series will be a monthly opportunity to travel without stepping out of your environment, and the presentations will offer viewers first-hand insight into the countries, cultures and peoples of the globe. The evenings are accompanied by photographs of a real-life journey which will be followed by a short film, feature or documentary from the evening’s profiled country.

The first of the series takes place on July 7 and will visit Peru. Audience members will learn about the dispute over the treasures of the one-time Inca settlement in the clouds, Machu Picchu. The presentation will include a CBC radio documentary aired on the program Dispatches and produced by Princz, followed by the Canadian premiere of DANZAK (20 mins), a touching short film by Peruvian filmmaker Gabriela Yepes. The film brings to life the culture behind the mythical scissor dance. Yepes recently won the Emerging Filmmakers Showcase at the Cannes Film Festival for this production.

On August 4 Princz will present a journey to the much-misunderstood central-Asian nation of Kazakhstan. Get ready to visit the leafy cultural capital of Almaty, as well as the ultra-modern Astana and to villages on the ancient Silk Road. The presentation will be followed by a screening of FAREWELL GULSARY (102 mins) by Kazakh director Ardak Amirkulov. This film traces the struggle of a herdsman to maintain his traditional way of life in the face of the Soviet regime’s hard-handed ways.

On September 1, the third in the series will feature a journey to the sub-Saharan nation of Angola and a visit to a country emerging from a civil war that lasted almost three decades. Here you will find life in a slum of the capital Luanda as the dance troupe Kilandukilu prepares for an international tour. Princz will screen OUTRAS FRASES (52 mins) by Angolan director Jorge Antonio. This documentary traces the history of Angola through the research and reinterpretation of traditional elements by the Angolan dancer and choreographer Ana Clara Guerra Marques.

“Travelling the globe is a privilege,” says Princz. “Seeing the world through the eyes of its many cultures has allowed me to gain a truly enriching, macro-perspective. Travel, tourism and cultural awareness are experiences which to me are simply magical.”

CinemaSpace is at The Segal Centre for Performing Arts is located at 5170 Cote St. Catherine (corner Westbury) 2 blocks West of Métro Côte-Sainte-Catherine. Seating is limited, please call the Segal Centre’s Box Office to reserve tickets in advance at (514)739-7944 or go to segalcentre.org or ontheglobe.com.

Mike Cohen’s email address is [email protected]. Log on to his travel advice column at www.sandboxworld.com/travel