“The Eternal Instant” is released, a series that delves into the life and work of the great photographer Sergio Larraín

The documentary “The Eternal Instant” burst in June 2021 to delve into, with unpublished material and interviews, the mysterious figure of Sergio Larraín, the prominent Chilean photographer who disappeared from public light after touring the world with his camera under the eaves from the prestigious Magnum agency. He settled in the town of Tulahuén, where he devoted himself mainly to meditating and teaching others his philosophy of life.

Sebastián Moreno, who previously directed the acclaimed “The City of Photographers”, reconstructs that story to perfection, speaking with relatives and acquaintances, tracking known and unpublished photographs throughout the world, reviewing the author’s personal letters and family footage in 16 mm and, in short, putting together the vital puzzle of one of the most important artists in our country.

Now he premieres “The Eternal Instant”, a four-part television series that will have additional material to delve into Sergio Larraín, his worldview and try to understand his option to spend his last years of life retired in the field.

Taken together, these materials bear witness to an intense life and allow a deep and intimate portrait of the personal and artistic journey of this surprising artist, transformed into a myth of world photography.

“The Eternal Instant” will premiere on TVN screens on Sunday, January 9. And then it will be broadcast on the 16th, 23rd and 30th of the same month. Always at 3:00 p.m.

“It is very satisfactory for us to program this documentary series because it allows us to spread the life of Sergio Larraín, recognized as the most important photographer in our country, but whose history is unknown to many Chileans. We want to publicize his life and his work and honor it in these four chapters, on a very important date also because February marks 10 years since his departure “, comments Isabel Rodríguez, director of TVN Programming.

“It is a biographical series that delves into the life story of Sergio Larraín but also in the sense of his work because to discover the depth of his photography you have to know his personal story that gives us insight and brings us a little closer to the meaning of photographic art ”, highlights Sebastián Moreno.

“Larraín is a unique character because he lived at a time in world history when many very interesting things happened and he was a witness to those events. He was in Europe recording the Sicilian mafia and its heyday, he pretended to be a tourist and had the best photographs ever made of one of the most wanted mafia bosses in the world. What led Larraín to be a witness of his time, but with Larraín’s eyes, which is not just any look, is that he managed to observe a reality that for another could be insignificant. Larraín stopped and looked ”.

Moreno adds: “In addition, Larraín makes a radical turn in his life. What is an aristocratic family is withdrawing from the place of origin and is turning towards a mystical life, a simpler life. That makes him withdraw and deny the world to which he belonged. He ends up living with very humble people, peasants who never went to school but who, nevertheless, knew about photography, painting thanks to the fact that they had lived with Sergio and he had taught them ”.

For the director, the production is necessary to make known a fundamental artist in the times of cultural expansion of the new Chile.

“The series is a journey through the life of Sergio Larraín, to soak up photography and universal art history,” he highlights.

“It is an invitation to meet our Nobel Prize in Photography who is now available to Chile and thus declassify art because we believe that it must be democratized and shared.”

Regarding the need to expand access to culture, the filmmaker opines: “I think that in order to live better in this country we have to improve access to culture and production, we have to ensure children, who will be able to have access easily and free of charge. Therefore, we must protect the cultural sovereignty of our territory. It is time to start looking at our artists, our culture, the people who produce art, as this is what allows societies to move forward in new and creative ways ”.

“Art and culture inspire, motivate and create new paradigms”, highlights the director.

“What is happening today is the product of some young people who allowed themselves to imagine and create a new Chile to which many people joined who trusted them and succeeded. Now it is everyone’s job to continue creating this new country, this nation that deserves to have a cultural openness, a quality public television and not a television with superficial content. Chile is crying out for a little more depth and for the sense in which things connect with each other and in this I believe that Larraín can begin by being just that, one more drop in this ocean that we need to complete. We have to take care of cultural sovereignty and recover art and its creators ”.

The chapters

Each chapter of the series will narrate some aspect of the life of the photographer.

The first, entitled “The Origin”, asks the question: “Who was Sergio Larraín?” Through different voices, his aristocratic family origin and his final destination in Tulahuén will be discovered. He will delve into the conflict he had with his father, fundamental in Sergio’s decision to become a photographer.

Chapter 2, “The Photographer”, tells how Sergio Larraín began a career as a photographer in Latin America that led him to get a place in the prestigious Magnum agency. It achieved worldwide recognition but it is not what I was looking for. He gave up fame and prestige.

Chapter 3, “Truth Seeker,” addresses your spiritual transformation. Together with the Bolivian guru Oscar Ichazo and a group of friends they formed the ARICA Institute. They immersed themselves in spiritual works that included the use of drugs and hallucinogenic substances.

The fourth and final chapter, “Monje”, shows how Sergio Larraín retired to live a humble life, teaching the townspeople everything he learned in his life. He was considered a spiritual guru. At the age of sixty, he returned to photograph Valparaíso and completed a work that took him more than forty years.

Moreno is a director and director of photography for documentaries and television series. He studied Audiovisual Communication at the School of Arts and Communication in Santiago de Chile and was perfecting himself as a cinematographer in film at the School of Film and TV in San Antonio de los Baños, Cuba. He has made outstanding documentary feature films, including: The City of Photographers, Habeas Corpus (2015), Guerrero (2017), Sergio Larraín, the eternal instant (2021). His films have been screened and awarded at prestigious national and international film festivals. He has obtained the Pedro Sienna award and has been nominated for the Altazor award, both of which recognize the quality and career of artists in the Chilean audiovisual medium.

Programming

TV series: The Eternal Moment
4 chapters
Broadcast on January 9, 16, 23 and 30
At 15 hours
Channel TVN