Lima's Streets

What kinds of games do the street kids of Lima play? One of them is the "gringo," and the others come up to him and beg him, "Please, give us something to eat." When they can say something to the camera, they often talk about begging and stealing. They do so with a smile, with the bravura and coyness that befits their age. Proudly and a little mysteriously, one of them shows his treasure: a jar of glue. They are real children, but their world is grim and harsh. Marcelo Bukin, director of socially engaged documentaries, evokes this world with a quick montage of impressions: the din of traffic, the neon lights and the drab colours of the night; accosting rich club-goers for money, the arguments and brawls, the beatings that the children often receive, the arrests by the police, the older girls that are already into prostitution. A motorist calls it "a Mecca of crime." Sometimes, we can hear the unreal sound of a children's song, somewhere in the night. A grimy angel wanders around like a lost zombie, and mothers give lessons in begging. Bukin made this film for Global Humanitaria, a non-profit organisation that takes a stand for the poorest children in South America and Asia.