The ‘Transformers’ don’t exist, but… Can they save Peru? This is how the premiere of the film was lived in Cusco

The autobots always win. They may lose friends, battles, or even limbs; but at the end of the day, like the fictional heroes they are, they run over the misrepresented decepticons. And for the first time in history these chrome characters will have the opportunity to do good in the real world, not for just one person, but for a city, even a country. The movie “Transformers: Rise of the Beasts” (“Transformers: Rise of the Beasts”) arrives at the cinema this Thursday, June 7 and, with it, the hopes of a nation in search of new paths start.

New eyes for Peru

Berly Chávez loves what she does. For fifteen years he has worked as a tour guide in the city of Cusco. It was in 2019, when the region received 2.7 million visitors, and also after the pandemic, when the number dropped dramatically. Last weekend, when he led a group of journalists called by Promperú, He did something that until a few years ago would be unthinkable: specifically talk about the locations where a Hollywood movie was filmed. A movie with robots, above.

He passed through the Plaza de Armas, where the Inti Raymi was recreated; down the Bajada de Santa Ana, where Optimus Prime lost his breath [al igual que este redactor]; he crossed the zigzagging walls of Sacsayhuaman and reached the remains of the Muyucmarca keep, trampled by the autobots [con la magia de los efectos]; He showed the platforms of Machu Picchu, which Optimus Primal violently climbed to face the terrorcons. Robots do not do tourism, but if they did, they would visit these and other places: Josefina sweet tamales [rumbo a los 100 años]the Stone of the Twelve Angles and the souvenir shops that line it, they would buy paria cheese in the San Pedro Market and also chullpi corn.

Potentially, the film will bring thousands of people to visit the country that inspired the film’s plots. In the center of Cusco, foreign tourists can already be heard saying “Transformers” in its original cadence, pronouncing the “A” as an “E”, several times, everywhere. They won’t be the last to mention them when the film hits theaters around the world this week; with Peruvian actors as extras and even a character with his own name, played by Lucas Huarancca, whose role is related to a vital turning point in the plot.

Robots do not do tourism, but if they did, they would visit these and other places: Josefina sweet tamales [rumbo a los 100 años]the Stone of the Twelve Angles and the souvenir shops that line it, they would buy paria cheese in the San Pedro Market and also chullpi corn.

EC Drafting,

But aside from the interest that the film may cause in foreign tourists, there are also its effects on the Peruvian public, still not used to seeing themselves in an action blockbuster. For now, the reaction is positive. During the first screening of the film in all of Latin America, held at the Real Plaza in Cusco, the first time the name Peru was mentioned, the residents of the city screamed. When Machu Picchu appeared on the screen, the emotion turned into screams and those screams into screams when Quechua also makes an appearance. Two thirds of the film are set in the country, including an extensive action sequence.

Similar excitement was felt when three vehicles from the Transformers saga were on view at the mall, including a 1975 Freightliner truck just like the Optimus Prime the world knows. Selfies, videos and other samples of fanaticism for a brand, but also for a country.

a country’s strategy

If “Transformers” comes and records in Peru, why not other productions? That is where Promperú’s Film in Peru strategy comes into play, which seeks to highlight not only the unique locations in the country that could be of interest to foreign productions, as happened with “La reina del sur” and “Dora y la ciudad perdida”.

“We have had different meetings with other public institutions to explain the importance of a mega-production coming here and the importance of having processes that help these productions know what they have to do, from whom they have to ask permission, where to go. The receptivity that we had from all the public institutions, regional and local governments, was always very good.”, said Carmen Julia García, head of the Office of Image Strategy and Country Brand.

There have already been changes, such as the creation of the special visa for audiovisual production, which can be used by workers in the field who enter the country for this kind of filming. Even so, Peru is not a country that is characterized by being agile in terms of changes, it is bureaucratic. “There are many things to work on. We, with the support of Mincetur, are working on an executive table that allows us to work on all these problems around the promotion of locations and to have clear, simple and transparent processes.Garcia added. Said table, where the Ministry of Culture also participates, will also focus on proposing a law on audiovisual tax incentives, as countries such as Colombia and Brazil have.

How many years would it take for Peru to be as attractive for filming as the neighboring country to the north? “It is not necessarily a matter of years, because if the location is relevant, what has to be worked on internally are the tax, financial conditions, etc. that they tell them that we also have locations”, said the Minister of Foreign Trade and Tourism, Juan Carlos Mathews, in conversation with this medium. “What we want to see is on what terms they decide to go for one location or another. It is an open conversation like the one we would have with a gas or petrochemical company,” he added.

Returning to tourism, the country already has plans for visits to Machu Picchu to increase to 6,000 a day in the coming years. In 2020, Unesco recommended that the number of visitors to the archaeological center should be a maximum of 2,444 per day, under risk of collapse. Whatever political decision is made, Peru is, now more than ever, in the eyes of the world. And also in the eyes of the Peruvians themselves.