Why We Fight : A Documentary Film

Why We Fight is a love letter formed into a 17 minute documentary about Guyana, the birthplace of the parents of filmmaker Alyssa Bistonath. It is a land that embodies the values, stories, and memories that Bistonath attributes to her Caribbean identity. The film acts as an inquiry — what is the diaspora’s role and responsibility towards the country? The project juxtaposes a personal narration, with letters from the diaspora, and the lives of four individuals living in Guyana. Bistonath made Why We Fight, because she was concerned with how countries like Guyana are represented in the western media, and how that representation trickles into the identities of people of colour. The film seeks to strike a balance, bridging nostalgia with contemporary beauty — overwriting the colonial and tourist tropes with the lives of real people, addressing violence, and mending political cynicism with the person inquiry.