ABSTRACT
WE BELIEVE IN NIÑO FIDENCIO resulted from filming a Mexican Spiritist group two years after initial fieldwork. Informants’ knowledge of the filmic process influenced both the content of the film and the goal, which they perceived as the promotion of cult activities. Anthropologist-informant reciprocity resulted in the counterpart of a promesa, an obligation to present the participants’ point of view in the film. Even though there were severe limitations imposed by budget and equipment, NIÑO FIDENCIO has been a useful teaching film, and continues to provide insights into the questions about the nature of film and reality, the depth and complexity of culture as expressed in magico-religious practices, and the importance of reciprocity in the network of anthropologists, informants/participants, and students/audiences.
