Carnivals Around The World

Themes The common theme across the countries visited for this project and one that is captured on film is the passionate celebration of the carnival in each country. Carnivals come around once a year and most of the year the people spend in anticipation and preparation for the next carnival. The documentary also seeks to highlight the costumes worn by the revelers for their creative, ascetic and historical meaning behind these costumes. The costumes are a vital, if not the most important part of the carnival. In most of these countries, the most important award is the award given to the best costume featured during the carnival. The music of the carnivals is another interesting theme that the documentary focuses on. Universally across the countries visited, the use of the drums as a major instrument of choice represents a carryover from their common African ancestry. The food of the carnival is as much a vital need of the revelers due to the energy spent working and dancing at these carnivals as it is a customary accompaniment to the carnival as only a selected menu is featured during the carnival. Of course, rice is a staple which comes in many varieties: rice and peas, white rice, jollof rice, fried rice etc. The food is generally spicy and the protein option depends on the country in question. In Brazil pork is the preferred, New Orleans during Mardi Gras seafood reign supreme and almost across all the countries of the Caribbean jerk-seasoned poultry is the order of the day.