Chichicastenango

Chichicastenango, in Guatemala is best known for its colourful indigenous market held on Thursdays and Sundays. The town is home to the K’iche Maya people, but other indigenous groups come from miles around to sell their handicrafts, food, flowers, pottery, wooden boxes, condiments, medicinal plants, candles, pom and copal (traditional incense), cal (lime stones for preparing tortillas), grindstones, pigs and chickens, machetes, and other tools. In the central part of the market plaza are small eateries (comedores).

Next to the market is the 400-year-old church of Santo Tomás. It is built atop a Pre-Columbian temple platform, and the steps originally leading to a temple of the pre-Hispanic Maya civilization remain venerated. K’iche’ Maya priests still use the church for their rituals. Each of the 18 stairs that lead up to the church stands for one month of the Maya calendar year.

Chichicastenango also has a colorful city cemetery.

Filming There

Chichicastenango lies on the crests of mountaintops at an altitude of 1,965 m (6,447 ft). It is located a 3hr drive from Guatemala City where all film crew and equipment need to come from.

Depending on the specifics of the shoot, larger shoots requiring exclusive use of public space may need permission from various authorities such as the market, individual vendors, and the church of Santo Tomás.

Contact us if you are looking for a Guatemala based shooting crew including directors, videographers and photographers. We are also able to refer production service support including fixers and service companies to arrange location permits and all other shoot requirements.