During the day, Cortés works as a logistics technician and in the afternoons he is a Jedi Chile Fencing teacher. Like him, many people use this activity to disconnect from routine and express their fanaticism for Star Wars. A fanaticism that, according to Cortés, is respected today more than before.
By Alvaro Marchant
Star Wars is, without a doubt, one of the most iconic science fiction sagas and franchises in cinema. The franchise created by George Lucas has transcended over the years, capturing the attention and fanaticism of people of different age ranges around the world. However, fans have taken it a step further and established May 4 as Star Wars Day.
On May 4, 1979, the British newspaper London Evening News published an article in which the Conservative Party of the United Kingdom congratulated Margaret Thatcher for achieving the position of Prime Minister in that country. The message read: “May the 4th Be With You Maggie, Congratulations.” The comparison came immediately with the distinguished phrase from the movie “May the force be with you”, which translated into Spanish means “may the force be with you.” In this way each May 4th Star Wars Day is celebrated.
Lightsaber battles are one of the most striking aspects of the films and one that fans have more than once dreamed of replicating. In Santiago de Chile, ten years ago, “Fencing Jedi Chile” was created, a group that meets every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday in Balmaceda Park to train with their lightsabers.
It is 6:30 p.m. and the participants begin to arrive at Balmaceda Park, the light of the Jedi sabers illuminates the place and their owners, almost instantly, begin to clash their swords, as in a true “Padawan” training battle. . Among the constant sound of screams and sabers, Rodrigo CortesJedi Chile Fencing Master, talks with Fast Check CL about the group and what it’s like to be a fan in our country.
“There I looked for refuge”
— How was Fencing Jedi Chile born?
It started in 2013, when a group of 4-5 friends were thinking about how to go to a ComicCon, and show up dressed as Jedi or Sith and fight with lightsabers. The only person who remains is Jorge Fuentealba, who is the grandmaster and founder of Fencing Jedi Chile, along with his partner and his twin brother Cristian Fuentealba.
— What are these sabers made of? how do they work?
It is a beginning, they were imported directly from the United States of the Ultra Sabers brand. They were made of a sheet of polycarbonate, but it was a very simple circuit that took up 4 AAA batteries and a button and it would be.
Over time they evolved and this last time it was an exponential evolution, in which now you can import them from China with very good quality. There are stores in Chile that also sell lightsabers. Today, most are already Chinese but they are of very good quality. They have different colors, different sounds, even Bluetooth, I can control it with my cell phone, and the most basic ones start at 80 thousand pesos.
— Is it only held in Santiago?
We have other temples, which would be our brothers. Due to the time of creation comes Fencing Jedi Valpo, which has also been around for 6-7 years, then we have a headquarters in Temuco that is very small, because the climate makes it difficult for them to get together to train. The most recent is in La Serena, Fencing Jedi La Serena, there are quite a few, like 25 people. We have one in Sydney, from a guy who went on a Working Holiday, and it is currently made up of about 10 people.
— When did you get into this?
I arrived here in 2019, just before the Social Outbreak, it was like August, after my grandfather died. There I looked for a refuge, I tried it and to this day we remain here.
— Well, I imagine you came in because you’re a Star Wars fan..
Yes, but this fanaticism is always well repressed. I had never participated in a group of fans of something and with Star Wars, which I liked since I was a child, I met other groups. I was part of some other groups, including some international ones; and it has been almost 5 quite intense years and a lot of joy.
— Why do you say quite repressed?
Look, I have talked about it with several people, including Nicolás, who is one of the Jedi Chile Fencing teachers. During school years and in general during adolescence, we keep searching for an identity and trying to belong to a group. However, these nerdy groups (the interviewee makes quotes) from before were not the same as they are now, where respect is maintained, very important activities are carried out and it gives a little more status. But, at that time, 20 years ago, groups like that were not very common and they were not so crowded either.
You were pigeonholed with concepts or marginalized. But, these groups like Fencing Jedi Chile allow you to feel identified, enjoy an activity, enjoy a fanaticism also because other instances are generated beyond training.
“We recently managed to have sports legal personality in the National Sports Institute”
— What does the training itself consist of?
Jedi Fencing Chile focuses on lightsaber combat, and that combat can be choreographic, improvised, even sporting. We recently managed to have sports legal personality in the National Sports Institute (IND) to take this to a more competitive branch, but that is what it basically consists of.
The idea is that the combat looks fluid and real, with techniques that we coined a little of what classic fencing is, including Hapkido, Hema, foil fencing, etc. We took a little bit of everything and coined it into the forms of Star Wars combat that exist, and that are really inspired by all these types of historical swordplay.
— In more sporting matters, how is it decided who wins?
In the sports area, we have an internal regulation that we are still polishing because as it is something new, at least in Chile, there are other groups that do it but each one with its own regulations. So, basically we try to adapt to what suits us best and that means that they are rounds of three minutes each, where you have a series of movements that are prohibited, for example the lunge, all of which are the blows to the crotch, the chest, because let’s remember that it is something unisex. For this reason, those key points are protected, and the best of ten points for each round wins.
We are polishing the regulations so that, hopefully in July, we will hold a tournament where we invite other groups that are dedicated to this to come and participate with our rules.
— How do you decide who is a teacher?
It is hierarchized by ranks. It starts with the initiates who are the people who come for the first time and come to participate in Fencing, to try it, in simple words. They last about 3 months and then if you want to continue, we move on to the next rank which is the “Padawan”. The “Padawan” is already a person who feels a kind of commitment to the group and wants to participate in these other events that occur.
For each rank there is an evaluation, there are rubrics and we generally do it on San Cristóbal Hill, in the Mapulemu Garden. There we meet the kids on a Saturday at 11 in the morning, we climb the hill, we do the activities, we have a little get-together and there we decide who goes.
Next comes the rank of knight. This rank has a slightly more administrative mission, it carries out the training and this rank is subdivided into five different grades, where number one is the knight who has recently promoted and number five is the knight who is already ready to rise. to the next grade. They are the ones who carry out the training.
After that comes the rank of Master, which is almost one hundred percent an administrative rank, we also do training and everything but we coordinate other types of things, organization of events, personnel administration, etc.
“We aspire for that, for this to continue growing”
— What does that test consist of?
It depends on the rank, for example, the Padawan initiate tests are quite simple tests, they are taught the first form, they have to replicate certain movements or catar, just like in Japanese fencing, or any martial art that is a kata. Small tournaments are held between initiates to evaluate technique, control, fluidity, and it is decided who passes and who does not. Those who do not pass are given an opportunity for a repechage of one or two months so that they can take the test again, but we already do that here in Balmaceda Park.
— Is sports now the strongest focus you have?
No, sports is to complement what we do, it is to have a range or a spectrum that is a little broader than what lightsaber combat can be. Now that we have obtained the sports legal personality, we can obtain the social legal personality of Fencing Jedi Chile to be able, obviously, to be able to apply for social funds that allow us to visit hospitals, such as other groups that do not have personality do. legal, but they are recognized internationally by LucasFilm and Disney, such as 501 for example. Which are groups that are official and patented.
— What projections do you have with Fencing Jedi Chile?
The truth is that we would love to take this outwards, abroad and have recognition for our career as well, we have been doing this for ten years. I would say that we are the first to do it here, we keep up with a lot of people. Perhaps, achieve legal personality to obtain funds and for the winter have a covered place, with a bathroom because here you arrive and you have to hold on until you get home because there are no bathrooms here.
But we aspire for that, for this to continue growing, to be able to take it to other parts of the country, to be able to have events abroad, to be invited and to be able to have the recognition of the authorities and for them to support us to be able to practice it as a sport or as a show.
