Playlist
Motivations to learn to drive are frustrated by poor driving classes and inconvenience. In a moment of distancing, both find themselves in the need to meet again to try again and discover what they are capable of.
The mysterious appearance of a boy in her backyard forces Atziri to finally face the truth about her own son's disappearance.
Alma, a middle-aged woman, wishes to go to dance classes, but she's very busy taking care of her sick mother Gladys, and her brother Ruben hardly help her.
"Imprint" is a service that allows the user to revisit three minutes of their past up to three times. Alicia uses it to relive the last phone call she had with her daughter before she completely disappeared, in an attempt to understand what happened.
A shy and naive guy enters an old and crusty furniture store, oblivious of the sinister and creepy saleswoman.
As all the couches have different flaws, he fails to find the perfect fit.
After many tries, the lady points him towards a suspicious back room where he finally finds his perfect match. As he lays down comfortably on the couch he ends up being swallowed by it.
Deep in the Central Valley, undocumented farmworkers share their stories and describe dreams transformed into harsh reality.
The scenes take place in the Camargue on Piemanson beach and in Arles. The film tells us about the lives of two couples: Carla and André, Antoine and Lisa, over a period of 12 hours.
In a desolate land, Arev and his son reflect on the meaning of existence, living in hopeful anticipation of a divine promise that will lead them to question the truth of reality. This deceptive stop-motion addresses questions about the phenomena of perception and the concepts of "being", "seeming" and "knowing".
Based on true events in Mexico City in 1994, Joel, a car mechanic, fixes other people's machines but never his own. Immersed in the denial of death, the fragmented memories of a soul in pain reveal a reflection on life, loss and redemption.
Dolores is a 7-year-old girl who just wants to play, runs away from a fire demon and accidentally falls into a grave. There she meets two sinister corn husk skulls who want Dolores to stay with them and a curious armadillo who tries to get her out at all costs.
Cast away with his children, Lucía and Matías, on a desolate beach littered by long forgotten shipwrecks, Ricardo desperately seeks to draw the attention of shimmering lights blazing in the sky behind the thick cover of clouds. Every day moves him closer to finishing the construction of a monumental lighthouse that could lead to their rescue, but he's grown oblivious to the deepening mistrust his own neglect has fostered in his eldest daughter, whose own plans will confront him with the difficult choice between his dreams and his children.
Cen, a friendly panda, is getting ready to have a Christmas party with his friends. Nonetheless, he is not aware that the Devil is watching him from the depths of the woods, and steals his piñata when he gets distracted.
A film essay that explores, through collage, the sense of detachment from space and the body itself, as both are part of a common symbolic territory.
In the darkness of the forest in the valley of Mexico, a little rabbit goes out to look for food. However, the sounds of the forest activate his survival instinct and make him fall prey to a panic attack. His fear comes to life in his shadow through chilling visions that force him to reach a primal state of fight or flight. In this state, the little rabbit will discover the nature of violence and its intrinsic connection to fear by naturally becoming that which he fears.
Líli, a young woman who lives in Mexico City, to get home she has to travel by subway at night to get home. On one of her endless journeys, she realizes that someone or something is chasing her. When Lilí tries to get away, she thinks that she will find protection in a convinince store.
Touching, growing, caring, dancing. Seedlings climbing around fingertips, birds morphing into humans. But the tender touches slowly fade as the shadows grow and the witches of the forest start to disappear. Rooted in patriarchal violence, history keeps repeating itself.
A group of children in the Mayan village of San José Oriente spend their days riding motorcycles and playing soccer, but one of them, David, has other plans. Short film made during the Playlab Films Creator's Lab 2023 in Yucatán, México, with the guidance of Apichatpong Weerasethakul.
Since 1964 almost 250,000 people have disappeared in Mexico and over 100,000 have not been found. Thousands of people across the country are still looking for their loved ones, especially mothers who will not rest until they find their children.
What does the greening of Antarctica mean for seemingly remote places like Mexico? La m archa del l iquen tells the story of Antarctica's glaciers, its encounter with the sea, and the advance of lichen and moss. Meanwhile, on the Mexican coast, a community is forced to leave behind only a few memories.
On July 22, 2017, in San Antonio, Texas, police found a truck in a Walmart parking lot with 39 illegal immigrants in its bed. A tractor had been transporting them undetected from the border town of Laredo to San Antonio. Because the cooling system inside the truck failed, resulting in extreme heat, eight people died during the transport, and two others succumbed to dehydration in the hospital.
In a small place in the Highlands of Chiapas, a Tsotsil girl who will give birth for the first time, invokes the memories of the women who preceded her in order to face this moment and discover motherhood from the cosmovision of her world.
Eva is in the safest place in the country, according to the coordinates given to her in a revelation, where she builds a bunker. Water shortages, insecurity, and desolation threaten her survival.
To fullfill his responsibilities or defying his brother and embarking on a small three-wheeled adventure-that's the dilemma for a 10-year-old boy on a lonely coast in Mexico.
Jumping into his memories, Amos relives the conversations he had with his late friend, Vogel. In the reunions, he will see the spark of their relationship, as well as the encrypted assistance his best friend sought in the form of a question: How long do clouds live?
Damien returns injured to the apartment he lived with Orlando. The two avoid talking about what happened but the momories that nestle all over the place they once made their own are present. The longing for the idyllic past becomes anguish for both of them, who are forced to live together once again.
On a ranch in northern Mexico, Luisito, an 8-year-old boy, goes unnoticed by his family and invokes his father's presence with the clothes he left behind before he died. Once his mother decided to get rid of the clothes and give them to a migrant, to whom the family has been hosting, Luisito will be able to experience the grief that has been denied to him.
A charming cowboy rescues Fernando from the streets of East LA, and he must end the love of his early life and make a new connection with his family.
Sebastián (16) is from Venezuela and arrives at a shelter for teenage migrants. There he meets Aurora (17), a girl from Guatemala. He falls in love of her. Both are waiting for a response to their asylum request. Time is running out and farewell is inevitable.
Fugazi and Samuel, two young people surrendered to life, spend their last days watching the city be taken over by the Citizen Reformation. Meanwhile, in the darkness of the streets, a revolution is organized in punk music concerts.
Throughout a night out in downtown Tijuana, Laura waits for her destiny to arrive.
Siblings who spend their days arguing over trivial matters find themselves at a breaking point where their brotherhood is put to the test.
Two brothers and a father postpone their arrival at Grandma Elena's house, where the first Christmas after her death is celebrated.
"Always Return" narrates the arrival in Mexico of Clara (27), a single mother, and her daughter Ana (4), two Venezuelan migrants who, in search of a better life, migrate to Mexico City.
A young Mexican woman navigates the emotions and challenges of becoming a mother in the 90s, while also trying to keep her younger brother under control.
Miriam is a 13-year-old girl who lives with her mother and her baby brother. Being abandoned by her stepfather, her mother has fallen into postpartum depression, leaving Miriam as the only one responsible for her baby brother Noé. One morning Miriam skips school to take care of Noé and her mother, when her best friend Natalia invites her to a gathering at Diego's house (the boy Miriam likes). Miriam tries to put Noé to sleep so she can go to the gathering, but he refuses. Pressured by her mother to make Noah shut up, Miriam gives him a sleeping pill. With Noé finally asleep, Miriam escapes to the party where she gets to kiss Diego. The next morning, back at home, Miriam discovers that Noé doesn't wake up. Miriam believes she has killed him, so she decides to drown with him in the bathtub. Surprisingly, Noé awakes underwater, causing Miriam to get them out and continue facing a life that doesn't seem more hopeful, but -perhaps- less lonely
The hawk boy believes he has the power in his eyes to be enlightened. His transfiguration into a bird of prey leads him to fly over a burning territory in search of carrion for the pack. In his attempt to please the clan, the predator gets so close to the fire that he thinks he has gone blind, or has he entered a dream in which he is vanishing within the smoke?
Kamikaze bird that has embarked on a journey to a savage place of no return. A representation of the state of overflowing violence brought from drug trafficking through the oneiric vision of a marginal teenager recruited by a cartel.
Two teenage girls try to meet their favorite soccer player, but the plan is threatened when one of them gets her first period.
Alejandra decides to end her relationship with Marcos, who does not accept it and tries to force her to continue in the relationship. Without being able to tell anyone else what she is going through, she will have to flee from this situation.
A heartbroken Mexico City rapper seeks solace in freestyle sessions, finding support in her community. Embracing unconventional healing, she rediscovers her lyrical prowess, achieving liberation through transformation.
After Arturo's passing in a biking accident, delivery drivers Saul, Cesar and Adrian must work together and raise money to repatriate his body back to Puebla, Mexico.
"Sofia" is a short film about a divorced woman with a 7-year-old son on the Asperger's spectrum. Struggling financially, she decides to sell their house, symbolizing their past life. This choice catalyzes her journey of growth and acceptance, driven by her love for her son.
Ramiro is a young addict admitted to a rehabilitation center. At first he can't fit in, but little by little his experiences in that clinic and the words of the other inmates will make him see his reality.
Emmanuel receives the news that his father won't be able to pick him up after school, so he must return to the taxi that his mother requested. However, not realizing it, he gets into the wrong car, which leads him to put his life in danger. He manages to escape from the fake driver and when he gets home he reflects on his own life and his faith in religion.
Daniel arrives at school wearing brand-new sneakers from America, gifted to him by his father. When he sees another boy wearing the same sneakers, he begins to suspect that their shoes are the key to a terrible secret.
A loss adjuster attempts to escape the catastrophic and corrupt scenarios he confronts daily by acting in a play. This ends up taking a higher toll on him than his own work, forcing him to embark on a journey of self-discovery as he reflects on the parallels between real tragedy and staged drama.
A frantic gaze runs through the convulsed Mexico City, a colossal metropolis sustained by the myth of miscegenation and other colonial violence. Past and present weave a flurry of images; fragmented memories of this territory.
In Mexico's heartland, a community is torn apart when three children die due to a rare form of cancer. A group of women determined to uncover the cause, expose radioactivity in their water, setting the stage for a battle against authorities who repeatedly undercut their efforts.
The news that teacher Celeste will be leaving her class has plunged the children into sadness, as she only has a few days left before moving to another school. Together they live a month of September full of movements, directions and revelations, in the endearing universe of a classroom in a town in Mexico.
In the mountains of Los Altos de Chiapas, the shepherdesses live in deep bond with the mountains. As you descend, a city spreads out in a valley that was once a large wetland, and the mountains that shelter it are suffering the strongest devastation they have ever experienced. Do we belong to a place? or Does a place belong to us? Like a ball of yarn that starts to unravel, this question unfolds a series of connections; from the link to the Tzotzil women with nature to the reflection of one's own work as a documentary filmmaker.
"Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus" is a feature documentary about the life and music of singer-songwriter Diane Luckey, also known as Q Lazzarus. Q sang the hit song "Goodbye Horses" which appeared in the Jonathan Demme films Married to the Mob and Silence of the Lambs, and had a brief moment of fame in the late 1980s/early 1990s before mysteriously disappearing for 30 years.
In San Pedro Amuzgos, Oaxaca, where weaving is not only a way of life but the main economic export, the importance of tradition and the responsibility of legacy are explored in this reflective debut feature by Ismael Vásquez Bernabé.
Following the death of her brother, filmmaker Robie Flores returns to her hometown Eagle Pass on the Texas/Mexico border, wanting to turn back time. She collides with unruly experiences of adolescence – quinceañeras, Rio Grande river excursions, teen makeovers and beyond – that invite her to soak up the details of the home her brother adored and she ignored. What emerges is a playful dance between a personal and collective coming-of-age portrait of kids on the border and Robie herself as she rediscovers the possibilities of joy in the aftermath of grief.
The fears, dreams and fantasies of the children of a small town called Lachatao transport us to live their daily lives with them and accompany them to imagine what their future will be.
At 63, newly freed César Fierro must rebuild his life after being wrongfully convicted in Texas 40 years earlier. In this documentary, the audience accompanies Fierro on his journey, observing his often painful transition back into society.
A reflection on the concept of invisibility, narrated by women who clean public spaces in Mexico City. Combining documentary, fiction and still photography, the film is an intimate mosaic of testimonies and experiences that highlight the precariousness of work in the cleaning industry.
Two elders from the Otomí tradition have preserved their language, rituals and beliefs thanks to their commitment to the dreams. In a world where the metaphorical is as crucial as the material, the voices of these sages become a guide and a bridge between distant poles of knowledge. His reflections and their singing tradition portrait a landscape as inclusive as the air we breathe.
Abril decided to become a single mother, return to her village and take on the responsibility of community service without knowing that, during her work, the community will have to make a historic decision: to oppose or support a mega mining project, promoted by the State. While this is happening, Abril begins a sexual-affective relationship with a young man ten years younger than her.
The life in the kitchen of a restaurant in New York City where cultures from all over the world blend during the lunchtime rush.
A horror story that intertwines four tales on a fishing island in Lake Pátzcuaro, Michoacán, where an evil lake spirit haunts the inhabitants, casting a dark shadow over their lives.
Gabriel, a devoted and loving single father, is thrown into turmoil when his mother announces she is selling the house they lived in for years. This news stirs up deep emotions and reopens the void left by the absence of his own father, Arturo.
ALF returns to his Catholic school and encounters a new student, OLIVER, who captivates him, leading him away from his lifelong friends. Yet, when faced with adversity, Alf betrays this attraction, opting to display his masculinity to his friends. This choice results in dire consequences that will leave an indelible mark on them all for life.
Lázaro, Luisa and Francisco, in their forties, live in Mexico City. Friends, they also form a loving trio. Nothing gives it away, as their exchanges are emptied of any affection. Prosaic, contradictory, repetitive, they diffuse a slight unease as much as they produce a comic effect. The first movement of Lázaro de noche shows their ordinary daily life punctuated by comical casting scenes, for a film about which we will know nothing, except the method of its director to audition them: observation. With Lázaro de noche , Nicolás Pereda continues his enterprise initiated more than fifteen years ago with his faithful community of actor friends. He brings them together in a mutant film with an unparalleled tone, in which he articulates images of the banal and the marvelous, and thereby explores the limits of realism, inspired by the words of the Argentinian writer César Aira. During a dinner that brings together the three protagonists, a change of camera angle and the emergence of a voice from the past plunge the film into another space-time, that of memory. Barely have they met in a writing workshop and the beginnings of their ballet of love been sketched out, when the evocation of the tale of Aladdin written at the time by Luisa projects the story into a third level of fiction and representation. Lázaro and his mother Teresita now embody Aladdin and his mother, in a profane variation of the tale, a fairy tale of raw triviality. If, over the course of its transformations, Lázaro de noche moves away from reality – from reality to memory, from memory to tale – it is without sacrificing any of its tangible materiality; the film seems to become disenchanted as it re-enchants itself. And if reading Aladdin is surprising - because, by making the same wish for food repeatedly, the hero "refuses to make the causal leap of magic and chooses the step by step of reality" (César Aira) -, Nicolás Pereda, himself, invites us to find the magic in this same step by step.
A contemporary story about life in a Chatino town and the effects of migration on it.
When a cartel gunman is killed, he leaves behind Sujo, his beloved 4-year-old son. The shadow of violence surrounds Sujo during each stage of his life in the isolated Mexican countryside. As he grows into a man, Sujo finds that fulfilling his father's destiny may be inescapable.
A breathtaking film and the second collaboration of filmmakers Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez (Identifying Features), Sujo recenters stories of cartel violence by exploring its aftermath, the collateral damage, and its orphans. With lyrical intensity and a penetrating humanity, it offers a moving, contemporary coming-of-age portrait of Sujo, a young man named after a strong-willed horse, and the way his identity, consciousness, and moral character are shaped through various episodes — by the women who protect him, the boys lured toward their fathers' fates, the mentorship of a teacher — as if they are seasons in his growth. A rich tapestry of motifs reflects on how cycles are formed and broken. As a gunman's son, is Sujo's fate governed by circumstance or by something innate, akin to his spirited namesake?—JN
A graffiti artist and the singer of a punk band, meet in an atmosphere of profound social crisis and discontent. Their idealistic and revolutionary minds seek a more just world, and they are willing to fight for it. Music and street art unite them and serve as their weapons. Naive and innocent, they are unaware of the power of impunity and injustice until they fall victims to police brutality. He is left battered and unconscious, while she is abducted, awakening the unimaginable rage of those who have nothing left to lose. When justice is absent, revenge becomes an act of faith.