2013

Tito, a young boy, lives on the streets of La Paz, Bolivia, but when his shoeshine box is stolen, he is left with no means of survival. Collapsed on a bench, a vision of another reality comes to him, where a mysterious woman leads him along ancient Inca paths and teaches him the ways of the ancestors. Meanwhile, the city itself explodes in a social uprising, as the indigenous population make a stand for their rights and the police answer with tear gas and bullets. Tito’s personal struggle for peace becomes a profound reflection of the need for a greater social awakening.

Tito, a young boy, lives on the streets of La Paz, Bolivia, but when his shoeshine box is stolen, he is left with no means of survival. Collapsed on a bench, a vision of another reality comes to him, where a mysterious woman leads him along ancient Inca paths and teaches him the ways of the ancestors. Meanwhile, the city itself explodes in a social uprising, as the indigenous population make a stand for their rights and the police answer with tear gas and bullets. Tito’s personal struggle for peace becomes a profound reflection of the need for a greater social awakening.

In the Cuban village of Melaza, the least of a couple’s worries is to find a private place to make love. The once prosperous sugar mill has been shut down, and the local economy has come to a standstill. Monica, the only worker left at the mill, and Aldo, a swimming teacher without a functioning pool, live in a one-room house with Monica’s daughter and her grandmother. They urgently need to make some extra money, but the safest options open to them are rapidly disappearing.

In the Cuban village of Melaza, the least of a couple’s worries is to find a private place to make love. The once prosperous sugar mill has been shut down, and the local economy has come to a standstill. Monica, the only worker left at the mill, and Aldo, a swimming teacher without a functioning pool, live in a one-room house with Monica’s daughter and her grandmother. They urgently need to make some extra money, but the safest options open to them are rapidly disappearing.

A family lives off the land, selling fruit to tourists at a humble roadside stall by a motorway that crosses a rural community in the Brazilian Amazon. Unlike his carefree older brother Juliano, Jonathas is an exemplary son, dedicated to his studies and to helping his parents make a living. Lured into a camping trip by his brother and by the sensuality of a Ukrainian girl, his life poignantly changes as he enters the realm of the powerful and deceiving rainforest. A beautifully shot drama of faith and nature, tradition and youth. - Vitor Borba

Juan’s passion is bodybuilding, but he earns his living working in a garment factory where he is constantly bullied by his boss and co-workers for his muscular physique. He keeps to himself and quietly dreams of quitting to set up his own gym. But first, he needs to come up with the money. One night, Juan witnesses a crime. Stunned and confused, he must contemplate what to do with the information now in his possession.

A family lives off the land, selling fruit to tourists at a humble roadside stall by a motorway that crosses a rural community in the Brazilian Amazon. Unlike his carefree older brother Juliano, Jonathas is an exemplary son, dedicated to his studies and to helping his parents make a living. Lured into a camping trip by his brother and by the sensuality of a Ukrainian girl, his life poignantly changes as he enters the realm of the powerful and deceiving rainforest. A beautifully shot drama of faith and nature, tradition and youth. - Vitor Borba.

Juan’s passion is bodybuilding, but he earns his living working in a garment factory where he is constantly bullied by his boss and co-workers for his muscular physique. He keeps to himself and quietly dreams of quitting to set up his own gym. But first, he needs to come up with the money. One night, Juan witnesses a crime. Stunned and confused, he must contemplate what to do with the information now in his possession.

Chocó is 27 years old; she has two children, a tiny hut on the edge of a Colombian village, an underpaid job in a gold mine, a second job laundering clothes, and a marimba-playing husband who gambles away their money and forces himself onto her at night when he’s had too much to drink. Nonetheless, Chocó is a fighter and she is determined to make a better life for her family. As her daughter’s seventh birthday approaches, Chocó promises to buy her a cake. However, fulfilling that promise proves to be much more difficult than expected.

Chocó is 27 years old; she has two children, a tiny hut on the edge of a Colombian village, an underpaid job in a gold mine, a second job laundering clothes, and a marimba-playing husband who gambles away their money and forces himself onto her at night when he’s had too much to drink. Nonetheless, Chocó is a fighter and she is determined to make a better life for her family. As her daughter’s seventh birthday approaches, Chocó promises to buy her a cake. However, fulfilling that promise proves to be much more difficult than expected.