Embrace of the Serpent (El abrazo de la serpiente), dir. Ciro Guerra, 2015, 125 min. — Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela. A breathtaking ethnographic odyssey through the heart of the Colombia Amazon, Embrace of the Serpent is the epic story of the first contact, approach, betrayal and, eventually, friendship.

Mixteco Knot (Nudo Mixteco), dir. Ángeles Cruz, 2021, 91 min. — Mexico. Taking place in a rural Mixtec village in Oaxaca, southern Mexico, Nudo Mixteco follows the return of María, Esteban, and Toña, each from a different direction. Each of them has a different reason for coming back, just like each had a different reason to leave in the […]

Ixcanul, Volcano (Ixcanul, Volcán), dir. Jayro Bustamante, 2015, 91 min. — France, Guatemala. Maria, a 17 year old Maya girl, lives and works with her parents on a coffee plantation in the foothills of an active volcano in Guatemala. An arranged marriage awaits her: her parents have promised her to Ignacio, the plantation overseer. But Maria […]

Bad Influence (Mala junta), dir. Claudia Huaiquimilla, 2016, 89 min. — Chile. Rebellious Tano is sent from Santiago to Southern Chile under the custody of his father whom he has not seen in years. In his new school, he meets Cheo, a shy boy who gets bullied for his indigenous origins.

Who Is Dayani Cristal? (¿Quién es Dayani Cristal?), dir. Marc Silver, 2014, 85 min. — Mexico, United States. Deep in the sub-blistered Sonora desert beneath a cicada tree, Arizona border police discover a decomposing male body. Lifting a tattered T-shirt, they expose a tattoo that reads “Dayani Cristal.” Who is this person? What brought him here? […]