SPOTLIGHT ON ÁNGELES CRUZ
«Cinema is that place where I can talk about what makes me uncomfortable»
Ángeles Cruz.
Like every year, VLAFF dedicates a Spotlight to an outstanding figure in Latin American cinema. In past years, personalities such as Manuela Martelli (Chilean actor), Juan Carlos Crematta (Cuban director), Anna Muylaert (Brazilian director), Andrés Duprat (Argentine screenwriter), among many others, have been honored at the Festival with a showcase of some of their most recognized films, for the 22nd edition of VLAFF, we have the honor of welcoming in Vancouver ÁNGELEZ CRUZ, a ñuu savi film Director (Oaxaca, Mexico).
Ángeles Cruz studied acting at the School of Theater Art of the National Institute of Fine Arts. She has participated as an actress in more than twenty national and international feature films with directors such as Ignacio Ortiz, Lucía Carreras, Jorge Pérez Solano and Francisco Vargas among others.
Ángeles began her journey as a screenwriter and director at the same time in 2012 with the short film LA TIRICIA OR HOW TO CURE SADNESS, her second script was LA CARTA, a short film that she wrote and directed in 2013. In 2018 she wrote and directed the short film ARCÁNGEL. NUDO MIXTECO, is her debut feature length feature, the script is also hers, it was filmed in the mountains of Oaxaca and Mexico City. Her second feature film, , VALENTINA OR THE SERENITY, is the closing film of VLAFF 2023
VLAFF has a special relationship with the cinema of Ángeles, her feature film NUDO MIXTECO, won the Festival’s Youth Jury Award (2021), VALENTINA OR THE SERENITY, won the main prize in our forum for unfinished films (Work in Progress for Afro -Indigenous voices, 2022). Both feature films, as well as her short film LA TIRICIA OR HOW TO CURE SADNESS will be the closing night film of VLAFF 2024.
Ángeles Cruz’s films have been screened at the most recognized International Film Festivals in the world, such as Toronto, San Sebastián or Rotterdam, and her work has been awarded at the Ariel Awards (Mexican Academy Film Awards), obtaining the Ariel for best short film on two occasions with LA TIRICIA OR HOW TO CURE SADNESS (2013) and ARCÁNGEL (2019), Ángeles also won the Ariel for Best First Feature Film for NUDO MIXTECO (2022). The Mexican Academy Awards have just announced their 2024 nominees, nominating VALENTINA OR THE SERENITY in three sections: Best Supporting Actress (Myriam Bravo), Best Screenplay Written Directly for the Screen (Ángeles Cruz) and Ariel Silver Award Newcomer/Actress (Danae Ahuja Aparicio).
NUDO MIXTECO
T+ kanu sa’a sau
Sunday, Sept 15 at 3:30 PM
The Cinematheque
(VLAFF Membership required)
Director: Ángeles Cruz
Mexico | 2021 | Spanish & Mixtec with English subtitles | 91 min | Drama
In a compelling and carefully crafted narrative, three women’s stories intertwine during the celebration of San Mateo, the patron saint of a Mixtec village in Oaxaca, Mexico. María returns home to bury her mother and face her father’s rejection. An unpleasant reunion awaits Chabela when her husband, Esteban, returns from the US, after not having heard from him in three years; Toña relives her own childhood pain when she suspects her daughter is facing the same fate as her. Self-reliant and defiant, all three women face a confrontation that leads to a powerful turning point in their lives.
Durante la fiesta patronal de San Mateo tres historias entrelazadas. María, vuelve para enterrar a su madre, su padre la confronta y corre del velorio, en la incertidumbre y el dolor, le propone a Piedad, su amor de infancia con quien recién se reencontró, irse con ella a la Ciudad de México. Esteban regresa después de tres años y se encuentra con que, en su ausencia, Chabela, su mujer, se juntó con otro hombre; molesto la somete a juicio ante la Asamblea comunitaria. Por su parte, Toña revive su propio dolor ante el abuso del que fue víctima en el pasado y ahora es la realidad que vive su hija, para protegerla tendrá que enfrentar a su familia. Historias que se cruzan en un pueblo de la mixteca oaxaqueña, regido por usos y costumbres.
“Nudo Mixteco represents Cruz finally at the lead of her own creative processes, one that has the potential to shift the narrative of Mexican cinema.”
-Madeline McSherry & Humberto J. Rocha, NACLA
Best Feature Film Debut, Ariel Awards, 2022
Emerging Filmmaker Award, Minneapolis St. Paul International Film Festival, 2021
Critics Jury Award, San Francisco International Film Festival, 2021
Official Selection, International Film Festival Rotterdam, 2021
THE DOLDRUMS OR HOW TO CURE SADNESS
La tiricia o de cómo curar la tristeza
Sunday, Sept 15 at 3:30 PM
The Cinematheque
Before Nudo Mixteco
(VLAFF Membership required)
Director: Ángeles Cruz
Mexico | 2012 | Spanish & Mixtec with English subtitles | 12 min | Drama
The doldrums are the disease of the soul when the heart saddens. A story of three generations in the doldrums: Ita, Justa and Alicia (grandmother, mother and daughter) who suffered, tolerated and permitted abuse, and the consequent disease. Alicia decides to break this circle and not pass it on to another generation.
La tiricia es la enfermedad del alma por la cual el corazón se entristece. Esta es la historia de tres generaciones tirisientas: Ita, Justa y Alicia (abuela, madre e hija) han padecido, tolerado y permitido el abuso, alentando con ello la enfermedad. Alicia decide romper con ese círculo y no heredarlo a la siguiente generación.
“El video de Ángeles Cruz es polifónico, sitúa que desde las negaciones, silencios y arbitrariedades del poder patriarcal, es posible subvertirlos, caminar hacia la autodeterminación erigida en el centro de la vida de las mujeres.”
-Nelly Balda Cabello, Los Tiempos
Best Short Fiction Film, Ariel Awards, 2013
La Palmita (Best Short), Tour de Cine Francés, Mexico, 2012
VALENTINA AND THE SERENITY
Valentina y la serenidad
Sunday, Sept 15 at 6:00 PM
The Cinematheque
Director: Ángeles Cruz
Mexico | 2023 | Spanish & Mixtec with English subtitles | 86 min | Drama | Rated PG
After Valentina’s father disappears in an accident, she puts all her efforts into believing that he is still alive. With the help of her friend Pedro, she searches for him everywhere, trying to conjure his existence. An intimate and moving look into the depths of loss and the curative power of love.
Valentina pierde a su padre en un accidente en el río, teniendo como herramienta su imaginación tratará de superar su duelo. No conforme con la explicación de que jamás lo volverá a ver, inicia su propia búsqueda, lo llama en la oscuridad, platica con él en el río, solo le responde un eco. Su amigo Pedro, será su ancla y su madre tratará de ser su contención hasta que Valentina entienda que su padre solo puede vivir en su corazón.
“Offers a refreshing take on death and grief by an industry mostly focused on the violent cartel-related deaths that affect the country.”
-Aldo Álvarez, International Cinephile Society
Golden Colón, Best Film, Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, 2023
Silver Colón, Best Actress, Huelva Ibero-American Film Festival, 2023
ÁNGELES CRUZ
A Ñuu Savi woman, Mexico. Her foray into scriptwriting and film direction started in 2012 with the short film “La tiricia o de cómo curar la tristeza” (The Doldrums or How to Cure Sadness). In 2013 “La Carta” (“The Letter”) and “Arcángel” (“Archangel”) in 2018. All of them produced by the Mexican Film Institute, IMCINE.
Her debut feature film “Nudo mixteco” (Mixtec Knot) premiered in 2021. Her films have been recognized both nationally and internationally. Her second feature-length film “Valentina or the serenity” has been filmed and is now in post-production.
With the support of:
