Valentina or the Serenity

In her follow-up feature to 2021’s award-winning “Nudo Mixteco” (CIFF46), Indigenous Mexican filmmaker Ángeles Cruz explores our complex relationship with loss through the eyes of a young Mixtecan girl who, in her heart, refuses to believe her recently deceased father has truly left this earthly realm.

Unable to accept her father’s death, Valentina immerses herself into her world of make believe, embodying her favorite superhero, Kandi, who has the power to create thunder and lightning. Avoiding the hard truths of the outside world, Valentina constantly embarks on missions in her cape to search for her father, calling out for him to return, which becomes unbearable for her mother who is grieving the loss of her husband. After learning that her father drowned in a nearby river, she begins to skip school to visit him, believing that he is speaking to her through the water. Isolating herself from her family and friends, Valentina must find a way back to her loved ones and to herself. A beautiful tale of loss, grief, and the journey to acceptance, VALENTINA OR THE SERENITY follows this vivacious young dreamer as she rediscovers the love that still surrounds her.  —G.S.