After the World Première as a Special Event at the Giornate degli autori, we had the pleasure to have a chat with the filmmaker and anthropologist Mónica Taboada-Tapia.
With her feature-length documentary “Alma del desierto“, Monica Taboada-Tapia bring us in La Guajira region, in Northern Colombia, where we meet Georgina Epiayu, a transgender Wayúu woman.
Mónica Taboada-Tapia has been filming Georgina along eight years, witnessing her attempts to acquire an identity card reflecting her gender.
Through Georgina’s quest, the filmmaker also intends to give a voice to the whole Wayuu community.
“Alma del desierto” is not only poetic and beautifully shot, but it is also relevant as an impact film in support of the LGBTQ+ rights.
The movie has just been awarded with the Queer Lion of the 81st Venice International Film Festival
Plot
In the arid landscapes of La Guajira, Colombia, Georgina, a transgender Wayúu woman in the third act of her life, knows that her time is running out and wants to change her existence. With nothing to lose, she sets out to meet her siblings, who don’t speak Spanish and barely survive on the fringes of the opaque Colombian bureaucratic system. Amid open wounds, memories, and unfathomable geographical and emotional distances, Georgina and her people agree that enough is enough. Alma del desierto emerges as a story of resilience, a symbol of hope, and a fervent struggle for justice.