SILVER

[AÑIL]
In this powerful hybrid documentary, filmmaker Julio López Fernández carefully combines the testimony of victims of sexual violence during the Salvadoran Civil War with reenactments, performance art and historical information about the color indigo. Using a troupe of three actresses, López Fernández re-creates the stories of two women who faced such violence at the hands of both the armed forces and the guerrillas. Breaking the silence on these incidents helps bring justice to those who never received any and heal wounds that remain open all these years later. The film juxtaposes these crimes with the exploitation of El Salvador's land and its lifeblood, the xiuquilit plant. Dating back to the Mayans, this sacred plant was used to extract indigo. This "blue gold" helped define the country's finances and borders and remains at the essence of a people who have stayed resilient, even in the face of violence and upheaval. Based on the research conducted by Dr. Paula Cuellar Cuellar for her upcoming book manuscript: “Salvadoran Women Speak: Female Accounts of Their Struggle Within a Revolution, 1981-1992.” Best Central American Documentary, 2023 Ícaro International Film Festival; Best Documentary, 2024 Chicago Latino Film Festival. DIR/PROD Julio López Fernández. PROD Paula Cuellar Cuellar, Liliana Flamenco, Daniela Maya Aguirre. El Salvador, 2023, color, 65 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. NOT RATED

No AFI Member passes accepted.