FREEING JUANITA
Preceded by ASTRONAUTA
DIRECTOR
Sebastián Lasaosa Rogers
SHOWTIME
October 2 @ 6:30PM
TYPE
Documentary
THEATRE
Emerson Paramount Center
RUNNING TIME
74 minutes
LANGUAGES
Spanish with English subtitles
COUNTRY
USA/Mexico/Guatemala
RELEASE DATE
2024
Juanita has been unjustly detained in Reynosa, Mexico for over seven years, accused of a crime she didn’t commit and forced to confess in a language she didn’t understand. This intimate portrait follows Ana and Pedro, Juanita’s aunt and uncle, on their thousand-mile journey from the highlands of Guatemala. With the help of their Maya Chuj community and a network of Maya interpreters, they fight for Juanita’s freedom and demand justice from the Mexican authorities, a cause that became internationally recognized for its defense of migrants’ rights and language justice.
Festivals:
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Seattle International Film Festival (Nominee, Documentary Competition Award)
ASTRONAUTA
Directed by Giorgio Giampà
Narrative, 10 mins, Guatemala, 2025
Spanish with English subtitles
Audely, 39, works as a lumberjack in the Guatemalan jungle. At home, his daughter Carol, 11, dreams of entering that same forest. Audely thinks about it, then goes to the moon.
Q&A with filmmakers in attendance