A new Venezuelan film at the Miami Film Festival depicts a story of loss and escape that paints a sobering picture of the country鈥檚 reality during the deadly nationwide protests of 2017.
It Would Be Night in Caracas follows Adelaida, a 38-year-old woman who just lost her mother and faces a collapsing city and an invasion of her home by regime loyalists. She鈥檚 forced to give up her identity and everything she stands for to reach safety.
Mariana Rond贸n, who co-directed the movie with Marit茅 Ug谩s, hopes the plot and its historical background resonate with a Venezuelan community and international diaspora that continues to grapple with a crumbling nation.
鈥淗istorically, these types of movies about complex political situations end up getting made years after the situation passes,鈥� said Rond贸n, a native of Barquisimeto, Venezuela. 鈥淲e are making this movie while it is still night in Caracas.鈥�
The film 鈥� titled A煤n es de Noche en Caracas, in its original Spanish title 鈥� features Natalia Reyes in the lead role, with renowned Venezuelan actor 脡dgar Ram铆rez, who's been in major Hollywood movies like Point Break and Wrath of the Titans, both starring and producing. It's based on a book by Karina Sainz Borgo, which portrayed the unrest and violent protests in Venezuela during the constitutional crisis of 2017.
READ MORE: 'Jim Crow Goes to Haiti鈥�: Filmmaker unpacks 19 years of U.S. occupation of Haiti in new documentary
That January, amid food scarcity and a growing economic crisis, the socialist Venezuelan government arrested opposition leaders, cancelled diplomatic dialogue and later dissolved the opposition-led National Assembly, leading to thousands taking the streets in every major city.
Over 74 days of protests, and at the hands of security services and the military. Footage from social media and studies from international groups like Amnesty International outlined indiscriminate violence such as government security groups throwing tear gas into houses and randomly shooting at passers-by during protests.
Recreating Caracas
Ahead of the film's shoot, Rond贸n and a creative team went to modern-day Caracas 鈥� a in itself, given the anti-regime nature of the film 鈥� to study the architecture, lighting and urban landscaping for a faithful recreation in their Mexico City set.
鈥淲e found a location [in Mexico] that we felt accomplished [the similarity]. We took pictures and looked for three Venezuelan architects in Mexico City. We lied to them and told them 鈥楲ook at this picture, this is Caracas. Help me find a place like this in Mexico,鈥� and they all said it was impossible to find,鈥� Rond贸n said. 鈥淭hat's how we knew we had the right place.鈥�
Rond贸n said every minuscule detail mattered to make the movie immersive. The granite floors of the apartment, flooring that was common in Venezuelan architecture, were painted on. As was a modified replica of the iconic floor of the Sim贸n Bol铆var International Airport, originally painted by artist Carlos Cruz-Diez.
In addition to these faithful sets, Rond贸n said they also used footage from settings in Caracas like El 脕vila peak to immerse the viewer. Scenes of violent protests outside Adelaida鈥檚 apartment were also combined with real footage of the 2017 protests showing the government鈥檚 brutality against the masses, like a scene where an armored vehicle runs over protesters in the street.
鈥淲e combined [footage] with archive material so that when you feel the film, when you see the film you feel the same energy from both materials, and mostly for our Venezuelan viewers to feel that the film was happening in Caracas,鈥� said co-director Ug谩s.
Rond贸n said she was in Caracas at the time, but even she could not believe some of the stories from people who were arrested or detained.
鈥淭here were things of a magnitude and horror that we didn鈥檛 have the ability to imagine, and we thought it was important that the story was as loyal as it could be to what was happening then,鈥� she said.
This is seen in scenes like conversations between the main character and her friend鈥檚 brother, who details the physical and psychological torture he was put through when he was arrested by the government armed paramilitary groups, the colectivos. Or in a scene that shows that when people were being arrested, they would yell out their names and ID card numbers so neighbors could look for their families and notify them.
Connecting with Venezuelan migrants
Though intricately woven into the political unrest of Venezuela at the time, the story of Adelaida is also a more quiet, personal story about grief and loss.
By telling an emotional, fictional story in the context of that reality, the filmmakers hoped to also connect with American and international audiences who may not be as familiar with the realities of Venezuela's dictatorship and the recent history of attempts to end it.
鈥淭his is a movie about loss. About the loss of a mother, the loss of a love, the loss of a home, the loss of identity and the loss of a country,鈥� Ug谩s said.
Told between violent scenes outside Adelaida鈥檚 apartment in Caracas and flashbacks from her childhood between the city and coastal town Ocumare de la Costa, the film gives a detailed look into the reality of many Venezuelans. Especially those who have had to flee the country over the past two decades.
Rond贸n and Ug谩s did a tour of screenings through Europe in the past few months, and they said at every screening there were Venezuelans who would raise their hand and say, 鈥淭his is my life. I鈥檓 the one in the airport, I鈥檓 the one paying for a fake passport, I鈥娾�檓 the one getting on the truck to cross the border.鈥�
鈥淔rom the day we started the movie, we asked ourselves the question 鈥業s doing anything to survive the same as saving yourself?鈥欌�� Rond贸n said. 鈥淚 think not. And that鈥檚 what migrating is: you survive, but you don鈥檛 save yourself.鈥�
IF YOU GO
What: It Would be Night in Caracas
When: Saturday April 18 at 3 p.m.
Where: Olympia Theater 174 E Flagler St, Miami.
For more information, click
