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Before Birth film image, co-directors Álex Mena and Carmen Jiménez

Before Birth

Antes de nacer

World Premiere

A documentary/diary film that focuses on one of the directors, Álex Mena, who journeys to her grandmother’s village looking for a closure never realized after she died. This is a beautiful farewell letter that explores the symbiotic relationship between memory and place, and our evolving perception of love after a death. The film poses as many questions as it answers about life’s transient nature and our journey through it, all framed by the minute details of the village and surroundings and a mix of voice-over thoughts and conversations.

 

Community Partner

Directors
Credits
Country of Origin

Spain

Year

2022

Language

In Spanish with English subtitles

Film Contact
20 min

Featured in:

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International Shorts: Personal Journeys

The films in this shorts program are all about discovery. Beautiful and thought-provoking voyages of internal and external discovery that honour relations and history, while encountering stimuli that promote a new understanding of self.

 

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Credits

Producer

Andrea Gautier

Screenwriter

Álex Mena

Cinematography

Almudena Sánchez

Editor

Maia De Zan

Directors

Carmen Jiménez headshot, Before Birth co-director

Carmen Jiménez

Carmen Jiménez is a screenwriter and director who has developed shows for Suma Content, Netflix, and Legendary, among others, and is currently working on a British/Spanish series with producer Tanya Seghatchian (The Crown). She is the writer of the Sony International feature Adiós (2019) and the US/Portugal TV show Vanda. Carmen has directed several short films with successful international festival runs, and was awarded by the Directors Guild of America, among others.

Álex Mena headshot, Before Birth co-director

Álex Mena

Álex Mena is a photographer and designer with a multitude of individual and collective exhibitions to her credit. She has been an assistant to the photographer and activist Angélica Dass, and manager and coordinator of fairs and exhibitions at the Elvira González Gallery in Madrid, among other activities related to the world of art. She currently combines her work as a UX/UI designer with the development of her last two projects, Hieratic White and Before Birth.