Canadian Premiere
In the arid desert of southern Spain, a labourer and recovering alcoholic, Eladio, with his beloved wife and young son, takes residence as the gamekeeper of a rural ranch. Three years into his tenure the family is on the brink of destitution. Forced to take a bribe to make ends meet, Eladio lets a hunting party make an unsafe hunt, and pays the a terrible price. Wracked with guilt, Eladio’s world begins to deteriorate as the debt comes due on his bargain. Director F. Javier Gutierrez brings his horror muscle to bear on what is fundamentally a rich character study and a felt tragedy. Sun-blistered cinematography, and the uneasy emptiness of the scorched Spanish country fuse elements of westerns, thrillers, visceral body horror, and psychological drama into a fresh Faustian folk tale.
Series Media Partner
Víctor Clavijo, Ruth Díaz, Moisés Ruiz, Manuel Morón, Antonio Estrada
Spain
2023
Altered States
In Spanish with English subtitles
Graphic Violence, Self Harm, Drug & Alcohol Abuse
At International Village
At The Rio
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits
Producer
Adrián Guerra, Antonio P. Pérez, F. Javier Gutiérrez
Screenwriter
F. Javier Gutierrez
Cinematography
Miguel A. Mora
Editor
F. Javier Gutierrez
Production Design
F. Javier Gutierrez
Original Music
Zeltia Montes
Director
F. Javier Gutierrez
F. Javier Gutierrez is an award-winning filmmaker whose filmography crosses genres of horror, sci-fi and thriller. Before the Fall, Javier’s first feature, premiered in the the Berlin Film Festival. Rings, the third installment of The Ring franchise, opened #2 in the US box office and grossed $83M worldwide. Javier is member of the Directors Guild of America, and the European Film Academy, and serves as President of DR. T Producciones (Spain), and Unfiled Films (USA).
Filmography: Before the Fall (2008); Rings (2017)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
A Poet
When embittered poet Oscar Restrepo takes a job at a local high school, he meets Yurlady, a talented student from a poor background. Seeking to help her cultivate her art, he draws her into the poetry world — to disastrous and comedic results.
The Painted Life of E.J. Hughes
A beautiful portrait of E.J. Hughes, who quietly helped reshape the artistic landscape of British Columbia in the 20th century. This extraordinary documentary explores Hughes’s legacy not only as an artist, but as a devoted, humble human being.
Spring After Spring
Three daughters strive to live up to the standards set by their mother Marie Mimi Ho, and keep Vancouver Chinatown's Spring Parade going through thick and thin, in this enormously affectionate local documentary by Jon Chiang.
Seeds
Shot over nine years, Brittany Shyne’s Sundance-winning documentary is a tender portrait of Black farming families in the American South. A moving meditation on land, legacy, and the strength it takes to hold on.
Sound of Falling
A remote German farmhouse is the stage for the mundane and magical experiences of four girls who call the foreboding place home at various intervals over the course of a century. In turns delicate and devastating, this is cinema at its most experiential.
Image: © Fabian Gamper
Mr. Nobody Against Putin
Nominated for the Academy Award for Best Documentary, and Special Jury Prize Winner, Sundance, 2025, this exposé shot by a Russian primary teacher shows how the Putin propaganda machine works to militarize children.