On 26 October, the Centre for Screen Cultures, in collaboration with the St Andrews Centre for Amerindian, Latin American, and Carribean Studies (CAS), hosted a screening of Tiempo de Lluvia, by Mexican-Dutch director Itandehui Jansen. The screening was followed by a roundtable featuring the film’s director, Dr Ana Gutierrez Garza (CAS Director), Dr Isabel Segui (Film Studies) and Dr Fernanda Mino (Film Studies).
Tiempo de Lluvia is a powerful story of economic migration between rural and urban Mexico. Soledad is a matriarch and traditional healer whose daughter Adele left their village to work in Mexico City leaving behind her infant son. Years later, Soledad and her grandson Jose share a strong bond rooted in their love of culture and land. As she continues to pass on her knowledge and teachings to him, she receives an unexpected call that her daughter is getting married and intends for Jose to join them in the city. Fearing an uncertain future for them both, Soledad struggles to cope with her impending heartbreak as she awaits her daughter’s return.
Itandehui Jansen studied film directing at the Netherlands Film and Television Academy in Amsterdam. She has participated in different selective international training programmes, such as the BERLINALE TALENTS and the TORINO FILM LAB. Her films have screened at international festivals such as the IDFA (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam), The World Cinema Festival in Amsterdam, The Morelia International Film Festival, ZINEBI, and SLAMDANCE. Her short film The Last Council won several international awards and was nominated for the Mexican Film Critics Award Diosa de Plata. At present she is an Associate Professor in Film Practice at Screen Academy Scotland.