PRAYERS FOR THE STOLEN (NOCHE DE FUEGO) World Cinema

Mexico Official International Feature Film Oscar^® Submission

Talent attending in-person screening: Tatiana Huezo (Director), Nicolas Celis (Producer), Jim Stark (Producer), Maya Scherr-Wilson (Executive Producer).

Neorealism is at its grittiest in this devastating narrative debut from documentary filmmaker Tatiana Huezo (TEMPESTAD). Ana lives in the mountains of Mexico where the violence of the drug cartel looms in the background and forces a rotation of teachers to flee from danger. When a local girl suddenly disappears, Ana and her two best friends must cut their hair short and wear baggy clothes to avoid being kidnapped. Despite this constant threat, the girls grow up together in a refuge of nature. Actresses Ana Cristina Ordóñez González and Marya Membreño give gripping performances as the protagonist at different ages. Huezo crafts a tour de force that is bold and uncanny in its depiction of girlhood in the menace of modern day. –Julia Kipnis