THE ECHO (EL ECO) Documentary

Mexican-Salvadoran filmmaker Tatiana Huezo (PRAYERS FOR THE STOLEN, AFI FEST 2021) makes a visually arresting return to nonfiction filmmaking with this immersive portrait of multi-generational family life in the remote Mexican highlands. Focusing on a tightknit trio of families, the film is named for the village where the families have farmed for generations, just hours from Mexico City but a world away in every other sense. Unfolding from the perspectives of the young women and children of El Eco, the film chronicles life’s many cycles — the seasons, the rhythm of planting and harvesting, death and birth — while painting a world in which women’s lives are inextricably linked to one another and to the land, as the men of the village remain on the periphery. Rebellious teen Montse tenderly cares for her grandmother while dreaming of racing horses and exploring the world; little Sarahi dreams of becoming a teacher in between learning the ropes on the family farm and attending school; and pre-teen Luz Maria goes about her daily chores, questioning her prescribed path as a young woman destined for marriage and child-rearing. A cinematic delight lensed by Huezo’s longtime collaborator Ernesto Pardo, THE ECHO allows viewers to live alongside these young people as they explore the world, both echoing the trajectories of previous generations and seeking to forge new paths into an uncertain future. –Abbie Algar