Santa, an eight-year-old girl from the desolate Bolivian Altiplano, embarks on a rollercoaster journey to take her mother from a life of misery into paradise. The two of them made a pact: when her mother passes, the girl would follow the stars and carry her body across the desert toward heaven, a place they are certain is physically real. Crossing the wilderness, Santa encounters a group of female wrestlers that help her on her way. Also, a gruff policeman who arrests Santa but soon suspects she has magical powers. He decides that to achieve his own salvation he must join Santa on her quest beyond the horizon.
Cinematography
The Altiplano looks like another planet — harsh, holy, endless.
Acting
Fernanda Gutiérrez Aranda carries the impossible with zero filter.
Writing
Treats a child's logic as sacred, not naive — radical move.
Director
Alberto Sciamma
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The cholitas luchadoras are real Bolivian icons — indigenous women in traditional dress who became wrestling stars, subverting class and gender expectations.
Director Sciamma shot chronologically across actual salt flats, so Fernanda's exhaustion and sunburn are documented in real time — method directing a child.
GB
