The movie They will not move us, by director Pierre Saint Martin, has won the Mezcal award for best Mexican film at the Guadalajara International Film Festival (FICG). The film has also obtained the award given by the public as favorite of the exhibition. The recognition ceremony was held this Saturday in an event after six in the afternoon in the capital of Jalisco, which concluded nine days of film premieres and renowned guests within a showcase with more than 200 films that included filmography from Mexico, Europe and the rest of the American continent.
The debut feature of Mexican director Saint Martin presents the story of Socorro, played by Luisa Huertas, a stubborn lawyer who is obsessed with finding the soldier who killed her brother during the 1968 massacre in Tlatelolco. This need for justice masks an old guilt that has alienated her sister Esperanza and distanced her from her son Jorge. After decades of waiting, the protagonist receives the missing clue to find the soldier, which leads her to conjure an absurd revenge plan, putting her property, her family and even her own life at risk.
The film had its world premiere during the Cinélatino Festival from Toulouse, in France, a meeting focused on Latin American productions, last March, where it won three awards: the Student Fiction Prize, the Critics’ Prize and the Best Fiction Prize.
“Luisa Huertas generated the heart and soul of a film that affects many Mexicans, especially me because it involves my family. The award is dedicated to people who were part of the generation of ’68, who lost a loved one and who have experienced loss in different ways. Redemption and forgiveness, this award is for all of them,” said Saint Martin.
During the Díaz Ordaz Government and in the midst of youth revolt in other countries such as France and the United States, the Student Movement of Mexico began to gain strength and group together different social demands. It is estimated that between 8,000 and 10,000 people attended the Three Cultures March. In the middle of the congregation, hundreds of soldiers surrounded the site and opened fire on the students and protesters gathered in the square. To date, the number of wounded and dead that day is not known with certainty, because subsequent news was censored by the Díaz Ordaz regime.
“It’s going to sound like a pamphlet, but October 2 is not forgotten. What we are looking for is peace for our country and reconciliation,” said Huyetas, with her fist raised, accompanied by the film’s team when receiving the award.
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