Director Xun Sero grew up fatherless and resentful. As his mother opens up about her troubled life, he must face his own role

In a culture where discussion of family trauma and gender-based abuse are still considered taboo, Xun Sero’s frank, intimate documentary seeks to find a common ground in a community fractured by precariousness and violence. Staying close to the film-maker’s mother, Hilda, Sero’s camera not only observes exteriors but also looks inward; this is a film of dialogue and self-interrogation.

Growing up in the Indigenous Tzotzil community in Mexico, from the age of nine Hilda was already promised as a wife to an older man. Her one act of rebellion as a teenager resulted in the birth of Sero, a source of shame for mother and son. During his childhood, Sero’s resentment towards his absent father was often directed at his mother, resulting in bitter accusations.