Margarita seeks liberation in a judgmental society when her path intersects with Liana, a deaf traveler, amidst the rhythms of congas and bongos.

Interview with Writer/Director Antonina Kerguelen

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

My family comes from the Caribbean coast of Colombia, which is a beautiful, colorful, loud region. Even though I didn't grow up there, I did grow up traveling there every few months, and it always felt more like home than Bogotá. However, as I started becoming more aware of myself and my surroundings, I started realizing the other side of the coast's culture: it is a very conservative, traditional, and at times judgemental place. There are certain unspoken rules of what men and women should look and behave like, and I didn't follow any of them. I then started noticing all the disapproving stares wherever I went, and it took me a long time to not feel ashamed or heavy-hearted whenever I was in one of those situations. I still loved this place, but it felt like it didn't love me back. It was by traveling, and meeting more underdogs, weird people like myself, as well as by acknowledging and accepting my sexuality, that I came to terms with the dichotomies of my culture. I understood the stares were never going to go away, but I could just stop caring.

My companion throughout this process was always salsa music, due to its rebelliousness and frenetic sounds. Salsa parties are famous for their impressive variety in their crowds: all kinds of races and economic backgrounds merge without judgment with the sole purpose of enjoying the music, the dancing, and the sweating. I knew I needed two characters that for one reason or another didn't fit within the region's societal norms, and for them to cross paths at the climax of a salsa party. This film, overall, intends to showcase a fraction of what it means to be a lesbian woman in the atypical and complex world of Colombia.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

You should watch this film because it talks about the human connection between two people who, in theory, shouldn't be able to understand each other. The beauty of their relationship is that both of them are open to establishing a connection, neither of them is coming in with prejudices and that allows them to find their way of communicating, which in this specific case is dance and music. You should also watch the film because the soundtrack is great.

My producers and I spent a lot of time trying to really get the music right, as it is the beating heart of our story, and I'm really proud of what we achieved. We have great songs by Colombian bands La Pambelé and Orquesta Calibre, and an incredible rendition of an iconic song by Joe Arroyo called La Noche, sung by Carolina Gaitán (Disney's We Don't Talk About Bruno) and Juliana (Latin Grammy, Best New Artist 2021).

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

I hope everything personal in this film feels universal. Even though the film is set in a very specific environment, the story happens between two people from different parts of the world who not only don't speak the same language but also don't communicate using the spoken word, so they find their way to understand each other. The fact that these very different characters are so drawn to each other that they don't care about limitations, is incredibly universal. Humans truly find ways to make things happen when they feel passion towards something or someone, and I hope that resonates with audiences all over.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?

I have been working on this film for 7 years now, since I wrote the first draft of the script in December 2017. I have changed so much as a person and a filmmaker since then, and I believe that's also reflected in the final piece. The film started as a desire to explore salsa music and the perception of sound, but as the concept and characters started evolving, and I started realizing I actually needed to talk about my roots and the acceptance of my sexuality, the film started turning more into the quest of two characters, and the music became the vehicle.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

We just premiered the film at Tribeca, where we were met with really beautiful comments. People seem to like that the film holds back on dialogue, and lets the characters express their feelings through their eyes and movements. We have also been met with a lot of enthusiasm regarding the music and the sound design, which I believe are elements that support our characters in their journey and connection.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

I was a bit surprised that people liked the lack of dialogue so much, I was scared that it would make audiences find the film slow or heavy, but I was so relieved this was one of the positive highlights of people's comments. More than challenged, I feel really glad and validated by what comments we've received so far. We spent an incredible amount of time working on the sound design with Andres Silva and La Tina Sound Design & Film Scoring, really debating on how the world should sound, the amount of layers of detail it should contain, and how the sound should interact with the music.

The fact that people have noticed that there is something special behind how the film sounds, makes it feel like a huge accomplishment, one that wouldn't have been possible without the expertise and sensibility of my collaborators.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

Hopefully, more people from everywhere in the world want to watch it and screen it! This film was made out of pure belief that it was necessary to tell this story and spotlight these characters. I grew up not seeing myself on the big screen, and with this film, I was able to put a bit of me, what I love and believe in, out there, and I truly hope some more folks identify with what they see.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

Definitely journalists, film festival directors, and any other platforms that would like to showcase our film. We have a team that's working tirelessly to get the word out about the film, so anyone who would like to keep learning about it and our process, and anyone who would like to watch it or share it, is welcome.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

First, I would love for this film to contribute to different narratives surrounding Colombia other than the ones that are just filled with violence or hurtful moments of our history. If people can see that other stories are going on in the same country, that would feel like a win. I would love for audiences to keep on normalizing having deaf characters within films, and maybe even get inspired to learn sign language and break the communication barrier that as a society we have imposed upon ourselves. And finally, hopefully, producers, investors, executives, etc. to see the huge amount of possibilities that exist within Latinx and inclusive narratives.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

What are other types of communication beyond language?

Would you like to add anything else?

Just a huge shoutout to all our collaborators. This has been an incredibly hard film to get off the ground, but it wouldn't have been possible without everyone who joined me along the way. First and foremost: Carlos Ruiz from It Happens Audiovisual and Natalia Agudelo & Carlos Mican from MadLove, my producers and their production companies. La Tina Sound Design & Film Scoring for the beautiful sound design, Mun Entertainment for their support with creating the cover for La Noche with Carolina Gaitán and Juliana, Discos Fuentes for supporting us with the license for said song, La Pambelé and Orquesta Calibre for the rest of the music, the Suba Deaf Association (ASORSUB) for their guidance, Nelvis Palomino who were our ASL/CSL interpreter on set, Arte Coral for the fantastic production design, hair & makeup, and costumes, Mateo López for his beautiful cinematography, Goz for the edit, Nataly Yepes for the color, and Saray Nohemí and Isabelle Troup, the two lead actresses of our film. And the rest of the crew, the cast, the extras, the crowdfunding donors, everyone! Much love to everyone who has believed in our dream.

What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?

As a director, I'm working on the development of my first feature film. Saray (lead actress) is working on several Colombian TV shows, and Isabelle (lead actress) just graduated from her Masters!

Interview: June 2024

We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

¡Salsa!

Margarita seeks liberation in a judgmental society when her path intersects with Liana, a deaf traveler, amidst the rhythms of congas and bongos.

Length: 14:00

Director: Antonina Kerguelen

Producer: Carlos Ruiz Rua

Writer: Antonina Kerguelen

About the writer, director and producer:

ANTONINA KERGUELÉN ROMÁN is a writer and director originally from Colombia. She is currently the Creative Producer at AG Studios Colombia, where she works in the development and production of original international series and films. Most recently, she is credited as Creative Producer in the Prime Video originals, Los Iniciados (film) and Los Billis (series). Her short film Still And Quiet premiered at the Beverly Hills Film Festival, and her visual poem Manifestowas published by Manifiesta Media, a Latin American online magazine on International Breast Cancer Awareness Day in 2021. Her first short film, The Coffee Vendor was sponsored by Bogoshorts after winning their “In Vitro” award and was a finalist for the 2019 Sundance Ignite Fellowship.

CARLOS RUIZ RUA leads It Happens Audiovisual, a company that provides production services in Colombia with coverage in LATAM and the US and creates original and independent narrative and non-fiction content.

NATALIA AGUDELO CAMPILLO and CARLOS MICAN CHAVEZ from Madlove, a creative studio, have co-produced acclaimed films such as Tribeca’s 2017 Best Actor Award-winning Nobody’s Watching by Julia Solomonoff and Days of the Whale by Catalina Arroyave. They are also crafting artistic universes for musicians such as the Latin Grammy winner Monsieur Periné.

Key cast: Saray Nohemi, Isabelle Troup

Hashtags used: #¡Salsa! #LGBTQ #Romance #Deaf Actress

Other: IMDb

Where can I watch it next and in the coming month?

At the Tribeca Film Festival