My Brothers Dream Awake

(Mis hermanos sueñan despiertos)

Claudia Huaiquimilla / Chile / 2021 / 85 min
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  • Cannes Écrans Juniors

    Highschool Jury Award, College Jury Award

  • Guadalajara Int'l Film Festival

    Best Film, Best Screenplay, Best Actor

  • Locarno Film Festival

    Concorso Cineasti del presente

  • Cinélatino Rencontres de Toulouse

    Best Film, Audience Award

  • Ariel Awards

    Best Ibero-American Film Nominee

  • CineLatino-CineEspañol in Tübingen

    Audience Award

  • São Paulo Int'l Film Festival

  • Valdivia Int'l Film Festival

  • Chicago Int'l Film Festival

Spanish Film Club
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Synopsis

Spanish with English subtitles

With Iván Cáceres, César Herrera, Paulina García

Ángel and his younger brother Franco have been incarcerated in a juvenile prison for a year. Despite the difficulties, they have formed a solid group of friends with whom they spend their days sharing dreams of freedom. Everything changes when the arrival of a rebellious young man offers a possible escape: the only door to make those dreams come true.

Based on real events, Mapuche director Claudia Huaiquimilla paints a complex image of imprisoned youth clearly depicting the love and care they show toward each other day by day. These moments of love, joy, and care illuminate a warm, tender side of these young people, who are usually reduced to the stereotypical patterns of savagery, aggression, and other uncontrollable behavior.

Related Subjects
About the Director
Claudia Huaiquimilla is a critically acclaimed Chilean filmmaker, director, and screenwriter of Mapuche descent. She is known for her powerful storytelling and focus on Indigenous identity, social justice, and youth.

Claudia Huaiquimilla - My Brothers Dream Awake, Bad Influence

Available for Q&As, Masterclasses, and workshops upon request, in English or Spanish.
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A prominent voice in Latin American cinema, Huaiquimilla gained international recognition with her debut feature film Bad Influence (Mala junta, 2016), which received numerous awards at film festivals worldwide for its raw, honest portrayal of friendship, marginalization, and the Mapuche struggle in Chile.

Born in Temuco, Chile, and of Mapuche descent, Huaiquimilla’s work reflects a deep commitment to telling underrepresented stories with cultural sensitivity and emotional depth. Her follow-up feature, My Brothers Dream Awake (Mis hermanos duermen despiertos, 2021), further cemented her reputation as a powerful voice in Latin American cinema, exploring themes of institutional violence and resilience among incarcerated youth.

In addition to her feature films, Claudia Huaiquimilla has directed award-winning short films and worked on major Chilean television productions, including the globally acclaimed Netflix series 42 Days of Darkness. Her work has been recognized at top international festivals, including the Locarno Film Festival, the Toulouse Film Festival, and the Guadalajara Film Festival.

With a unique cinematic voice rooted in empathy and cultural identity, Huaiquimilla stands out as one of the most important Chilean directors of her generation.

Press

“This film, shot during the Chilean uprising and completed during a global health crisis, resonates powerfully with social demands that are taking place in Chile. My Brothers Dream Awake paints a portrait of adolescent dreams burned by the system.” – Anna Bados, Vanja Munjin, Variety

“The film highlights several issues existing in the juvenile prison system in Chile. (...) A great film for South American studies, especially regarding social issues and teenagers. Easily recommended for high school and up.” – Johnnie N. Gray, Digital Services Librarian, Christopher Newport University, EMRO

“Warm and evocative, it will break your heart.” – Locarno Critics Academy

“The austerity and modesty that prevail in most of the scenes are in addition to the sensitivity that emerges in the small observations and the richness of the details...In these nuances lies the main value of a noble and genuine film that ratifies the good artistic path of its director.” – Diego Batlle, Otroscines

“Huaiquimilla is far more interested in how these imprisoned young men and women create a sense of community on their own and how they cope in this sterile, squeaky-clean environment, than on why they are there.” – Alejandro A. Riera, Mano Magazine

Notes on the Film

“I’ve always been motivated to work with stories of minors that society classifies as “terrible children” or “bad apples”, placing the audience in their points of view to understand the fuel behind their actions. One of the most powerful tools that cinema has is to give privileged access to the feeling of someone very different and to generate empathy with him. My Brothers Dream Awake does not seek to clarify what happened, but rather to sensitize the viewer, giving them privileged access to the daily life of a group of children deprived of liberty, allowing their fragility and hidden beauty to emerge. After many visits I did to juvenile prisons while exhibiting Bad Influence, I learned a lot about these boys and their courage to face their lives. The viewer will discover a world behind bars without prejudice, observing the bonds of brotherhood that can arise in the least expected places.”

– Claudia Huaiquimilla, Director

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