Synopsis
Spanish with English subtitles
Three ecologists and long-time friends—Ulf, Jota, and Sebastián—embark on a trip across El Chaco, an endangered dry forest ecosystem in Paraguay. They form a close-knit, skeptical tribe of explorers who reflect on their expeditions across 15 years of friendship and forest exploration.
The two-day trip leads them into danger, including wildfires that threaten their mission. Fragmented days filled with cicadas and nocturnal bird calls pass as they grapple with climate change, human folly, and mortality. Through their journey, the three men come to understand that confronting loss affirms our privilege—and responsibility—to witness and protect this fragile world.
Beyond its emotional resonance, the film provides a compelling case study for Environmental Studies and Climate Science, documenting the impact of deforestation and wildfires in the Gran Chaco, while also engaging Anthropology and Latin American Studies through its focus on transnational scientific collaboration and regional policy contexts.
Press
“Constructed around a road trip undertaken by three old friends, The Last develops into a lament for a disappearing Paraguay and a confrontation of the worst fears about the impact of climate change.” – Allan Hunter, Screen
Notes on the Film
“I have a melancholic infatuation with forests.
Not until long ago, Paraguay was still a little-known green patch on the world map. In the late seventies and early eighties, the country had around 70% of its forests intact, and the capital, Asunción, was a city covered in large old trees, surrounded by lush woodlands.
Growing up in this context, I developed a connection with the natural world that fed my early imagination and sensibility. But when I started becoming aware that human societies seem to have a hostile attitude towards them, I began to experience a strange form of nostalgia. Today, Paraguay has one of the highest deforestation rates in the world.
One day, I met Ulf and Jota, two Voltairean characters who have spent their lives studying nature and, since the late eighties, have witnessed the disappearance of the Paraguayan jungle. These two could well be in a bizarre punk band. They seem to know about everything, and one could listen to them for hours. At times controversially biologistic and bitter, but mostly just ironic and certainly funny. Their smart and comical skepticism is a survival strategy.
For the following 15 years, we embarked on what felt like a long, circular journey through the remaining forests of Paraguay. At some point, I became a filmmaker, and I felt the need to tell their story as a way of addressing my own obsession with the loss of these forests.”
– Sebastián Peña Escobar, Director
