Leonora in the Morning Light
Synopsis
After iconoclastic artist Leonora Carrington trades English life for 1930s Paris, she falls in with giants of the Surrealist movement, including Salvador Dalí and André Breton. But it’s her passionate love affair with German painter Max Ernst that affects her life and work in the most profound manner. Their turbulent relationship sends her on a journey of self-discovery that will eventually take her to Mexico, where she finds a true sense of freedom—and her own unique artistic voice.
Working from the novel by Mexican author and artist Elena Poniatowska, directors Lena Vurma and Thor Klein chronicle key chapters in Carrington’s singular life, depicting the evolution of an artist with nuance and subtlety. Actress Olivia Vinall delivers a perfectly pitched performance as the story’s central figure, portraying Carrington both in her youth and as a more mature woman working in Mexico, where she emerged alongside Frida Kahlo as one of the country’s preeminent creative figures. With its insightful observations of a multifaceted talent whose distaste for the conventional enabled her to live as a true original, Leonora in the Morning Light gives Carrington her due.
Screenings & Events
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Media
Film Credits
- Lena Vurma
- Thor Klein, Lena Vurma
- Matthieu Taponier
- Tudor Vladimir Panduru
- Olivia Vinall, Alexander Scheer, Cassandra Ciangherotti, Ryan Gage, Istvan Teglas, Luis Gerardo Mendez
- Maria Portugal
- Chris D’Cruz, Gatherer Entertainment, Originarium, Aristotle Andrulakis
- Dragonfly Films, Meli Melo, Randan, Framebreed, Ostlicht
Sponsors
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Film Patron
Robert and Penelope Steiner Family Foundation
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I Dream In Another Language Sueño en otro idioma
Synopsis
Martín, a young linguist, travels into the jungles of Mexico in hopes of documenting Zikril, a language in peril. The language’s last two surviving speakers, Evaristo and Isauro, haven’t spoken to one another in over 50 years. As he attempts to reconcile the two in order to record their speech, Martín uncovers the heartbreaking history of their bitter feud.
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CineYouth Program
Genre Breakers: Experimental
Synopsis
Films in this program pair captivating visuals with unconventional storytelling. Open your mind to experience the potential of cinema when seven diverse filmmakers push the boundaries of genre.
Please note: Films in this program contain themes, images, and language that may not be suitable for all ages including nudity and violence.
Films

2 FiNgErS uP
Campy, colorful, and shot on celluloid, this movie speaks to cycles of appetite and satiation. A creative performance with food and everyday objects that is both humorous and sensual, 2 FiNgErS uP seeks your attention and asks what you crave.

How to Smell Without a Nose
A dark yet impactful short about the Korean war, illustrated through the prosecution of a Joseon woman.

Moving Room
In this mesmerizing film, Karma, an international high school student from India, adjusts to his new home and host-sibling Alex. The intensity of the transition begins to manifest in surreal changes to their house and Karma is visited by a comforting spirit.

Avulsion
Captured on Super 8 footage shot during the 75th Cannes Film Festival, this elusive experimental narrative weaves together three women and three stories into an abstract thriller. Images of daily life mix with scripted tableaus and disjointed sound resulting in a piece whose mysteries deepen with detailed observation.

How to Cry Without Melting (Como Chorar Sem Derreter)
Elizabeth loses her sight after refusing to cry for years, prompting the odd little girl who lives with her to build a machine that restores her tears.

With a Promise to Love you Deeply
This contemporary folktale follows the journey of two sisters, Jupiter and Saturn, as they venture into a world beyond time to retrieve their mother’s spirit.

Patron Saint Buffalo Bill
Using lush, dream-like imagery, filmmaker Lily McCauley inhabits and reclaims the transfeminine villain from Silence of the Lambs, transforming the harmful stereotype into a celebration of “transexual monstrosity.”
CineYouth Program
Far From Home
Synopsis
Offered as a tribute to our roots, these sentimental and tender shorts lovingly consider identity and belonging. Containing stories of migration, disconnection from ancestry, and striving to fit in, this program addresses what it takes to feel at home in a complicated world.
Films in this program contain themes, images, and language that may not be suitable for all ages.
Films

Don Chingón
A young Mexican immigrant searches his new city for a culinary cure to homesickness.

The Spectacular Quiet
In this documentary, a young girl explores the complexity of her bi-racial identity through dance. Facing questions of belonging, self-acceptance, and identity, Sierra navigates growing up as one of few mixed-race people in her predominantly white community.

Mixed Signals
A cross-cultural conversation around Western ideas of dating and love occurs when a married Arab immigrant ventures out on his first online date.

Moroccan Haircut
What do culture and hair have in common? They both have roots. In this clever essay film, a young man visits a barber shop hoping to reconnect with his heritage.

Housekeepers
Translating is a difficult job; translating bad news to your mother is even harder. A daughter of a Japanese Immigrant finds herself in a tight spot in this melancholy film.

Volador
Eighteen-year-old aspiring photographer Mateo begins to doubt his choice to immigrate to Michigan from Morella as he struggles to establish himself professionally. This charming and humorous narrative follows Mateo and a cast of lovable characters as he seeks guidance from his friends and reflects on the highs and low of following a dream.
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Chicuarotes
Synopsis
In this audacious crime drama from celebrated Mexican actor-turned-director Gael García Bernal (Déficit), lifelong friends Cagalera and Moloteco turn to violence and lawlessness to buy their way out of their hard-scrabble Mexico City neighborhood. Hoping to scrape together enough cash to join a union that holds the promise of steady work, the amateur criminals graduate from petty theft to hostage-taking. But their escapades land the teens in desperate circumstances, both darkly humorous and fraught with danger.
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