A revelation about her family connection to an influential figure sets filmmaker Victoria Linares Villegas on her own path of playful self-discovery in this fascinating and deeply personal new docudrama.
It Runs in the Family begins when Villegas discovers she is related to Oscar Torres, a little-known Dominican director. She soon embarks on a cinematic excavation of his role in Caribbean fiction and leftist movements during the authoritarian 1940s.
Through her research, she pieces together a portrait of his creative and political legacy while breaking down the boundaries between his story and her own ambitions as an image-maker. She brings Torres’ work back to life through a series of elaborate re-stagings of his unproduced screenplays, with members of her family stepping in as actors.
Through this process of playful discovery, Villegas poses questions about the Dominican Republic’s political history, transgenerational memory and queer erasure.
A film full of heart, It Runs in the Family is a bold first feature from an exciting new voice in nonfiction filmmaking.
Watch the trailer for It Runs in the Family below. The film is now available on Dekkoo.
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