Light Memories / Eco de Luz

A tribute to the art of photography, this carefully crafted family portrait illustrates the importance of preserving the archive.

Award-winning photographer Misha Vallejo goes on a deeply personal journey, using his late grandfather’s camera to recreate a lost family album. This search bridges a gap to a man he never met while confronting the absence of family photographs and the stories they might have told. Through intimate moments with his grandmother, Misha delves into themes of paternal absence, racism, and social discrimination, uncovering hidden family secrets and reclaiming spaces once denied to his loved ones. His lens captures both the pain of violence and the fluidity of memory, offering hope for connection and healing. Light Memories is a meditation on the power of photography, the resilience of family, and the possibility of reclaiming what was once lost.

Preceded By

Margarita

Directed by Kristin Zimney

In Xela, Guatemala, an Indigenous Maya mother turns to education to break generational trauma and reclaim a future for herself and her children.