IT
| Section | |
|---|---|
| Original Title | Chicas Tristes |
| English Title | SAD GIRLZ |
| Movie Type | |
| Genre | |
| Production Year | 2026 |
| Director | |
| Cast | Darana Álvarez, Mónica del Carmen, Raúl Villegas, Rocio Guzmán, Tatsumi Milori, Tomás García Agraz |
| Country | France, Mexico, Spain |
| Movie Length | 90’ |
| Screenplay | |
| Director of Photography | |
| Editor | |
| Music | canzoni originali: Carolina Torres Topaga, Sebastián Cárdenas Vesga (Sonido San Francisco), Wissam Hojeij |
| Casting | Michelle Betancourt, Paulina Álvarez Muñoz |
| Costume Designer | Daniela Guardado |
| Makeup | Daniela Landa |
| Production Designer | Selva Tulián |
| Sound Designer | Alejandro Castillo, Eva Valiño |
| Produced by | Araceli Velázquez, Daniel Loustaunau |
| Production | |
| Festival Contact | |
| International Distribution |
SAD GIRLZ
Paula and La Maestra are sixteen and inseparable. They train together over the summer to represent Mexico at the Junior Pan American Swimming Championships and are the strongest swimmers on their team. One night, at a party, Paula ends up alone with Daniel, a good friend and her longtime crush. Amid reggaetón, flirting, and shots, Paula and Daniel slip into the bathroom together. Soon after, La Maestra senses that something has changed. Paula seems distant and deeply sad. At first, she insists nothing is wrong, but La Maestra keeps pushing until her friend begins to talk about what happened that night. Searching for answers, they try to name the experience, and what they find feels devastating. As the two girls respond in different ways, their bond is put to the test. Paula needs time, while La Maestra feels compelled to speak up. Fear, guilt, and anger begin to fracture their friendship, pushing them toward a decision that will redefine who they are, together and apart.
Fernanda Tovar was born in Mexico City in 1991. She is a director, screenwriter, and member of Colectivo Colmena. She graduated from the Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica (CCC) and participated in Berlinale Talents Guadalajara and Berlinale Talents Latin America in 2020. Her short film MY AGE YOURS, AND THE AGE OF THE WORLD was selected for the Semaine de la Critique de Cannes in 2022 and received a Special Mention at the Morelia International Film Festival. In 2024, her short film I WANT TO VIOLENTLY CRASH INTO THE WINDSHIELD OF LOVE premiered at the Tribeca Festival. SAD GIRLZ is her debut feature film.
Director’s Note
When I started writing, SAD GIRLZ was shaping up to be a film about gender violence and its gray areas, in the life of teenagers. During the pandemic, however, a lot changed both in the world and inside of me as well. I have a very clear image of going to International Women’s Day March (8th March) in Mexico, and seeing young girls shouting for justice and against violence; when I was 15, I wasn’t thinking about justice, about my rights, or gender violence. […] I suddenly wanted to know more about how young girls see these ideas today. Firstly, there’s also the difference between how it is in theory—having to report abuse when it happens and speaking up—and the actual reality of going through it, and secondly, friendship is often considered secondary to romantic relationships, which I don’t think is true. Your friends are who you choose to share your life with, without similar commitments or responsibility: it’s just because you want to. As a teen, your identity is built around and reflected through your friends, in a way, so what would happen, if you have to make a choice of how to deal with abuse, in a relationship that is so intense, even in itself? That was the point when I realised I’d found the kernel of what I was really passionate about; that premise touched my heart deeply, it let me connect to my own experiences of learning what it means to be a woman, together with my friends. In a way, SAD GIRLZ is a film for my friends.
