Series: Luchando: Women in Contemporary Latin America, Running the Screen: Directed by Women
Mariana Rondón's acclaimed drama centers on the fraught relationship between a single mother, Marta, and her son, Junior, who wants to have his hair straightened for his school photo. Shot in a gritty, working-class Caracas neighborhood, Pelo Malo tackles questions of gender identity and burgeoning sexuality. Moreover racial tensions subtly surface in this sensitively directed and powerfully acted film. After premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival, Pelo Malo won awards at Thessaloniki, San Sebastian, and Mar del Plata. In Spanish with English subtitles.
