cinematography
Tininiska Simpson
Rafael González Granados
editing
Will Domingos
music
O Grivo
sound
Gabriel Bocanegra
Pablo Martínez
René Parisca

with
Georgina Epiayu
María Santa Pushaina Pushaina
Antonio Ipuana
Francisco ‘Jesús’ Urrariyu
Florentina Vanegas
Yesid de Jesus Bouriyu

producers
Beto Rosero
Mónica Taboada-Tapia
co-producers
Matheus Peçanha
Aline Mazzarella
productions
Guerrero Films
Estudio Giz

In the arid landscapes of La Guajira, Colombia, Georgina, a transgender Wayúu woman in the third act of her life, knows that her time is running out and wants to change her existence. With nothing to lose, she sets out to meet her siblings, who don’t speak Spanish and barely survive on the fringes of the opaque Colombian bureaucratic system. Amid open wounds, memories, and unfathomable geographical and emotional distances, Georgina and her people agree that enough is enough. Alma del desierto emerges as a story of resilience, a symbol of hope, and a fervent struggle for justice.

2024 Alma del desierto (doc)
2023 Red Flag (short)
2021 Two-spirit (short)
2012 Fidel (short)

“Learning about the story and the origins of my mother’s family in La Guajira was my initial motivation for traveling to that region. It led to my encounter with Georgina, an outcast and a sensitive woman living on the margins of her own community. Our fraternal relationship endures today, after eight epiphany-filled years since it started on the border of a post-colonial Colombia dominated by harsh and contradictory systems that cause pain and suffering. Georgina’s survival is a break with those systems, as is the solidarity of her community, a break. The coexistence of people from various ethnicities, amid their difficulties, is pure resistance and rebellion against a political structure that finds it convenient to continue oppressing people to remain in power. Georgina’s tenderness and the contrasting beauty of this desert area created an inspiring reality that guided me on my path. Our freedom is born of human feelings, solidarity, and breaking the silence by narrating a forbidden story that wasn’t supposed to be told.” (Monica Taboada-Tapia)

Monica Taboada-Tapia studied anthropology and holds a degree in filmmaking and TV. Her film projects have been presented in markets and labs such as TorinoFilmLab, Tribeca Film Institute Network, Docs Barcelona, DocMontevideo Pitch, The NYT Op-Docs, Pulitzer Center, and Tribeca Film Institute International Pitch. She directed the short films Fidel (2012), Two-Spirit (2021), and Red Flag (2023), all selected for film festivals like IDFA, Outfest, BFI Flare, New Filmmakers, FICCI, and Palm Springs, winning awards. She was nominated for the 2022 Macondo Awards from the Colombian Academy and the 2022 IDA Awards from the International Documentary Association. Additionally, she produced the documentary Causas Elevadas (2021) and was the showrunner for the series The Pleasure of Escaping the World (2021). She is the founder of the production company Guerrero Films and currently working on the short film “The Cedar” and the feature films “From the Hood” and “Queen of the People”, with the support of FDC or Ancine.