Dormir de olhos abertos

Set in Recife, Brazil, DORMIR DE OLHOS ABERTOS is an exploration of how culture, nation and language intersect, expanding on the themes from Nele Wohlatz’s feature debut EL FUTURO PERFECTO. Kai (Liao Kai Ro), a Taiwanese girl, arrives in Brazil from Argentina after being stood up by her boyfriend. Struggling with the language, she explores the city and meets Fu Ang (Wang Shin-hong), a Chinese man who owns an umbrella shop. There, she discovers a box of postcards revealing the story of Xiaoxin (Chen Xiao Xin), another Chinese girl with a similar journey. Xiaoxin’s story reveals her connection to Fu Ang and a group of Chinese workers whose experiences of labour exploitation, language barriers and cultural clashes echo those of Kai. Wohlatz structures her film via anecdotal conversations, moments of confusion and the crossing paths of different characters, reflecting the protagonists’ sense of uncertainty and displacement. This co-production between Argentina, Brazil, Taiwan and Germany portrays characters navigating their way between languages, countries and cultures, creating a psychological non-place along the way and exploring the rare connections and unexpected bonds formed by their movements. (Diego Lerer)

In the presence of Nele Wohlatz.

Nele Wohlatz: LA MOCHILA PERFECTA (2013, K), RICARDO BÄR (2014, KO-REGIE), TRES ORACIONES SOBRE LA ARGENTINA (2016, K), EL FUTURO PERFECTO (2016), TURISTA (2021, K).