Argentine director Benjamín Ávila has presented his new feature film La mujer de la fila (The Woman in the Queue), which is competing in the Official Competition at the Festival de Málaga. It is a story of female resilience portraying the reality of the women and families of prisoners serving prison sentences. 
 
Based on the real life of Andrea Casamento, played by Uruguayan actress Natalia Oreiro, the film shows the impact of prison on families. The Argentinean production also defends the silent strength of the women who wait at the prison gates, and the invisible stories that are built around the prison system. Casamento and Oreiro accompanied the director to the press conference, where both were visibly moved as they relived the life experience that inspired the script.
 
The film reconstructs the journey of a middle-class woman whose life is turned upside down when prison intrudes on her family life. From this starting point, the script is a process of personal transformation in which the main character confronts her own prejudices and discovers a human universe that had previously been completely alien to her. Andrea's son has been imprisoned and she must visit the prison for the first time to see him. Upon arrival, she meets other "women in the queue", who are initially hostile towards her. In time, it will be these same women who will give her the strength to face her battle.
 
Ávila said the project was born years ago, when he began to investigate the world of the women who wait in queues at prisons to visit their relatives: "This seemingly everyday waiting space is full of stories of solidarity, resilience and emotional support”. In his view, the collective energy that emerges among these women is reminiscent of the historical strength of movements such as the Mothers and Grandmothers of Plaza de Mayo, a persistent energy that continues to exist, and which, in some way, sustains those facing extreme circumstances.
 
During his speech, the director also took the opportunity to highlight the role of cinema as a tool for shedding light on realities that often remain hidden. In this regard, he underlined that films such as La mujer de la fila seek precisely to bring to light what remains in the shadows, introducing audiences to stories that rarely take centre stage in cinema.
 
Together with Ávila, Casamento described the impact of a special screening of the film at the Penitentiary Centre in the Malaga municipality of Alhaurín de la Torre, where the film was shown to the inmates. "Many of the prisoners identified deeply with some of the scenes, which confirmed for the team that the story connects with a universal experience that crosses borders," she said.
 
The woman at the core of the project thereby pointed out that the prison system operates in much the same way in different parts of the world. Although the story may appear to be set in a Latin American context, Casamento argued that the emotions, fears and difficulties experienced by the families of incarcerated people are the same in virtually every country.
 
"When prison enters a family's life, it transforms everything: it changes the way they relate to one another, and care for and protect their loved ones, turning the world of these people upside down," Casamento acknowledged during the press conference. In the process, many people are forced to learn to live with a reality for which no one is prepared. This is why she insisted that one of his main requests to the team was that the film should, despite everything, convey a message of hope.
 
For the leading actress, Natalia Oreiro -awarded the Biznaga de Honor at the Malaga Festival in recognition of her career- her acting work was an emotional challenge because it consisted of playing a character inspired by a real woman. To build it, it was essential to listen closely to the real "women in the queue", to understand their stories and empathise with their fears and experiences.
 
Oreiro admitted that in a way the acting process involved letting go of her own experiences to embody those of other people. This exercise in empathy allowed her to get closer to a reality that is often perceived as distant, but which could affect any family. The actress added that one of the most moving aspects of the story is to see how the sentence does not only affect those who are in prison, but also those closest to them. In her view, the emotional impact on families is a universal experience that is repeated in every prison system in the world.
 
"Playing characters like this is necessary because it gives a voice to realities that especially affect women", said Oreiro, who is joined in the cast by actors Alberto Ammann, Amparo Noguera, Federico Heinrich, Marcela Acuña, Lide Uranga and Luis Campos. In the film there is light, darkness and pain, but also the human capacity to find meaning and dignity even in the most adverse of circumstances.
 
Last, the actress compared the transformative power of cinema to a kind of emotional transmutation process, an opportunity to turn pain and darkness into understanding and empathy. In this regard, she defended the value of social cinema as an essential tool for bringing the public closer to the most complex human experiences.
 
With La mujer de la fila, Benjamín Ávila once again opts for a film that is deeply committed to reality. The film presents itself as an intimate and human portrait that reveals how the most powerful stories can emerge in the most unexpected places: in a queue, in a shared conversation, or in the quiet fortitude of those who persevere day after day.