Memories of a Penitent Heart
Synopsis
Twenty five years after Miguel Dieppa died from AIDS, his niece, filmmaker Cecilia Aldarondo, embarks on an excavation into a quagmire of unresolved family drama. Like many gay men in the 1980s, Miguel moved from Puerto Rico to New York City; he found a career in theater and a rewarding relationship. Yet on his deathbed he grappled to reconcile his homosexuality with his Catholic upbringing. Now, decades after his death, Cecilia locates Miguel’s lover Robert, who has been shunned and demonized by the family, in order to understand the whole story. Braiding recently discovered home movies, interviews, and contemporary vérité footage, Memories of a Penitent Heart dissects a family secret while exploring the AIDS crisis and the rarely heard story of Latino artists who died in the early days of the epidemic. This is a moving story about mistakes of the past and second chances that also questions how faith is used in times of crisis.
Director Cecilia Aldarondo will participate in a post-screening Q&A via Skype.
Memories of a Penitent Heart screens as the festival’s closing night film. Presented in association with:
- Director: Cecilia Aldarondo
- Country: USA, Puerto Rico
- Language: English and Spanish, with English subtitles
- Duration: 74 min
- Year: 2016 Type: Feature Films
About the Director
Cecilia Aldarondo is one of FILMMAKER Magazine’s ‘25 New Faces of Independent Film’ of 2015. Her directorial debut Memories of a Penitent Heartreceived support from the MacDowell Colony, Sundance Institute, IFP, Jerome Foundation, Firelight Media and NYSCA among others. She is Assistant Professor of Film at Skidmore College.
Venue:
O Cinema Wynwood
Date: October 02 2016
Time: 7:30 pm