Present in the Big Events
Presente en los Grandes Eventos
Pamela Andrea Martinez Barrera · Venezuela, Panamá, United States · 2025 · 21 min
SHORTS COMPETITION
Pamela travels to Panama to visit her 6-month-pregnant sister in the hopes of healing the wounds of migratory loss since both left their home country of Venezuela due to political and economic uncertainty. On the trip, the sisters resist the feeling that they're trapped in a cycle of permanent separation by revisiting their past while trying to imagine a future of togetherness for the baby. When the Trump administration takes office, Pamela can't risk losing her student visa and is not able to attend the birth, asserting that our ways of living are inherently political.
Documentary · Drama · 12+
Language: Spanish, English
Themes: Migration, family
Screenplay: Pamela Martinez Barrera
Producers: Pamela Martinez Barrera, Elisa Leiva
Cinematographer: Pamela Martinez Barrera, Harry Oglivie
Key cast: Paola Martinez, Aiban Martinez, Pablo Martinez, Jonathan Robinson
Director's Statement
In a moment where global migration becomes the new norm (either by force or by choice), I question the meaning of family in the diaspora as the distance felt is not only physical but emotional, and exacerbated by the man-made borders that separate us. Present in the Big Events is meant to bring reflections about our childhood, family histories and tools of resilience, specifically for those of us who have been forced into geographical and emotional exiles. — Pamela Andrea Martinez Barrera
