Award-winning Catalan-born director Ulises Porra (Tigre, Carajita; co-directed with Silvina Schnicer) returns to the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) for the world premiere of his solo debut feature Under the Same Sun / Bajo el mismo sol, premiering in the Centrepiece program at the upcoming 50th edition of the festival, taking place September 4–14, 2025.
The Dominican–Spanish co-production—produced by Wooden Boat Productions, Alta Isla Films, Fasten Films, and Cobalt Films—is set on the Caribbean Island of Hispaniola in 1819, shortly before the independence of the Dominican Republic. Under the Same Sun follows an inexperienced heir to a Spanish merchant, Lázaro; a master silk maker from China, Mei; and a Haitian army deserter, Baptiste, as they attempt to establish a silk factory in the heart of the island. The unlikely trio must navigate the treacherous Caribbean wilderness and the threats posed by violent French colonists.
What begins as a fragile collaboration rooted in necessity soon deepens into a fraught relationship, entangled by intimacy, mistrust, and shifting balances of power and survival. As success seems within reach, ambitions and betrayals emerge, forcing Lázaro, Mei, and Baptiste to confront not only the dangers around them but also the limits of trust and solidarity. Porra delivers a powerful meditation on hybridity, resistance, and the human longing for dignity in the shadow of empire.
Featuring Spanish actor David Castillo (Something Is About to Happen), Jean Jean (Woodpeckers), and newcomer Valentina Shen Wu, Under the Same Sun is set in a rapidly shrinking world shaped by inequality and greed, on the verge of radical change. It is at once an exploration of the complex political realities of the Caribbean colonial era that resonates with today’s global context, and a character study of desire, jealousy, and love.
Under Porra's direction, and with the painterly cinematography of Sebastián Cabrera Chelin, the film creates a lush and unsettling vision of the colonial Caribbean. With its pictorial cinematography and unflinching gaze, Under the Same Sun is both an evocative portrait of the Caribbean during colonial rule and a powerful reflection on the fragile bonds of trust and survival, resonating urgently with today’s global struggles over inequality, migration, and power.
The world premiere of Under the Same Sun is made possible by the Dirección General de Cine (DGCINE) and Arajet.
