IDENTIFYING FEATURES / SIN SEÑAS PARTICULARES
A film by Fernanda Valadez
(Mexico/Spain, 2020, 95 min. In Spanish with English subtitles)

Magdalena hasn’t heard from her son in months—not since he left their town to cross the border into the United States. The authorities want her to sign her son’s death certificate, but an encounter with a bereaved parent makes Magdalena realize that she cannot live without knowing his fate. She begins an odyssey across Mexico, though areas of violence and desolation, chasing any available lead despite being warned not to publicly ask such questions. Along the way, she meets and travels with recently deported Miguel, who finds himself journeying home through a changed country.

Grappling with the painful issue of migrants disappearing on their way to the U.S., writer/director Fernanda Valadez’s ambitious feature debut employs a tremendous economy of film language as it traverses across a varied contemporary Mexican landscape, expanding as our emotional experience of Magdalena’s journey swells to meet her own. The solemn Indentifying Features punctuates its contemplation of family and loss with fleeting moments of human connection, allowing one woman’s aching personal story to encapsulate the weight of a tremendous real-world humanitarian crisis.

Saturday, January 25, 5:30pm at Prospector Square Theatre, Park City
Sunday, January 26, 9pm at Tower Theatre, Salt Lake City
Monday, January 27, 12pm at Temple Theatre, Park City
Friday, January 31, 7pm at Redstone Cinema 2, Park City
Saturday, February 1, 10am, Holiday Village Cinema 4, Park City