juarez

JUAREZ
About the Film

Juarez
Director, Alex Flores
Sinopsis

Juarez is a feature length documentary that shows the theories found by family members of the victims, forensics, journalists, artists and activists in Mexico, questioning why the federal government hasn’t intensified its interest to thoroughly investigate the brutal murders of over 460 women in Ciudad Juarez, Chihuahua.
Juarez exposes the high levels of corruption and violence in Mexico, which have led to increasing violence and murders against women. Also, the documentary shows several interviews to the children of some of the murdered women of Juarez. They are the other victims of the femicide.

Juarez
Directors' Statement

There was an article in the Toronto Star, written by Linda Diebel, back in February of 2006 that really touched Alex and inspired her to do a film about the murdered women of Juarez. At that point she called and told me about the article and her idea. We got together and after reading the article and talking about the situation in Juarez, decided that we absolutely had to make a documentary about femicide together, and it would be called Juarez.
The more we researched the murders of women in Juarez, the more compelled we felt to tell their stories and that of their children, who are the other victims of these horrible crimes. We also decided that we wanted to interview some of these children and their grandmothers, who are the ones now struggling to care for them with little or no assistance from the government.
We began our research and received a lot of support from Marisela Ortiz, one of the founders of the non-profit organization Nuestras Hijas de Regreso a Casa that helps the children and families of the murdered women of Juarez. We also received a lot of support from other women activists, artists and journalists such as Diana Washington Valdez and a Forensic Specialist, Oscar Maynez. By April 2006, we had our script ready and began independently raising funds to be able to raise the money to shoot our documentary. This meant organizing two fundraiser dinners, including a silent art auction, and sending countless emails to friends, family and contacts asking for donations towards the documentary.
Once we had successfully raised the necessary funds, we were able to travel to Mexico and shoot on location in Ciudad Juarez and Mexico City during 3 weeks in late July and August 2006.
While we were in Ciudad Juarez, we were always assisted and guided by the two amazing women Marisela and Maite. They were essential in providing us with information and setting up interviews with the children and their grandmothers. They all welcomed us into their homes and were open to all our questions. We are extremely grateful for their generosity and touched by their courageous hearts.
Our documentary Juarez has truly been a labor of love and dedication. We have independently produced and filmed this feature length documentary, and we feel proud to have been able to contribute a deeper insight into the femicide in Ciudad Juarez as well as obtain testimonies from prominent Mexican women about the brutal violence against women in Mexico and the government corruption that continues to perpetuate violence and injustice.
As women and filmmakers, we truly hope that our documentary will raise more awareness about the subject of femicide and violence against women. We also hope that it motivates people to get involved in learning more about these issues, to take action to stop and prevent any form of violence or discrimination against women and to promote justice and equality not only in Mexico but in all societies of the world.

Alex Flores and Lorena Vassolo