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IGUALADA, by Juan Mejía Botero, Brings New Hope to the Colombian People

Omar Sosa

Igualada (2024, dir. Juan Mejía Botero) was presented as part of the special screenings at the 22nd Morelia International Film Festival (FICM). The film was previously selected for the Sundance Film Festival 2024 and the most recent Ambulante Documentary Tour.

The documentary follows the story of Francia Márquez, a rural Black Colombian activist, who challenges the status quo in Colombia, one of the most inequitable countries in Latin America, with a presidential campaign that reclaims the derogatory term “igualada” and brings a boost of hope to an entire nation.

The film was presented by Chloë Roddick, festival programmer, and Juan E. Yepes, producer of the film. “I am very happy to be here and present a documentary that is very close to the heart,” said the producer at the beginning of the film's screening.

When the screening ended, the audience had the opportunity to engage in a Q&A session with the Colombian producer. To begin with, they asked him about the way the story was constructed, since when they began filming they had no idea of the scope that Francia Márquez's trajectory would have.

“It was a documentary that was finished many times, we always filmed the end over many months and Francia kept surprising us,” the producer commented about filming.

The director, Juan Mejía Botero, together with the producer have always been interested in giving voice to untold stories or to people who are not traditionally represented in the media. In addition to that, Francia Márquez's charisma and her ability to influence the people around her were the reasons why the filmmaking duo decided to produce this documentary.

“Always looking for collaboration, we started looking in Mexico, Argentina and other places. With one of the producers, Daniela Alatorre, we began to work on putting together the story and making it more universal,” added the director about the Mexican co-production.