What We Leave Behind
After a lifetime of bus rides to the United States to visit his children, Julián Moreno quietly begins building a house in his rural Mexico at the age of 89. In filming his work and final days, his granddaughter crafts a personal and poetic love letter to her elder and his homeland.
Director:
Iliana SosaProducers:
Emma D. Miller, Iliana SosaFormat:
Documentary FeatureYear:
2022
AWARDS & FESTIVALS
2022 Gotham Award Nominee for Best Documentary
New York Times “Critic’s Pick”
SXSW Film Festival – Fandor New Voices Award, Louis Black “Lone Star” Award
First Look at the Museum of the Moving Image
Full Frame Documentary Film Festival
Camden International Film Festival
Morelia International Film Festival
Guanajuato International Film Festival
Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival
River Run International Film Festival
Milwaukee Film Festival
Thin Line Film Festival – Emerging Filmmaker Award
Tacoma Film Festival – Best Documentary Feature Special Mention
Flatland Film Festival – Best Director Award, Best Feature Award
Viva Texas Film Festival – Best Documentary Feature Award
SUPPORTERS
Ford Foundation | JustFilms
Sundance Institute Documentary Film Program
International Documentary Association
Field of Vision
City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department
Austin Film Society
Catapult Film Fund
True/False & Catapult Rough Cut Retreat
Jacob Burns Film Center Creative Culture Residency
The Gotham Documentary Lab
Logan Nonfiction Program
University of Texas at Austin
Ji.hlava New Visions Forum
PRESS
‘What We Leave Behind’ Review: A Father’s Final Project
“‘What We Leave Behind’ insists upon power in stillness, and the poignancy in staying — and leaving.”
‘What We Leave Behind’ Review: A Filmmaker’s Lyrical and Gripping Tribute to Her Grandfather
“First-person filmmaking at its eloquent best.”
Love and dedication transcend all in granddaughter’s portrait
“Simple scenes filmed with reverence and [Iliana] Sosa’s brilliant eye for light and angles elevate daily routines to visual poetry.”
CREDITS
Directed and Produced by: Iliana Sosa
Produced by: Emma D. Miller
Edited by: Isidore Bethel
Co-Producer: Isidore Bethel
Writers: Iliana Sosa, Isidore Bethel
Cinematographers: Iliana Sosa, Judy Phu, Monica Wise
Sound Recordist: Glenda Charles
