ELENA
YEAR: 2020 - SPANISH, HAITIAN CREOLE | 30 MINS
DIRECTOR: MICHÈLE STEPHENSON
PRODUCERS: MICHÈLE STEPHENSON, JOE BREWSTER, BEDATRI CHOUDHURY
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: MICHÈLE STEPHENSON
CINEMATOGRAPHERS: ALFREDO ALACANTARA, TITO RODRIGUEZ, PEDRO ARNAU BROS SANTANA, MICHÈLE STEPHENSON
EDITORS: CLEMENTINA MARTINELLI, JORDAN KAWAI, ADRES LANDAU, KARINA VIDAL
COMPOSER: AQUILES NAVARRO
WORLD PREMIERE: 2021 DOC NYC
STREAMING NOW ON PRAGDA
Synopsis
In 1937, tens of thousands of Haitians and Dominicans of Haitian descent were exterminated by the Dominican army, on the basis of anti-black racism. Fast-forward to 2013, the Dominican Republic’s Supreme Court stripped the citizenship of anyone with Haitian parents, retroactive to 1929, rendering more than 200,000 people stateless. Because of this ruling, Elena has lost her citizenship, and her family stands to lose their rightful access to legal residency in the Dominican Republic if they don’t manage to get their documents in time. Negotiating a mountain of opaque bureaucratic processes and a racist, hostile society, Elena becomes the face of the struggle to remain in a country built on the labor of her father and forefathers. Director Michèle Stephenson’s documentary follows Elena and her family through their tribulations and small joys, as they struggle to remain in the country they’ve called home for generations.
FESTIVALS
Jury Award – Best Short Documentary, BlackStar Film Festival (2021)
LOLA Award Honorable Mention, Philadelphia Latino Film Festival (2021)
Official Selection, DOC NYC (2021)
Official Selection, New Orleans International Film Festival (2021)
Official Selection, Trinidad + Tobago Film Festival (2021)
Official Selection, New Orleans Film Festival (2021)
Official Selection, Double Exposure Film Festival (2021)
Official Selection, 1261 Film Festival (2021)