29/09/2025 - We talked to the Nicaraguan director, a two-time winner of the DALE! (Latin America-Europe Development) Award at the Co-Production Forum, about her new project

(© Ulises Gutiérrez/SSIFF)

The DALE! (Latin America-Europe Development) Award at the Europe-Latin America Co-Production Forum of the 73rd San Sebastián Film Festival has, for the second time, gone to the same director (see the news), Nicaraguan filmmaker Laura Baumeister. After winning it in 2019 with her debut feature, Daughter of Rage [+see also:
film review
trailer
interview: Laura Baumeister
film profile], it is now the turn of her sophomore work, What Follows Is My Death – a story about a young Nicaraguan migrant who ventures into the Mexican desert, meets a woman who saves her and discovers what it means to be a “nagual woman”.

Cineuropa: What led you to want to tell this story?
Laura Baumeister: Because of my personal history, I feel deeply marked by themes of migration, displacement and identity transitions. In this film, I’m trying to speak about them through the metaphor of the nagual woman – the shedding of skin through fantasy. After Daughter of Rage, I also felt the need to tell a love story born of adverse circumstances. It’s a story of how these two women meet, accompany one another and fall in love almost oracularly. I want to focus on the brightness of human experience.

By invoking a “nagual woman”, the tale becomes especially compelling, since Mesoamerican mythology is rarely represented in cinema. What can you tell us about it? What inspires you, and what do you want to share with audiences?
I love metamorphosis stories — the monstrous as a way to see an Other and still find crossover points and the beauty that exists in differences (and thanks to them). The nagual in Mesoamerican cultures speaks to that: enlightened people who connect with their spirit animal and can change physical form. That idea fascinates me; I see it as a profound invitation to reflect on identity and on the possibilities that exist beyond what we are socially.

We’re seeing more female voices in world cinema, especially in Latin America. In our last interview, you said Daughter of Rage would be the first fiction feature directed by a Nicaraguan woman. How do you see things after your first film — have some battles been won?
Fortunately, there are more women in the cinematic landscape. Without a doubt, there’s been progress, but there’s still a long way to go. The numbers remain uneven, and beyond quantitative representation — which matters — I think the discussion should focus more on the kinds of perspectives and stories that get associated with the feminine. I like the idea of our cinema stepping away from that label and being seen universally, as still happens with male-coded narratives. No one says “a male gaze” when referring to a male auteur, but the opposite is said about women – and I now find that unnecessary and counterproductive. We could say it’s another kind of narrative restraint.

What did you learn from making your first feature?
Endless lessons – I’m still learning… I couldn’t summarise them, but I learned that you have to tell the story to yourself first, that you are your primary and most faithful audience, and that turning that practice into a compass for navigating this industry is vital. Beyond markets, festivals and collaborators, it’s important to grant yourself the silence needed to always listen to your story in solitude – and from there, refine, reconnect and decide what you want to say.

You’ve been to San Sebastián before, and you took home the EFAD Award with your debut. How did it help you, and how do you think it will help now?
San Sebastián has been profoundly generous to my career. Coming here feels like reaching a harbour that always propels me forward — and it’s no different with my second film. These kinds of prizes provide a lift, visibility and energy for the steps ahead.

The project is already a co-production between Mexico and Spain. How did this collaboration come about? What production timeline are you considering, and what else are you looking for right now?
It was a very organic alliance. I want to keep tying my career more closely to Spain; I feel it’s the right territory to accompany my second film. We’re still looking for a third-country partner and, above all, one that brings a substantially creative contribution in addition to financing: the visual artist — that head of the creative team — who will work on the special effects (prosthetics, VFX, CGI and so on) needed to visualise the nagual woman, bring her to life and help define my film’s tone.

(Translated from Spanish)