Kusi Smiles (2024)
Narrative, U.S.A. & Peru, 15minIn Quechua and Spanish.
Unable to sing since her mother’s passing, Quechua teenager Kusi (Renata Flores) returns to her Andean community, where sisterhood, music, and the land that raised her guide her through grief toward healing. A Latino Film Institute presentation, made in collaboration with the Indigenous community of Quispillaccta-Lacctahuran, Ayacucho, Peru.
CREDIT
Written and Directed by Sisa QuispeProduced by Apolo Bautista
Executive Produced by Erika Sabel Flores and Axel Caballero
Starring Renata Flores
Sound Designed and Mixed by Haina Zhou
AWARDSWorld Premiere, Slamdance Film Festival, 2025
Winner, First Prize for Best Indigenous Film, Flickers’ Rhode Island International Film Festival
Winner, Best Indigenous Short, deadCenter Film Festival
Nominee, Best Latin-American Short Film, Mar del Plata International Film Festival
Nominee, Red Nation Film Award of Excellence (Best Live Action Short)
SLAMDANCE CHANNEL
