Sad Girlz

Nordic Premiere 

Friday 11.9. at 10:00 PM, Church 
Sunday 13.9. at 2:30 PM, Alō 

Fiction, 2026, Mexico, Spain, France

Director: Fernanda Tovar
Duration: 1 h 30 min
Themes: Mexico City, friendship, adolescence, trauma
Language: Spanish, subtitles in English
Age limit: 7

Sad Girlz (Chicas tristes), a film about the inseparable friendship of two 16-year-old Mexican teenage girls and swimmers, premiered appropriately on Valentine's Day at the Berlinale Zoo Palast. The enthusiastic reception did not disappoint: the film won both the Crystal Bear and the Grand Jury Prize in the Generation section at the end of the festival. Now, the film will be screened in Karhupuisto as the first in all of the Nordic countries.

The best swimmers on their team, Paula and La Maestra, train through the summer to represent Mexico at the international youth championships in Brazil. Their friendship and looming goal are put to the test after a party night colored by flirting, reggaeton, and shots. La Maestra senses a change in the distant Paula, as the swimming, homework, hanging out, and parties that defined their lives no longer feel the same. What exactly happened in the party bathroom?

The young actors Darana Alvarez and Rocio Guzmán shine as the driving forces behind director Fernanda Tovar's delicately powerful study and debut feature film. Tovar is part of Mexico City's renowned creative collective, Colectivo Colmena. Cinematographer Rosa Hadit Hernandez wonderfully captures the duo's physical friendship in the bright, scorching sunlight of Mexico City's Coapan district.

Other credits:

Starring: Rocio Guzmán, Darana Álvarez
Cinematography: Rosa Hadit Hernández
Set Design: Selva Tulián
Costume Design: Daniela Guardado
Editing: José Pablo Escamilla
Music: Wissam Hojeij
Producers: Daniel Loustaunau, Araceli Velázquez
Production Companies: Colectivo Colmena, Potenza Producciones, Montgó Films, Promenades Films, MartiniShot Films, CTT Exp & Rentals