Punku + Q&A

Special screening with filmmaker Juan Daniel Fernández Molero in attendance

Deep in the Peruvian Amazon lowlands, Meshia, a Matsigenka Indigenous teenager, discovers Ivan, a young boy who vanished two years ago and was presumed dead. Determined to save him, she embarks on a journey upriver into the mountains, heading to the city of Quillabamba. Ivan urgently needs eye surgery to halt an infection threatening his sight. As a withdrawn Ivan struggles with the trauma of his mysterious past and haunting dreams, Meshia becomes mesmerized by the city’s allure. Fueled by ambition and fragile illusions, she enters a local beauty pageant. Despite Ivan’s silence, an uncanny bond grows between them. But when a stranger with sinister intentions emerges, their inner worlds—and their fragile connection—are put at risk. Shot on a mix of 16mm, Super 8, and digital formats, Punku—meaning ‘gateway’ in Quechua—is a hybrid fiction film that blurs the boundaries between the seen and unseen, offering a portal into overlapping realities and dimensions.

*Forum, Grand Prix – International Competition – Berlin Film Festival 2025