ABOUT THE FILM

IN DEPTH

Before being the feminist powerhouse that she’s known to be today, Norita Cortiñas was a traditional housewife. She was catapulted into her country’s political life when the 1976-82 military dictatorship kidnapped her son Gustavo and thousands of other young activists. Shunned by the government, church and media, Nora takes to the streets in 1977 with other mothers of the “disappeared”.

Together they create the Madres of Plaza de Mayo resistance movement, and fight a brutal struggle for justice against the violent authoritarian regime. Despite imprisonment and executions, Nora and the Mothers outlast the dictatorship and emerge as a triumphant symbol of human rights, rebellion and protest.

Tracing Norita’s formidable transformation over 40 years, the film features important figures in Nora’s world, including Ana Careaga, who was tortured at16 years old and then released back onto the streets of Buenos Aries and shows us a potential glimpse into what could have been an alternate reality for Gustavo; as well as Nora Strejilevich, dictatorship survivor and globally renowned activist, as well as Gustavo’s colleague Antonia Canizo, a well-respected Argentinian historian.

Throughout the film, we see Norita confronted by impossible choices, yet her spirit and determination never falter, giving the audience a taste of the tenderness and warmth of the relationships that give meaning to her life. During her decades long campaign to bring the military’s leaders to justice, Norita becomes a guiding light for a new generation of women, who themselves fight a patriarchal church and state — this time to decriminalize abortion. Norita is center stage as former dictators are sentenced, the country emerges into democracy, and a jubilant “green wave” of young women win new freedoms.

Nora’s journey is a process of intergenerational healing and becomes an extraordinary tribute of love and vindication from mother to son.

Subject Bios

  • Gustavo Cortiñas

    Nora Cortiñas’s Son

    Gustavo was 24-years-old when he was kidnapped and ‘disappeared’ by the military for his role in Argentina’s revolutionary youth movement as it pushed, by all means necessary, for social change. Gustavo left behind a small son Damián as well as a mandate for his mother Nora to reflect on during her journey, and ultimately for her to follow. In particular: “Mamá look outside your four walls, things are happening.”

  • Ana María Careaga

    Activist, Dictatorship Survivor

    Secondary character Ana’s journey from the youth movement to the military’s torture centers, and her eventual release, culminates in a sub-plot comparable in richness to Incendies (2010); Ana successfully hides her pregnancy from her captors, only to learn that three days after her daughter’s birth in 1977, the military kidnapped and killed her mother Ester, a fellow Mother of Plaza de Mayo. Ana and Nora serve as surrogates for each other in loss, as well as friends and confidants in the fight for Justice.

  • Nora Strejilevich

    Author, Dictatorship Survivor

    Nora Strejilevich was a young woman when her brother and other family members disappeared at the hands of the military junta. Nora was one of few who survived kidnapping and torture and has made it her life’s work to speak on the experiences of the desaparecidas. Her historical approach to the time helps provide color and context to the larger story of the time, along an image of alternative fate to that of our main subject, Gustavo.

  • Antonia Canizo

    Gustavo’s colleague

    Antonia is an expert on Argentina’s politics and activism, possessing deep insights into the tumultuous 1970s. Her knowledge has proven valuable for academic research, advocacy, and educational initiatives aimed at remembering and understanding this dark chapter in Argentina’s history. Antonia was a close confidant of Gustavo during his growth as a budding activist.