Among the cracks of the Anthropocene, sometimes it seems that we exist separated from the living world that surrounds us. That the present in crisis is the only possible trajectory and that our human identity has no alternative other than a straight line that grows, devastates, and destroys exponentially. In moments like this, the whispers of care and the sketches of interdependence become what science calls "Refugia"— pockets of seeds that safeguard the possibility of life through collapse. Through hand-illustrated frame-by-frame animation, and a story that seems whispered in one's ear, this short film is a sensitive invitation to revere and allow ourselves to be guided by the resilience mechanisms of the Nature of which we are part. A bio-poetic reflection on radical interdependence and the possibility of re-inhabiting a common world.
Lina Herera is co-director of Mundo Común, a biomimetic design lab that inspires interspecies forms of care for cultural change. She works at the intersection of somatics, aesthetics, language, and ecology, designing narratives and experiences that activate bodily memories of interconnection and cultivate sensitivity for relating affectively to the living world. She places her somatic practice, in dialogue with her background in art direction, graphic design, and curation, at the service of developing biomimetic strategies that learn from Nature's intelligence to inspire new collective imaginaries. Refugio is her first short film as a director.
Natalia Romero is a graphic designer, illustrator, and self-taught animator, focused on creating frame-by-frame 2D audiovisual pieces. Her practice embraces slowness and care for the process, understanding animation as an exercise in patient and detailed construction. She is co-creator of the collective Embodied, where, through creative and audiovisual means, social and environmental issues are explored, seeking to generate deeper and more conscious connections with the natural environment and the non-human world. Refugio is her first short film as co-creative director, in addition to being an animator.
Cristian Barbosa is a sound designer, video editor, and self-taught music producer. While studying photography, he understood the limitations of the still image as a medium for storytelling, which led him to explore other disciplines, such as writing and sound. He has experimented with different media, and much of his creative work has been linked to the humanities. All this knowledge converges in Embodied, a project that seeks to explore other audiovisual narratives around new ecologies. Refugio is his first short film as co-creative director.