Die Fünf Himmelsrichtungen

The Five Cardinal Points

A 2009, 94 min, DigiBeta Pal, color
Mischief Films

Tres Valles and Kansas City: Two places that couldn’t be more different, they’re connected through individuals like Maria Esther and Miguel. Both of them left their families and homeland behind for a better future and emigrated from Tres Valles to Kansas City. They live on the outskirts of society, struggling with loneliness and rising unemployment, which hits them as illegal immigrants especially hard. Driven by their dreams, they follow the fifth cardinal point: hope for a better life. Feelings of uprootedness in their lives as migrants, of being lost and between two places accompany them.

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Synopsis

THE FIVE CARDINAL POINTS uses the protagonists to tell us about the residents of Tres Valles, Mexico, which is located in state of Veracruz. Their roots there go back through many generations of farmers and craftsmen. Sugar cane, pineapple and rice farming provided a modest but comfortable living until a few years ago.

But like in many other places, commodity prices plummeted after Mexico joined the global economy. Families were no longer able to live on the salaries paid by the local sugar-cane factory alone, and the long shadow of poverty fell over the region. As there are not many prospects for a bright future in their own country, numerous families have had no choice other than to split up and head north, to the USA, whether legally or illegally.

In powerful and intimate images director Fridolin Schönwiese presents Maria Esther’s and Miguel’s moving narratives and the human drama of a migrant worker’s life on the outskirts of society. In a continuous cycle of departure and return they struggle with rising unemployment caused by the economic crisis and feelings of alienation in their lives as migrants. Driven by their dreams, they follow the fifth cardinal point: the Mexican dream of hope for a better life.

But like in many other places, commodity prices plummeted after Mexico joined the global economy. Families were no longer able to live on the salaries paid by the local sugar-cane factory alone, and the long shadow of poverty fell over the region. As there are not many prospects for a bright future in their own country, numerous families have had no choice other than to split up and head north, to the USA, whether legally or illegally.

In powerful and intimate images director Fridolin Schönwiese presents Maria Esther’s and Miguel’s moving narratives and the human drama of a migrant worker’s life on the outskirts of society. In a continuous cycle of departure and return they struggle with rising unemployment caused by the economic crisis and feelings of alienation in their lives as migrants. Driven by their dreams, they follow the fifth cardinal point: the Mexican dream of hope for a better life.

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