DocNomads film awarded in Docudays UA, Ukraine
María Casas Castillo’s Dust is a whale, is sunlight received the Main Prize of the DOCU/SHORT competition at the 22nd Docudays UA International Human Rights Documentary Film Festival held in Kyiv from 6 to 13 June.
The film premiered in the First Lights competition of the 27th Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival, Czechia.
Jury statement: “For its poetic depiction of the time perspective of life on the planet, for its subtle reminder of the fragility of human existence and for its embodiment of the dignity of human finitude, the jury selected the film Dust is a whale, is sunlight as the main winner of the festival in the Docu/Shorts category.”
By María Casas Castillo (Mexico) • 21’ • 2023
Official SelectionSynopsis:
A whale existed 5 million years ago. Mark found her skeleton and decided to reassemble the pieces in a dusty basement of the Science Museum in Brussels. A filmmaker found Mark and decided to film him, the whale, and the dust. While these bones are put back together, like pieces from a puzzle, we try to imagine how life was 5 million years ago, a time before humans existed, but the sea and the sun were already here.
Previously presented in:
- Ji.hlava International Documentary Film Festival, Czech Republic (2023)
- ARKIPEL Jakarta International Documentary Film Festival, Indonesia (2024)
- Ice Docs International Film Festival, Iceland (2024)
- Ocean Films Húsavík, Iceland (2024)
- Beijing International Short Film Festival, China (2024)
- Braga Science Film Fest, Portugal (2024)
- Festival of Science Documentary Films Academia Film Olomouc, Czech Republic (2024)
- 1st Ficcions de Ciè€ncia – Barcelona Film Festival - Spain - 2025
- InScience Filmfestival Nijmegen, Netherlands (2025)