June 27, 2022 marked a pivotal moment in Santa Cruz Chinautla, Guatemala. As dawn broke, 50 residents lined the weathered streets, awaiting the first rumble of approaching mining trucks. “With all force!” one woman shouted, and together, they moved into the road, prepared to confront the monstrous vehicles. This act of collective resistance marked the expiration of sand mining licenses after 25 years of extraction, and the birth of the Chinautla Resistance.
Santa Cruz Chinautla, an Indigenous Maya Poqomam community, is located 7-miles north of Guatemala City. Once known for its natural beauty, the landscape now resembles a post-apocalyptic world – mountaintops bleed open, riverbanks are laden with trash, and vultures circle overhead. Since 1997, large-scale sand and gravel extraction have ravaged the town. Chinautla also contends with toxic garbage overflow from one of Central America’s largest landfills via the Las Vacas River. Las Vacas, a major tributary to the Motagua River—deemed the world’s most polluted river by the nonprofit Ocean Cleanup—contributes an estimated 2% of global ocean plastic pollution. The community is experiencing an eco-ethnocide, the extermination of their culture through environmental destruction. Their sacred land falls deeper into ruin each passing day.
This feature-length documentary unfolds as a community portrait, weaving together stories from across the town. Through a blend of observational and poetic styles, we follow the community of Santa Cruz Chinautla as their resistance forms, strengthens, and confronts mounting challenges. Through intimate vignettes of daily life and collective action, we witness how, in the face of ecological terror, a community copes with uncertainty and ultimately finds strength.
