While not autobiographical, Costa Rican Kim Torres’s feature debut “If We Don’t Burn How Do We Light Up The Night” (“Si no ardemos, cómo iluminar la noche”) is rooted in her childhood experiences. It draws inspiration from her early years in rural Costa Rica where she began to perceive certain dynamics in the village and grew more aware of the dangers lurking in this idyllic setting.
“My film has to do with that transition into adulthood and understanding the violence we experience in Latin America and worldwide. It’s something that’s very present in Latin America, more so than in other places,” she tells Variety.
Her coming-of-age drama, which world premieres at the San Sebastian Film Festival’s New Directors sidebar, follows 13-year-old Laura who feels stifled in her new family. As she begins to adjust to her new environment, surrounded by verdant forests and palm plantations, she finds out that the village hides a shadowy secret that preys on the women in it.
Its trailer, debuting exclusively in Variety, opens to Laura’s arrival at the village with her mother who has taken Laura to live with her and her boyfriend plus his young daughters.
According to Torres, the title draws inspiration from a line in the poem “Kerem Gibi” by the Turkish poet Nâzım Hikmet. “In the film, we reimagine its original meaning within the poem and see the burning as a light that shines through the pain. An eternal love that never fades and endures, honoring all those who are no longer with us,” she explains.
Her debut feature is in a way an extension of her previous short films, which also explore childhood and adolescence. “In them, there’s always a subtle shift in reality—it’s never completely grounded in the real world. There’s always something that feels slightly off, like in this case, it’s the mysterious, almost legendary aspect,” she notes.
Her short “Night Light” (2022) became the first Costa Rican film nominated for a Palme d’Or at Cannes. Her works have been presented at NYFF, Locarno, San Sebastián, MoMA, Lincoln Center and the Eye Film Museum.
“While making this film, I was drawn to the lightness of childhood — the joy of play, the tenderness of love, the quiet bonds of friendship. At the same time, I wanted to capture the weight carried by a girl standing at the threshold between childhood and adulthood, learning to navigate a world where violence lingers like a shadow. It is a specter that touches not only her own body, but also the bodies of the women she loves, those who have shaped her heart and spirit,” Torres states.
The three young girls are non-pros which Torres found with her casting director Kim Picado, who also served as an acting coach. The casting process focused not so much on the volume of applicants but on the depth of the selection, she recalls.
“From the very beginning, we did a pre-selection of candidates, but once we had a group, the real work began — much more in-depth casting and rehearsal. And it was about creating connections between the actors, finding a common language that I really think is what made the whole thing flow so smoothly and created that magic while working with them. We set up this beautiful, calm, and safe atmosphere. And the girls, especially the three of them, really brought something special to the project,” says Torres.
The three young non-pros are Lara Yuja Mora, who plays Laura, Keylin Delgado Arguedas (Daniela) and Valentina Chaves Jimenez (Gaby).
The rest of the cast are Michelle Jones, Teresa Sánchez, Juan Luis Araya, Gabriel Guzmán Rodríguez and Luis Carlos Canhoto Baptista da Silva.
The screenplay is co-penned by Torres and Luisa Mora Fernández.
“If We Don’t Burn…” is produced by Costa Rica’s Alejandra Vargas Carballo of Noche Negra Prods. alongside co-producers Mariana Monroy of Tropical Films, Mexico and Camille Ferrero of Les Films du Clan, France.
