The film pitch for Valentina is undeniably intriguing:
It’s the summer of 2025, and global warming has caused temperatures to skyrocket. Valentina is a middle-aged Latina, obsessed with her own personal hygiene. She channels this fastidiousness into her job as a cleaning lady, making her the maid of choice for affluent New Yorkers.
Valentina reports for duty at a sparkling, all-glass skyscraper on the hottest day ever recorded in the city. As she eagerly polishes and disinfects, the power goes out and the blistering sunlight turns the apartment into an oven. Sweat, heat, and moisture build up so much that Valentina’s vagina screams for mercy.
What starts as a simple cry for fresh air turns into an intervention as her vagina asks after her wages and demands better working conditions. The heat will force Valentina to come face-to-face with a part of her anatomy she’s always ignored, and it will embolden her in the process. Though Valentina initially finds her abhorrent, her vagina is truly an ally who will help her value herself and be proud of who she is.
Immediately I thought, “I must see this film.” And then my urge for instant gratification had to be tempered because the film is not yet made. The latest short from Mary Angelica Molina is currently in the fundraising stage with a campaign running on Kickstarter. As evident from her previous works and the promise of Valentina, Ms. Molina is a filmmaker whose ambition is matched only by her creativity. Her vision is distinct and potent, as well as surreally provocative. I’m thrilled to present this Q&A with Ms. Molina.
The Ink & Code: After watching your Kickstarter campaign video and reading about the project, I wanted to talk to you. It’s actually difficult to come up with interview questions because you’ve touched on so many things and I just want to point to each one say, “Talk more about that, please!” To start, can you share a bit about your background? When did you come to the US from Colombia?
Mary Angelica Molina: We came to the US from Barranquilla in 1986. The Statue of Liberty had just turned 100 years old. Our first meal was McDonald’s chicken nuggets with sweet and sour sauce.
I&C: Which came first, the interest in making a film about female sexuality, climate change, and domestic workers’ rights or making one about a talking vagina?
MM: The whole idea started because of the ecosystem of my own vagina. Like many women, my thighs rub against each other when I walk. The friction creates heat, the heat creates moisture, and so on. There’s always a moment of dread in the spring time, right before the weather starts to really heat up, when I’m like, “Here comes the swamp!” So, it was born out of a lot of self-awareness about my body. From that point, the character of the vagina emerged as the antithesis to my inner critic: She was a badass feminista who wouldn’t put up with injustice and maltreatment from anyone.
I&C: As an artist tackling such themes, do you find it is more important that your work inspire those who share your views or provoke those who might not yet and/or won’t?
MM: I’m mostly interested in presenting an idea that then you get to take home, in your brain, and play with. I doubt that I can change your mind, but I’m going to try to fuck with your subconscious.
I&C: How important is humor in crafting a film focused on serious topics?
MM: With humor, people tend to let their guard down. If people can laugh or be amused by something, they often think it’s innocuous even when there’s a lot there. In that way, I can engage lots of different kinds of people about topics that might initially appear too sensitive or polarizing or overwrought.
I&C: You stated you’re using a talking vagina “to examine how the body is both a vehicle and a cage, how it can represent and conceal who we are.” I feel your previous short Oh Baby, I Love You! also explored similar terrain. What fuels your interest in these explorations of the body?
MM: As a queer person who has not always felt totally at home with being a woman, I generally don’t feel comfortable in my body. It represents me because it’s an extension of “me,” but it also doesn’t because it’s not the body I would have chosen for myself. So I have a lot of awareness around what it does or doesn’t do. I’m also aware of the narratives that people project onto it when they tick a box in their head that says, “Female.” What fuels my interest in these explorations is my desire to re-draw the boundaries around what we perceive to be female/feminine.
I&C: How did Paola Mendoza come aboard as the film’s executive producer?
MM: I met Paola many years ago when her first feature Entre Nos came out. We just had a lot of things in common: Born in Colombia but grew up here; both filmmakers; both attended liberal arts schools; etc. As I’ve been developing my first feature, she’s been very generous with her time and advice. She then asked me to be a part of her writer’s group where she read Valentina, and encouraged me to get my work out there.
I&C: Who are some of your filmmaking influences?
MM: There are lots of influences but here’s a few movies that exemplify some of the films and filmmakers that have made the biggest impact on me: Angel Exterminador by Buñuel, Poison by Todd Haynes, and Santa Sangre by Jodorowsky.
I&C: Is this your first time using crowdfunding to raise money for a film? What has been the biggest obstacle thus far?
MM: This is my first time. The biggest obstacle has been my constant self doubt, my anxiety: Are we going to make it? Are we not? Will people like it? Maybe they won’t. Am I an asshole? But the critic in my head has been silenced some by all of the positive support the film has received so far. It’s like, maybe, I was meant to make films after all.
Having watched her previous shorts, The Ink & Code certainly agrees Ms. Molina was meant to make films. We want Valentina get made and we cannot wait to see what else she comes up with.