MFDB

Storyline

Ana, 30, is an ambulance driver. Though good at her job, she has problems relating in her personal life. She doesn't know it, but she suffers from a condition known by psychiatrists as Borderline Personality Disorder. The situation pushes her to outbreaks of self-destructive behaviour, alcohol abuse and self-harm. Ana is incapable of getting what she wants most: to be happy.

She harms herself regularly; she drinks to excess and is abusive when she feels threatened. The film charts her daily rituals – her amazing ability to bond with the patients she transports, her friendship with fellow driver Jaime, her difficult relationship with on-off boyfriend Alex and the awkward encounters with her mother. The film is grounded in a terrific central performance by Marian Álvarez and avoids easy clichés about mental health in favour of a genuinely uncomfortable and deftly controlled narrative.

Festivals & Academy awards and others

San Sebastián International Film Festival 2013
Won Silver Seashell for Best Actress and Special Prize of the Jury
BFI London Film Festival 2013
British Film Institute Awards 2013: Nominated - Fernando Franco
Mar del Plata International Film Festival 2013
Won: Best Actress
Nominated: Best Film
Seville European Film Festival 2014
EFA Selection

Goyas Awards 2014
Nominated: Best Screenplay - Original, Best Sound and Best Editing
Winner: Best Actress and Best New Director
Gaudí Awards 2014
Nominated: Best European Film
European Film Awards (EFA) 2014
Nominated: European Actress (Marian Álvarez)

Releases

Spain (4 of October 2013)