Matria

It is clear from the moment she appears that Ramona is not one for standing still. In her Galician fishing village she has not one but two jobs, both of which require hard work and assertiveness. She earns extra money on a mussel boat, but she also energetically drives a team of women in an industrial cleaning company as their supervisor. The workers may keep each other amused with crude jokes but their rough-and-ready tone cannot conceal the strong sense of collegiality that exists among them. Ramona adopts a similarly determined approach when it comes to her private life – which means towards her 18-year-old daughter who hardly ever comes home anymore, and her boyfriend, who likes to have one too many drinks. When their employer tries to force the women to return to a minimum wage after eight years of service, Ramona decides she has had enough. What begins as a search for a new job soon sets far more in motion in her life.
Director Álvaro Gago’s feature debut is a vibrant portrait of a woman who, after years in the role of a mother, realises it is time to do something for herself. María Vázquez in the leading role captivates us with her rough charm and intoxicatingly impulsive nature.