Plaza de la Soledad

Maya Goded became an internationally recognized photographer when she decided to explore one of the most dangerous neighborhoods in the world: La Merced in Mexico City, where prostitution has been present since the Aztecs. Before these women and men were the subjects of her portraits, Maya became their close friend. After many years of repeated visits, Maya became more curious about how these women who live in such extreme circumstances manage to do so with such dignity and joy for life. In 2012, she made a proposition to some she had been documenting in La Merced: “You deserve to have your own movie. Would you like to be part of my first film?” They said they would be happy “to play” themselves. Plaza de la Soledad is a documentary about Carmen, Lety, Raquel and Esther, four strong women—middle aged and older—who want to break a vicious circle that began with abuse and abandonment suffered from an early age. They simply want to have a better life. The film follows their quest to find true love and their capacity to transform themselves. We see through their eyes the scars that sexual violence, poverty and neglect have left on them, but we also witness how their search for love gives them the strength to keep on going. All of these women think of this film as a means of empowerment that will help them confront their past, accept their present and rethink their future in a new light. They also see it as their chance to open up their secrets to their children. They know by experience that history might repeat itself and they wish to free their daughters and granddaughters from the destiny they have had. Are people as marginalized as these able to change their lives? And if not, what is that force that keeps them going? Regardless of what these women finally accomplish, at the end, this story is about their amazing skills to survive.