Umbra
Directed by Joaquín Butrón
Spain · 2026 · 17 min · Family; Youth; Other;
Submitted to RTV International Film Festival 2026Synopsis
Emma, a young unemployed woman, moves into a modest flat after her father's death. During one of her first nights in her new home, a peculiar encounter allows her to come to terms with wounds from her past and move on.
About the film
Emma, a 27-year-old unemployed woman, moves into a modest flat after her father's death. After a long day settling into her new home, she goes to bed hoping to get some rest. However, annoying noises from the flat above prevent her from sleeping. Emma goes upstairs with the intention of confronting her unknown neighbours and putting an end to the racket. Javier, her boisterous 70-year-old neighbour, opens the door to his flat and asks her to help him find an object that has been making noise for some time and is keeping him awake. The search ends with the discovery of an old music box that provokes mixed feelings in Javier and leads to a very intimate conversation between the two characters. The dialogue leads Emma to reflect on her past, her difficult relationship with her father, and the many perspectives that can exist on the father-daughter relationship that she had always considered terrible and insurmountable. Javier gives Emma the music box as a gift, hoping that every time she sees it, she will connect with those deep feelings that she had long refused to accept and grant them her forgiveness. The next day, grateful for the conversation, Emma bakes some cookies for Javier. When she goes up to his flat to give them to him, she meets Borja, a real estate agent in charge of renting the flat, who tells her that the flat has been empty for several months and that there is no Javier. Emma returns to her flat and realises that the music box is tangible proof that the conversation was not a hallucination. Confused and incredulous, she goes on with her life, although many questions remain unanswered about the mysterious box. Who was Javier really? Is the box a way to connect only with her feelings or with something beyond the earthly realm?
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RTV International Film Festival — Inaugural Online Edition · 2026