Guests Expected
Director Luke Lorentzen and producer Kellen Quinn are expected to attend all screenings.
Description
The Ochoa family runs a hair-raisingly frenetic private ambulance service in Mexico City. Director Luke Lorentzen captures the madness of their curbside negotiations—the service they provide is an add-on to Mexico’s under-resourced public health system—and the truly life-and-death drama of their everyday existence in a thrilling vérité style. Most of all, we become part of the remarkable Ochoa clan, with their big hearts, business savvy, and a remarkable sense of humor in the face of their chosen harrowing profession.
“If it bleeds, it leads — and pays the bills. That’s the uneasy truism and slow-boiling moral of the gripping documentary Midnight Family, about a household of ambulance workers. The title isn’t metaphoric (or not exactly), but refers to the Ochoas, who operate one of the many private ambulances that race through Mexico City. Fantastically shot by the director Luke Lorentzen, the documentary develops an urgency that suits the life-or-death stakes onscreen. By turns terrifying and exhilarating, Midnight Family unfolds with such velocity that it may take a while for your ethical doubts to catch up to what’s happening. When they do, they leave you gasping.” — Manohla Dargis, The New York Times
With support from
Natasha & David Dolby
A graduate of Stanford University, Luke Lorentzen made his directing debut with the short Santa Cruz del Islote, winning the Festival’s Best Bay Area Short Golden Gate Award in 2014. He made his feature documentary directing debut with New York Cuts (2015).
Film Details
Year 2019
Language Spanish
Runtime 81
Country USA/Mexico
Director Luke Lorentzen
Producer Kellen Quinn, Luke Lorentzen, Daniela Alatorre, Elena Fortes
Editor Luke Lorentzen
Cinematographer Luke Lorentzen
Music Los Shajatos
Print Source krquinn@gmail.comhttps://midnightfamilyfilm.com
