The Desire to Kill a Brother

Synopsis

In a small industrial village in the north of Spain, Daniel (10) begins to feel jealous of his little brother Mateo (8) when his parents’ care for him is overshadowed by Mateo’s fainting spell at his school’s Christmas performance. Upon discovering that Mateo has developed a lump on his head, a corrupt desire arises in Daniel: he wants his brother to disappear. While the black dust from the factory next to his house begins to cover the windows, he unleashes a new spiritual reality in his imagination that interweaves the rural landscapes, the factory, and his brother’s illness. 

Letter of Intent

All my life I’ve lived two meters away from a textile factory. I can see it from my bedroom window. Over time, I’ve started to think about it more. About the smoke it releases, the smells it gives off. When my mother was pregnant with me, I developed a lump on my head. What if it came back? What if it appeared in another member of my family? My mother always tells me that she once found my brother pulling me out of my crib by grabbing me around the neck. This scene has also become a recurring thought: where could this hatred come from? Can it even be considered hatred? Gradually, I’ve come to realize that I’m writing a story about the human mind—about its corruption—about how the industrial landscape shapes the reality of the working class, and specifically, about how the illness that plagues it turns into oppression.

Director

Ismael Sordo (Cabezón de la Sal, 1998) is a screenwriter, director, and visual artist. He holds a degree in Journalism and Audiovisual Communication from Carlos III University in Madrid and later specialized in screenwriting through the Master’s Program in Continuing Education in Film and Television Screenwriting at the same university, in collaboration with the ALMA screenwriters’ union. His work focuses on exploring identity through the representation of the physical environment as a means of investigating the symbolic, incorporating disciplines such as architecture, graphic design, and print media. He has participated in residencies and labs such as SEMILLERU Campus, CASYC Crea, Abycine LANZA, and Málaga Talent.