Private Project

DIONEA

MARTA (78) and ALFONSO (86) have been together for over sixty years. They find themselves alone in a dying country, as their family and friends have become migrants or turned to ashes. They spend their golden years as the most fragile inhabitants of a rotten and corrupt ecosystem, where a criminal on the run from a crime scene breaks into their home seeking shelter. Now, they will try to survive the sadism and violence of their unexpected visitor, without seemingly having any apparent chance.

  • Daniel Baloa
    Director
  • Daniel Baloa
    Writer
  • Marcel Rasquin
    Writer
    Hermano
  • Joe Torres
    Producer
    Antö
  • Daniel Baloa
    Producer
  • Marcel Rasquin
    Producer
  • Juan Antonio Díaz
    Producer
  • Aura Rivas
    Key Cast
    "Marta"
  • Guillermo Yuma Díaz
    Key Cast
    "Alfonso"
  • Abilio Torres
    Key Cast
    "Yorman"
  • Carlos Manuel González
    Key Cast
    "Martínez"
  • Gabriel Agüero
    Key Cast
    "Andrés"
  • Project Title (Original Language):
    DIONEA
  • Project Type:
    Short
  • Genres:
    Black Comedy, Suspense
  • Runtime:
    14 minutes 36 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    May 15, 2023
  • Production Budget:
    7,000 USD
  • Country of Origin:
    Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
  • Country of Filming:
    Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of
  • Language:
    Spanish
  • Shooting Format:
    Digital
  • Aspect Ratio:
    2:39.1
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    Yes
  • Student Project:
    No
  • None
Distribution Information
  • None
Director Biography - Daniel Baloa

Venezuelan director/producer with more than twenty years of experience working on sets. After a wide range of advertising projects as a director/producer, Daniel finished his fictional Opera Prima shot on pandemic. "Dionea", a short film written and directed by himself, is to be premiered on International Film festivals on 2023.
Graduated on mass communications at "Andrés Bello Catholic University", also with Screenwriting & Storytelling studies at "Metropolitan University", Daniel started working on film and tv sets at the age of 19, while still studying.
Daniel got to work with the most recognized professionals, both Venezuelan and internationals, developing a 20+ years career working almost every department and every level of a film production.
Being an ad director, Daniel has been recognized in Venezuelan and International Festivals, like "El Ojo de Iberoamérica" (Argentina), "FIAP" (US), "El Sol de Bilbao" (Spain), "Wave Festival" (Brazil), Festival del Caribe (Panama), ANDA (Vzla.), Lápiz Creativo (Vzla.), Caracol de Plata (Mexico), Premios P&M (Vzla.), among others.

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Director Statement

Dionea is born from a very personal feeling. From a question, a potential future. It's about how the recent collective imaginary of Venezuela, nourished by migration and crisis, makes me feel.
I recently left Venezuela, but I continue to recount local stories, now from another country. And it is inevitable that, from time to time, doubts assault me and questions blossom: What happens to those left behind when one emigrates? How does the empty nest survive? What does it become?
However, despite this creative spark that gave it life, Dionea does not aim to answer those questions with the truth of a reporter or a documentarian. It also seeks to provide social criticism as well as genre.
Quoting Tim Burton: "It doesn’t always make sense and most of it never happened".
Dionea starts with dark comedy, loaded with elegant and close irony. But it quickly evolves into a dark thriller that almost borders on horror. This short story moves subtly but never stops. It is a narrative that hides nothing but also doesn't set out to show or explain, rather to tell. Dionea is constructed in the details and subtleties of the decisions, which ultimately make sense from back to front. Enjoy!