Marialuisa Ernst (she/they) is a New York–based queer transcultural artist originally from Bolivia and Chile. For the past decade, she has created intimate, political cinema shaped by her background in performance art. Her work explores personal loss, memory, and the invisible threads that connect humanity beyond nationality and borders. As a queer, non-binary mother and feminist, she challenges dominant power structures. A PLACE OF ABSENCE is her feature debut, premiering at DOC NYC and supported by the Tribeca Gucci Fund, the New York State Council on the Arts, and the NYC Women’s Fund. The film has been selected for the DOC NYC Forum, the Gotham (formerly IFP) Lab, the Tribeca Film Network, Visions du Réel Industry Network, DCTV’s WIP Lab (with Yance Ford), and the BGDM Feedback LoopMafia (BGDM).

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ABOUT A Place of Absence

Decades after the disappearance of her uncle during Argentina’s Dirty War, filmmaker Marialuisa Ernst joins the Caravan of Mothers, a group of Central American women traveling the migrant trail in search of loved ones who have disappeared trying to reach the US.

Film

A Place of Absence

Program Affiliation

Firelight Fund

Cohort Year

2025

Website

aplacefilm.com

Instagram

@marialuisa_ernst