Emma Suárez shines as a pathological mother in Michel Franco’s Cannes prize-winning thriller.

Valeria is 17, in love and expecting a baby. With her sister and a supportive boyfriend at hand, she’s as prepared as she can be to take on the challenges of teenage parenthood; but when her mother returns home and takes charge, Valeria’s control over every aspect of her life begins to slip away.

Winner of the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize at the 2017 Cannes Film Festival and directed by rising talent Michel Franco (Chronic, MIFF 2015), April’s Daughter is a gripping depiction of maternal devotion gone wrong, with Emma Suárez (Pedro Almodóvar’s Julieta, MIFF 2016) mesmerising as the ruthlessly calculating matriarch.

'The tension that Franco builds with every scene is crafty and strong ... April’s Daughter marks his finest directorial work yet.' – The Film Stage