About the film

Gloria, a Chinese woman in her 70s, lives alone and entertains a simple, monotonous life.

She takes walks in her suburban Bay Area neighborhood, peruses her enormous stack of National Geographics, and avoids conversations with her son about her failing memory. But one afternoon, she encounters an article titled “To Stave Off Dementia, Learn a Language?” Fearful and resentful, she refuses to engage with it. But after passing the Mexican grocery in her neighborhood, a sense of longing to improve her mental state and connect with her community activates a shift. Gloria dives into teaching herself Spanish, an act that introduces both newfound purpose and friendship.

Gloria was shot on 16mm in Oakland and Redwood City, CA.