In 2006, Carlos Armella made his co-directing debut with Toro negro, an impressive docu portrait that undoubtedly was the inspiration for his own first feature. In the ominous The Voices, Armella asks what can happen to the main character of a documentary once their filmic purpose has been served. Filmmaker Sebastian makes the reverse journey from Mexico City that almost all of the inhabitants of the deserted, dusty hamlet La Estancia have made. Searching for inspiration (and a better life?), he comes across the two sole remaining residents: the aged Don Jesús Vallejo and his son Juan Diego. Fascinated by their isolated lives and Juan Diego’s absolute loneliness, Sebastian starts to film. The improbable but intense friendship that arises between them is rudely disrupted when Sebastian goes back to the city – but he promises to return. Years later, he keeps his word, and although Juan Diego seems nowhere to be found, their close bond still reverberates in the hamlet.
