Once upon a time we were children

Once upon a time we were children

2026 · 5 min · Documentary

A journey through the ruins of childhoods that passed too quickly.

Directed by Esteban M. Soto

Your Rating

Cast

Esteban M. Soto Ojo

Make it a double feature

16m together

Once upon a time we were children

On my way to the cinema I recognised the remains of what once was

Both from Esteban M. Soto.

More from Esteban M. SotoSee all →

On my way to the cinema I recognised the remains of what once was

On my way to the cinema I recognised the remains of what once was · 2024

On my way to the cinema I recognised the remains of what once was

MovieDocumentary

In Cañete there was a large movie theater in the center of town until the 1980s. At that time many things still worked. From a child's point of view, the short film transports us to an ordinary afternoon in Cañete, when people still happily went to the movies despite how difficult life was.

Protest

Protest · 2022

MovieDocumentary

Mobilization of students of the University of Chile against the increase of fees, from "Casa Central" to "Torre 15".

Rosita

MovieDocumentary

In a little more than 2 minutes we see how an old woman goes from being present to being lost inside herself, due to her senile dementia.

Peleco Port

Peleco Port · 2023

MovieDocumentary

Documentary short film in which the director returns to the Peleco port after 10 years, remembering and imagining what happened at the lake.

Selfportrait

Selfportrait · 2024

MovieDocumentary

Returning to the ruins of the hospital where he came into the world, the director tries to remember what his birth was like, in search of a self-image that he lacks.

Freedom

Freedom · 2022

MovieDocumentary

Short monologue in which the director reflects on what it means to him to be free.

11 + 7

MovieDocumentary

Through the juxtaposition of images, the documentary proposes to show the juxtaposition present in Chilean society and how it is capable of lamenting the coup d'état and a week later celebrating the Glories of the Army and the “18th”.

Today is a day

Today is a day · 2024

MovieDocumentaryComedy

Compilation of images of the small everyday things that inhabit the city, those situations that are constantly lost sight of if you don't pay attention.

Timeless land

Timeless land · 2023

MovieDocumentary

Exposed, hungry and tired, but always smiling. The documentary explores what a day of up to 11 hours in retail sales is like, where the worker is stripped of something as simple as time - while selling watches.

Tea for Three

Tea for Three · 2022

MovieDramaFamily

You see the perspective of a child who, after a fight between his parents, waits all day, with a loaf of bread and a cup of tea, for his father to return.

Situations at Plaza de Armas

Situations at Plaza de Armas · 2022

Situations at Plaza de Armas

MovieDocumentary

Who are you? Where do you come from? What are your concerns?

Conversations from a film

Conversations from a film · 2023

Conversations from a film

MovieDocumentary

Dialogue rescued from a conversation following the screening of a film in the context of the 50th anniversary of the coup d'état in Chile.

I'm modern, I take the subway

I'm modern, I take the subway · 2023

I'm modern, I take the subway

MovieDocumentary

“I'm modern, I take the subway” is a visual story illustrating how the Santiago subway is, par excellence, a symbol of modernity in the city. In it you can see contemporary art, mass and consumer society, multinational companies, the acceleration of life, etc., so the subway has become an overdose of modernity, with all the contradictions that this brings.

Places of infancy

Places of infancy · 2022

Places of infancy

MovieDocumentary

Esteban (18), a shy film student, returns for a few days to his hometown of Cañete. There he will try to film the places that marked his childhood, only to discover that most of them are falling apart, just like his memories.

Images from a mother

Images from a mother · 2024

Images from a mother

MovieDocumentary

Through interviews, different mothers are asked to recall a precious moment with their children that has not been recorded, and then draw that moment and use it to fill the gap in a photo album.

Dissociated on the street

Dissociated on the street · 2022

Dissociated on the street

MovieDocumentary

An account of what it was like to dissociate on a random day on a random street.

More Like This

To the Sea

To the Sea · 2010

MovieDocumentaryFamily

Before leaving for Rome with his mother, five year old Natan is taken by his father, Jorge, on an epic journey to the pristine Chinchorro reef off the coast of Mexico. As they fish, swim, and sail the turquoise waters of the open sea, Natan discovers the beauty of his Mayan heritage and learns to live in harmony with life above and below the surface, as the bond between father and son grows stronger before their inevitable farewell.

Rate this film

Your ratings make Midnight smarter