My father, a blind photographer, taught me how to see through a camera.
I was his eyes and his guide.
Today, I question his gaze and seek my own visual independence.
My father saw me for the first time through a camera due to his retinitis pigmentosa. He could still
perceive images on contact sheets. I grew up in an environment of images, predominantly of women.
From a young age, I became my father’s eyes. At six, after moving to Cusco, we started a game called Lend Me Your Eyes. I
became his guide, with his camera hanging on me as he verbally directed me to capture images. As I grew, this game
evolved, incorporating rules of composition and light into the process.
My father, now 85, once said: “The camera has been a tool to eroticize life. It is an extension of my body, a way to attract
other bodies.” His words made me question whether I am like him.
As the distance between us grows, our communication relies on voice messages exchanged between Madrid and the small
American town where my father lives. He proposes that I lend him my eyes to go back to Cusco, Peru, and create a short
film together before selling the family house—this proposal becomes an opportunity to reflect on our relationship and my
search for visual emancipation.
In my yearning for visual autonomy and to distance myself from his gaze, Lend Me Your Eyes became my declaration of
visual independence.
DOCUMENTARY
length: 90 MINUTES
screener: DCP including V H S , 8 m m , 1 6 m m , d i g i t a l 4 k
sound: DOLBY DIGITAL
year of release: 2027
languages: spanish, english
WRITTEN & DIRECTED BY Natalia Grande
PRODUCER GERMANY ANTONIA KILIAN (PINK SHADOW FILMS)
PRODUCER SPAIN MILA LUENGOPAV & ANDREA MATEU (AIRE DE CINEMA)
PRODUCER PERU MAXIM HOLLAND (TAMBO PRODUCTIONS)
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER PERU LORENA TULINI (PAI FILMS)
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT GERMANY PAULA BERGER & YSBELL SCHÖPS