– Directed by Elena Molina, it tells the story of three generations of a family trapped under the control of a cult leader accused of sexual abuse, who died in prison before standing trial
La Chaparra (Born in a Sect) by Elena Molina
La Chaparra (Born in a Sect), the new original Movistar Plus+ documentary series directed by Elena Molina (Goya nominee for co-directing the non-fiction film Flores para Antonio alongside Isaki Lacuesta) premieres on the platform on 30 April. The series explores this story that came to light in 2022, following a police operation that led to the arrest of its leader, who was found dead in his cell a few months later, four years before his trial was due to begin.
Created by Marias Recarte and Cristina Nieto, with music by Raül Refree (La Mesías) and a screenplay by Elena Molina, Silvia Arribas and Marias Recarte, the series recounts how, in 1998, several families moved to a farmhouse in rural Castellón to build an alternative way of life in harmony with nature, guided by Antonio Garrigós Lucas, a supposed spiritual leader. The place was known as La Chaparra, and its founder, Uncle Toni, was regarded as a divine messenger. By laying his hands on people, he protected them from evil spirits and healed them of ailments and illnesses. When he founded his own community, his followers saw him as an almost mystical figure to whom they owed absolute loyalty.
Across three 50-minute episodes, the series places the victims at the heart of the narrative: three generations of a family who lived inside the cult and recount their story in their own words, a story marked by profound trauma and emotional upheaval. Elena Molina says, “I was drawn to the project because of the way it embodies and explores that very human – and very contemporary – need to find a place to belong and a certainty to believe in, in order to survive uncertainty. It has been a genuine privilege to accompany this family through the difficult process of learning to live again, of questioning thirty years of their lives and the people and beliefs that had sustained them, and of transforming their pain and anger into the courage to share their story so that others might learn from it.”
“Directing this story has allowed me to confront our fragility head-on and see how, at times, we can place blind trust in someone, without realising that others are taking advantage of our good faith for their own gain. The biggest challenge was to strike a tone that respected that intimacy without veering into the anecdotal or the sensationalist, seeking images and a narrative capable of transforming their incredible and harrowing experience into a question that challenges us all. Because, as the protagonists say: no one is immune to becoming a victim of a cult when things go wrong,” concludes the director.
La Chaparra (Born in a Sect) is an original Movistar Plus+ series produced in collaboration with En Cero Coma (Fremantle) with Marias Recarte and Rosaura Romero (El Palmar de Troya) serving as executive producers. Movistar Plus+ International handles its sales.
(Translated from Spanish)
