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Ron: Welcome to a bonus Stereo Geeks episode from Toronto International Film Festival 2026. I’m Ron and today, I’m reviewing Ashes, which had its North American premiere at TIFF.

Mon: Before we start our episode, we would like to acknowledge that the land we are recording on is the traditional territory of many nations, including the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee and the Wendat peoples. It is now home to many diverse First Nations, Inuit and Métis peoples. We also acknowledge that Toronto is covered by Treaty 13 with the Mississaugas of the Credit.

Ron: While we are making this land acknowledgement, we understand that this is not enough and that positive action is required by the people of Canada to make substantive change for the Indigenous nations and communities whose lands we now reside on.

Ron: Based on Brenda Navarro’s book, which is called Eating Ashes in English, Ashes is a film about migration and the endless journey of finding one’s self when home isn’t just one place. Isabel (Adriana Paz) leaves Mexico for a different life in Madrid, Spain. Years later, her children join her. 

Lucila (Anna Díaz) is the responsible older sister. She works as an au pair in Madrid and tries to claim back any time for herself by pretending she has a baby brother to take care of. 

Her brother, Diego (Sergio Bautista), is 14, and having trouble settling in. He gets into fights at school. He steals money. And who gets called? Not Isabel; she’s too busy at work. It’s Lucila who has to risk her job to get Diego out of trouble. And Isabel doesn’t take her son to task. Oh no, it’s Lucila who gets the brunt of her mother’s rage. 

It isn’t really surprising when Lucila moves away from her family. She’s looking for freedom and a way to make something of her life.

But when tragedy strikes the family, Lucila is left wondering whether moving away from Mexico was the right decision. She had to move to Spain because of her mother. Could she choose to move back now?

Ron: Describing Ashes as a slice of life story doesn’t quite do it justice. But that is what it is. We see a sliver of Lucila’s life. The instant her world changed when her mother moved away. Her now adult life as a caregiver, first to an infant in Madrid, then to an elderly, kindly woman in Barcelona. But these jobs aren’t enough to keep her afloat. Lucila also does food delivery on the side. And she can still barely pay rent. 

When Diego asks his sister if she likes doing this job—as if she has a choice, as if so many immigrants can just choose their profession, no matter what they’re qualified in—of course, this isn’t the job she wants. This isn’t the life Lucila wants. But she has to pay bills and rent. And if caregiving can help her do that, then she’ll do it. But the problem with having to take on jobs just to pay the bills is that you rarely get the time to indulge in your passions. If you even have time to discover passions in the first place.

And that’s what makes Ashes so riveting, even though it is a slow film, and it looks like nothing huge is going to happen. It’s the banality of life as an immigrant. Doing the same thing day in and day out because those bills and rent are due every month. Lucila tries to spend time with friends, her boyfriend, to learn Catalan with the family she’s caregiving for. But those are brief moments of respite in an otherwise dreary, soul-sucking experience.

And Lucila can’t even understand why this has become her life. She questions her mother, accusing her of abandoning her children for the good life. But Isabel has definitely not had it easy. She’s in caregiving, as well, hard work and low pay that kept her apart from her children for longer than she wanted. Nothing is easy but that’s two generations of women who can’t catch a break and can’t see any brightness in their future.

I don’t want people to think Ashes is a bleak film. It’s not joyful and there are some very tough moments that the characters go through. But it is realistic. For many immigrants, especially in the caregiving profession, this film will resonate. Hell, I’m not even in caregiving and I recognized some of the emotions Lucila was going through.

I have seen a fair few of Diego Luna’s films but this is the first of his directorial efforts that I’ve watched. He has a very down-to-earth style. He lets the actors work in front of the camera instead of editing in multiple shots. We get pans from location to location. Long scenes of conversations that feel like you’re people-watching in the park. 

Amidst the daily tasks of Lucila’s jobs, we see her walking home, drinking water, cooking. Doing perfectly normal, everyday things. We do it without thinking but when you see it on the big screen you realise just how much there is to do in a day, in a life. It’s never ending. When do we ever get a break? When do we ever just get to be? It’s a lot.

You know how racists often yell at immigrants to “go home”. While it’s easy to miss, Ashes manages to address just why “going home” isn’t as easy as a flight ticket and packed suitcase.

Ashes lives and dies by its central performance. Anna Díaz is in every scene of this film, and at no point, will you think you’re watching an actor. Luna mentioned that, even if it’s a scene of Lucila opening a door, Díaz brings the character’s whole history into that action. He’s not wrong. Lucila is hardened by her feelings of abandonment, being parentified as a teenager, and her constant displacement. And all that comes through in the way she drags herself down the street, or wearily closes the door to her shared apartment after a long day at work. Díaz is mesmerizing and effortlessly makes Lucila feel like a person you might pass by on the bus.

Ron: I did find the film a tiny bit male gazey, but I can only think of two scenes that bothered me. They were not the sex scenes, which actually made complete sense. It’s the only break Lucila can get to be herself.

Ron: We hadn’t seen Diego Luna before Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. His Cassian Andor was such a stunning character, that Mon and I watched a bunch of his films after. Needless to say, seeing Luna at TIFF was quite exciting. He’s got a quirky personality – he really just wanted to chat with the audience. I loved how giddy he was talking about the filmmaking process. But he also knew when to give the floor to his star. Before the start of the film, when Díaz walked out to lukewarm applause, Luna told the audience we would be clapping harder after the film. Which is exactly what happened.

During the Q and A after the film, Diego Luna talked about how Ashes is about the people in the world who are told there is no room for them. Gotta say, that hit me like a gut punch. The climate of the past few years and the anti-immigrant rhetoric makes me so angry. 

And so many immigrants, so many refugees, are leaving or escaping dangerous situations. They deserve to be welcomed, to be given opportunities, to be allowed the resources that let their non-migrant peers thrive. And instead, they get hate, cuts to resources, and ever-diminishing chances to make any kind of life. Where are immigrants supposed to go? It’s so infuriating! 

Especially when the rhetoric is coming from people who have no idea, no idea at all, what it takes to leave everything you know, the safety net of a familiar environment, to go somewhere that you think you can flourish in, and give so much back to. I’m making myself upset now. 

And I’m sure Diego Luna did not mean to elicit that reaction but that is what Ashes is ultimately trying to tell the world. That immigrants are doing more than anyone can possibly imagine but they just can’t catch a break, through no fault of their own. If the people spewing hate had to live just one day as a migrant, let’s see what they’d have to say then.

Luna also mentioned that one of the reasons why he liked this book was because it was about a Mexican family migrating to Spain. There’s been such a focus on Mexican immigrants in the US, but with the current administration, it has become much too dangerous. So Spain has become a hopeful option. I appreciated seeing a different kind of immigration story. 

Ron: Ashes may be a quiet film but it packs a punch with its relatable immigrant story. The performances are natural and effecting, and the direction allows the actors and story to shine. This is a film that will speak to so many immigrant experiences. I hope the people who most need to see it, do see it. And I hope they learn something. 

Ron: That’s it for this bonus review episode of Ashes. Tune in next time for another TIFF 2026 review.

Ron: You can listen to Stereo Geeks on stereogeeks.ca, or wherever you listen to podcasts. Don’t forget to rate us, and leave us a review; it helps other listeners find us.

Mon: And, get more exclusive content when you subscribe to our newsletter on our website, and follow us on Instagram, @stereogeeks_podcast. Plus, we’re also on BlueSky, @stereogeekspodcast.bsky.social. 

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Mon: See you next time.