This autobiographical first film is a heartbreaking chronicle of a family struggling with rootlessness and mental illness. When she learns that her brother Juan has returned to Quebec after spending some time in their birthplace, Mexico, Karina Garcia Casanova decides to film him. Her purpose is clear from the start: she is not interested in home movies, she is going to make a real film. And her project quickly takes a dramatic turn when Juan suffers a relapse into a desperate bout of depression and paranoia. It is not unusual for a first film to come out of a very personal journey; but rare are those that demonstrate such mature introspection. Here, cinema is nothing less than an essential tool for reconstructing the self.

Juanicas is an intimate portrait of a Mexican immigrant family affected by mental illness. Using material shot over almost 10 years, filmmaker Karina Garcia Casanova documents her complex relationship with her mother and brother, both suffering from bipolar disorder. She starts filming when Juan, her brother returns to live in Canada after several years in Mexico. At first the camera provides a distance that helps them reconnect with each other, but soon old patterns returns. As her brother s downward spiral unravels, the viewer is taken on a journey as heart-wrenching as it is illuminating.