José Rodríguez García
José Rodríguez García is a filmmaker from Puerto Rico. He has a Bachelor’s in Science of Digital Cinematography from Atlantic University, where he directed the short film "Mancha E' Plátano."
His projects have been selected by film festivals around the world; he has received awards in various fields, including three NATAS Student Production Emmy Awards in the categories of Cinematography, Editing, and Sound Design.
His goal as an artist is to create stories with universal themes that highlight Puerto Rican culture through different genres. Túmulo is a living example of this, where he seeks to generate conversation about the abandonment of older adult communities.
directed by José Rodríguez García
Túmulo
2025 / 10 min / Puerto Rico
SYNOPSIS:
After a failed attempt to connect with his son, Andrés confronts an entity that feeds from his loneliness.
DIRECTOR STATEMENT
Puerto Rico is the fourth country in the world with the highest percentage of people aged 60 or older, at 31%; 25% of these people live in social isolation.
In Túmulo, I felt a unique opportunity to discuss loneliness and family abandonment; an evil that seems to follow us everywhere in the world, one that we must confront.
Our story begins with Andres, an elder who lives alone, letting his days pass aimlessly. He lives through the television; trying to connect with his son, who is only present in his memories.
Maybe you know someone like Andrés?
We decided to discuss this topic using a Puerto Rican symbol, the Vejigante, which has historically served as a spirit that haunts the living.
We wanted to delve deeper into this aspect of the myth and contextualize it with feelings of loneliness, in order to explore, through horror; as a way to talk about these ignored issues. To be able to draw the viewer's attention and awaken them to these social fears, so that neither Andres, nor a loved one, nor a stranger, has to suffer alone.
If, after watching Túmulo, we are able to help people be there for those in need, it was a story worth telling.
