Sleep Dealer
Encyclopedia
Sleep Dealer is a 2008
futuristic science fiction film
directed by Alex Rivera
.
Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.
futuristic science fiction film
directed by Alex Rivera
.
Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.
futuristic science fiction film
directed by Alex Rivera
.
Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
futuristic science fiction film
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
directed by Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera is a US film maker specialising in films about labor, immigration, and politics-Biography:Alex Rivera, was born in 1973 New York City, New York. His father is a Peruvian immigrant and his mother is an American citizen. Growing up as a bicultural youth in New Jersey, he took an interest...
.
Plot
'Sleep Dealer' is set in a future, militarized world marked by closed borders, virtual labor and a global digital network that joins minds and experiences, where three strangers risk their lives to connect with each other and break the barriers of technology.Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
Cast
- Leonor VarelaLeonor VarelaLeonor Varela Palma is a Chilean actress, and model. She played the character Cleopatra in the 1999 film Cleopatra...
as Luz Martínez - Jacob VargasJacob Vargas-Early life:Vargas was born in Michoacán, Mexico, and raised in Pacoima, Los Angeles, California, since 1971. He was raised in a devout Roman Catholic family.-Career:...
as Rudy Ramirez - Luis Fernando Peña as Memo Cruz
Reception
Sleep Dealer won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, the Alfred P. Sloan PrizeAlfred P. Sloan Prize
The Alfred P. Sloan Prize is an award given each year, starting in 2003, to a film at the Sundance Film Festival. The prize is given to a feature film that focuses on science or technology as a theme, or depicts a scientist, engineer, or mathematician as a major character.Each winner is presented...
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
2008 Sundance Film Festival
The 2008 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 17, 2008 to January 27 in Park City, Utah. It was the 24th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival. The opening night film was In Bruges and the closing night film was CSNY Déjà Vu.-Films:...
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
58th Berlin International Film Festival
The 58th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 7 to February 17, 2008.- Jury :Costa Gavras - President of the JuryUli HanischDiane KrugerWalter MurchShu QiAleksandr RodnyanskyMarc BarbeAda SolomonLaura Tonke...
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
-Best Film : Frozen River*Ballast*Synecdoche, New York*The Visitor*The Wrestler-Best Ensemble Cast: Synecdoche, New York Vicky Cristina Barcelona*Ballast*Rachel Getting Married*The Visitor...
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards. It is usually given to the director and producer . The "first feature" designation is applied to the director not the producer...
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.
External links
Sleep Dealer is a 20082008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
futuristic science fiction film
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
directed by Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera is a US film maker specialising in films about labor, immigration, and politics-Biography:Alex Rivera, was born in 1973 New York City, New York. His father is a Peruvian immigrant and his mother is an American citizen. Growing up as a bicultural youth in New Jersey, he took an interest...
.
Plot
'Sleep Dealer' is set in a future, militarized world marked by closed borders, virtual labor and a global digital network that joins minds and experiences, where three strangers risk their lives to connect with each other and break the barriers of technology.Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
Cast
- Leonor VarelaLeonor VarelaLeonor Varela Palma is a Chilean actress, and model. She played the character Cleopatra in the 1999 film Cleopatra...
as Luz Martínez - Jacob VargasJacob Vargas-Early life:Vargas was born in Michoacán, Mexico, and raised in Pacoima, Los Angeles, California, since 1971. He was raised in a devout Roman Catholic family.-Career:...
as Rudy Ramirez - Luis Fernando Peña as Memo Cruz
Reception
Sleep Dealer won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, the Alfred P. Sloan PrizeAlfred P. Sloan Prize
The Alfred P. Sloan Prize is an award given each year, starting in 2003, to a film at the Sundance Film Festival. The prize is given to a feature film that focuses on science or technology as a theme, or depicts a scientist, engineer, or mathematician as a major character.Each winner is presented...
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
2008 Sundance Film Festival
The 2008 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 17, 2008 to January 27 in Park City, Utah. It was the 24th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival. The opening night film was In Bruges and the closing night film was CSNY Déjà Vu.-Films:...
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
58th Berlin International Film Festival
The 58th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 7 to February 17, 2008.- Jury :Costa Gavras - President of the JuryUli HanischDiane KrugerWalter MurchShu QiAleksandr RodnyanskyMarc BarbeAda SolomonLaura Tonke...
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
-Best Film : Frozen River*Ballast*Synecdoche, New York*The Visitor*The Wrestler-Best Ensemble Cast: Synecdoche, New York Vicky Cristina Barcelona*Ballast*Rachel Getting Married*The Visitor...
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards. It is usually given to the director and producer . The "first feature" designation is applied to the director not the producer...
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.
External links
Sleep Dealer is a 20082008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
futuristic science fiction film
Science fiction film
Science fiction film is a film genre that uses science fiction: speculative, science-based depictions of phenomena that are not necessarily accepted by mainstream science, such as extraterrestrial life forms, alien worlds, extrasensory perception, and time travel, often along with futuristic...
directed by Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera
Alex Rivera is a US film maker specialising in films about labor, immigration, and politics-Biography:Alex Rivera, was born in 1973 New York City, New York. His father is a Peruvian immigrant and his mother is an American citizen. Growing up as a bicultural youth in New Jersey, he took an interest...
.
Plot
'Sleep Dealer' is set in a future, militarized world marked by closed borders, virtual labor and a global digital network that joins minds and experiences, where three strangers risk their lives to connect with each other and break the barriers of technology.Memo Cruz (Luis Fernando Peña), works at a factory, one of several sleep dealers. Here, the bodies of the workers are suspended as they are connected into the network. The sleep dealers are called so because one may collapse if one works long enough. The story is told as a flash back, as Memo remembers his home in Santa Ana Del Rio, Oaxaca
Oaxaca
Oaxaca , , officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Oaxaca is one of the 31 states which, along with the Federal District, comprise the 32 federative entities of Mexico. It is divided into 571 municipalities; of which 418 are governed by the system of customs and traditions...
. His father wants him to participate in growing crops on the family estate. Memo's passion however is electronics and hacking. The estate however has dried up on account of a dam built nearby. The media on American hi-def TV shows glimpses of a technological dystopia in a positive way. As a hobby, Memo is building an electronic receiver that can tap into communications. As he continues to work on it, its range increases to far away cities. Soon, he can tap into military and law enforcement communications.
One summer, a remote controlled military aerial vehicle almost caught him intercepting military frequency, an act that warrants a brutal attack. He disconnects in time before the drone can locate him with certainty. On another occasion, he and his brother watch live TV broadcast about drone action that is about to destroy a trailer known to be intercepting drone communication. They quickly realize that it is their own trailer where Memo has his equipment, and run to save their father whose life is in danger. However, they are too late, and the vehicle launches a rocket at the father, who had miraculously escaped a first attack on the trailer, instantly killing him. The pilot of the drone is shown to be Rudy Ramirez (Jacob Vargas). Memo boards a bus to the city Tijuana an find work.
The same bus is also boarded by Luz Martínez (Leonor Varela). Memo notices that Luz has nodes on the wrist for interfacing with the digital network, and asks her where he can get them for free. She tells him that he can find someone, known as a coyotek, to connect him by asking around in a certain alley. Luz has loans and may default. She makes a living by uploading memories to an online memory trading company 'True node' where viewers pay for content. She uploads her memory of meeting Memo.
Memo is robbed of his money during his first attempt to seek a coyotek. He finds an abandoned shack to stay at the edge of the city, where other node workers live. Luz gets a sale for her memory of Memo, and a prepaid offer for her next memory of him. Luz finds him and comes to know he is out of money. She helps him get a node-job at a bar, which has the equipment. It so happens that she is the coyotek, having learned from her ex-boyfriend and she does him a favor.
Luz tries to upload more experiences. Truenode makes her reveal feelings rather than just the story. The person who requested the information is revealed to be Ramirez working for the military. Ramirez wants to find out Luz and Memo open up to each other and have a connected sex. Upon receiving the next upload, Ramirez has his doubts confirmed that his work made him kill a good man, though his family still supports him by saying that he did a good thing.
Memo discovers that Luz has been paid to upload her memories of him, and so he leaves her feeling betrayed. He works over-time at the sleep-dealer and also at the bar risking exhaustion. Luz writes to him and mails him a recording of her memories as a parting gift. In the meantime, Ramirez has crossed the border to meet Memo. As Ramirez explains himself, Memo tries to run perceiving danger. Ramirez catches up and explains he was under orders and offers to help.
Memo finds Luz and assures her no wrong is done. They connect Ramirez into the network. He uses his military authorization to control an aerial vehicle to destroy the dam. Ramirez is pursued by other aerial vehicles upon discovery that Ramirez is not heeding orders. In the ensuing chase, Ramirez manages to blow up the dam. Memo receives news from home, celebrations of the wrecking of the dam. Ramirez goes further south in Mexico as he no longer able to return home. Memo moves on with his life in Tijuana.
Cast
- Leonor VarelaLeonor VarelaLeonor Varela Palma is a Chilean actress, and model. She played the character Cleopatra in the 1999 film Cleopatra...
as Luz Martínez - Jacob VargasJacob Vargas-Early life:Vargas was born in Michoacán, Mexico, and raised in Pacoima, Los Angeles, California, since 1971. He was raised in a devout Roman Catholic family.-Career:...
as Rudy Ramirez - Luis Fernando Peña as Memo Cruz
Reception
Sleep Dealer won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award, the Alfred P. Sloan PrizeAlfred P. Sloan Prize
The Alfred P. Sloan Prize is an award given each year, starting in 2003, to a film at the Sundance Film Festival. The prize is given to a feature film that focuses on science or technology as a theme, or depicts a scientist, engineer, or mathematician as a major character.Each winner is presented...
at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival
2008 Sundance Film Festival
The 2008 Sundance Film Festival ran from January 17, 2008 to January 27 in Park City, Utah. It was the 24th iteration of the Sundance Film Festival. The opening night film was In Bruges and the closing night film was CSNY Déjà Vu.-Films:...
, The H.R. Giger Award for the Best International Film at The Neuchâtel International Fantastic Film Festival, and a special mention Amnesty International Film Prize at the 2008 Berlin Film Festival
58th Berlin International Film Festival
The 58th annual Berlin International Film Festival was held from February 7 to February 17, 2008.- Jury :Costa Gavras - President of the JuryUli HanischDiane KrugerWalter MurchShu QiAleksandr RodnyanskyMarc BarbeAda SolomonLaura Tonke...
. The film was nominated for a Breakthrough director at the Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
Gotham Independent Film Awards 2008
-Best Film : Frozen River*Ballast*Synecdoche, New York*The Visitor*The Wrestler-Best Ensemble Cast: Synecdoche, New York Vicky Cristina Barcelona*Ballast*Rachel Getting Married*The Visitor...
, and an Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature
The Independent Spirit Award for Best First Feature is one of the annual Independent Spirit Awards. It is usually given to the director and producer . The "first feature" designation is applied to the director not the producer...
in 2009.
A.O. Scott, of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
wrote "Exuberantly entertaining -- a dystopian fable of globalization disguised as a science-fiction adventure…. Mr. Rivera — a brilliant young director — takes his audience into a future of “aqua-terrorism” and cyberlabor that I wish I could dismiss as implausible..." in his review of the 2008 New Directors/New Films festival.
Kenneth Turan, of The Los Angeles Times wrote "Adventurous, ambitious and ingeniously futuristic, "Sleep Dealer" is a welcome surprise. It combines visually arresting science fiction done on a budget with a strong sense of social commentary in a way that few films attempt, let alone achieve..." in his review of the film.