https://yucatan.heraldodemexico.com.mx/entretenimiento/2025/9/26/luis-quijano-encuentra-una-luz-en-el-cine-de-terror-3412.html?26/9/2025%2013:34:31
El Heraldo de Yucatan, by Trinidad Ferreiro
Luis Quijano, el cineasta yucateco que encuentra una luz en el cine de terror
Unlike many children, Luis Quijano liked horror movies from an early age. “The Exorcist, Chucky, Sleepy Hollow—those films caught my attention,” he recalls, and that fascination became the hallmark of his creations.
Luis, a filmmaker born in Mérida, tells horror stories through short films, and the joy he finds in his work is evident. On Wednesday, September 24, he presented five short pieces and a teaser of his first feature film at the Museo del Mundo Maya.
“It was a very fulfilling night, because I hadn’t had many opportunities to present my work in Mérida, and this was the first time. After eight years of filmmaking, it was deeply satisfying to showcase my work at home, to see it all together, and to have so many people there,” he says.
For Luis, the audience’s curiosity confirmed that telling horror stories is the right path: “It allows my imagination to take flight while staying grounded in realism. We’re often terrified of facing life’s challenges, but when we see them on screen, it motivates us. If those characters can go through all of that, then we too have resilience—we can overcome any obstacle, metaphorically and symbolically.”
Quijano admits, “There are many things beyond our control that we can’t fix, but we can use the tools we do have to drive the terror away. And we can’t always face situations alone—we need to understand that strength also comes from the group. The energy of fear can lead you to discover your own inner strength, to truly find yourself.”
During the talk, the audience focused on the creative process of Avem, the latest production by Balché Films, the company Quijano founded.
Avem, starring Juan Felipe Restrepo (Andrés), Patricia Olvera (Carolina), and Gabriel Romero (the priest), is a 17-minute short that simmered over time, taking two years of creative development before finally landing at the 2025 New York Latino Film Festival. That kind of timeline is natural for Luis: “I work by trusting my people, the team I collaborate with. I make sure everyone has the time they need to do their job.”
For Avem, “We started writing in November 2023, pre-production began in May 2024, and we shot in April 2025. From the start, it’s been two years, maybe a little more.”
Quijano believes that the time invested in his projects is always worth it: “Every decision I’ve made has led me to the product I want. Once the script is locked, I almost never go back to change it. The script is everything.”
His work in Spanish began with Caminante, Caminante: La leyenda del Huay-Chivo, a 2019 project that was his first in Spanish. “That’s where I found my voice and style as a director and screenwriter. I traveled to several countries with it during the pandemic festival circuit. In some places it only screened virtually, but it opened doors for me.”
The legend of the Huay-Chivo is deeply rooted in Yucatecan folklore. It tells of a boy who knew the properties of every plant and used them to heal people. As he grew, he became a Huay or Way (sorcerer, in Maya) and fell in love with a young woman who tended her family’s goats. Desperate and lovesick, he offered his soul to Kisín (the devil) in order to transform into a goat, lure her, and be near her. But the spell backfired, turning him into a terrifying creature that could shapeshift into a goat at night, becoming more agile to perform his dark magic. He is said to appear along roads, and travelers are warned to beware of the Huay-Chivo.
This project premiered during the pandemic, but even COVID-19 didn’t stop Luis: “It slowed the creative process, but I decided to keep working.” Out of that period came All the Things: “Just two of us made it during the lockdown. We kept creating however we could, and it worked—All the Things had its run on online festivals.”
“Life has its ups and downs, but I tend to focus on the positive. If something negative happens, I look for a way to overcome it or turn it into something positive,” he says. That mindset kept his creative process moving forward, culminating in his showcase of five shorts in Mérida and the announcement of his first feature film.
That feature is Me gusta más crudo, the story of a cannibal couple. It’s co-directed with Fabio Colonna and co-produced with Reserva Films and Arkhaus. It’s actually a remake: “Eleven years ago, I made a short film with two of my classmates, Fabio Colonna and Regina Fernández.” After that experience, Luis left his Communications degree at Universidad Iberoamericana and moved to the U.S. to study filmmaking at the New York Film Academy.
He explains that they are currently filming “some transition scenes, and hopefully we’ll have it ready by the end of next year.”
For Luis, presenting his work—and himself—in Mérida has been a dream come true: “I always wanted to bring my productions to Yucatán.” He adds that he hopes to keep working in his home state, perhaps with a feature-length version of La leyenda del Huay-Chivo: “The short was filmed in Los Angeles, and it was hard to find the right locations and actors. It was tough, but it worked out, and I’m grateful because it opened many doors.”
Finally, Luis encourages young people to study filmmaking in Yucatán: “The UNAY film school has only been open for a year. My showcase was meant to help promote it, and I hope people take advantage of that opportunity. I didn’t have that chance, but anyone interested should go for it. It’s a tough, challenging industry, but it’s possible to make it—you just have to keep working.”