DCA Archive

Ciné Sunday: Spider Thieves
(Niñas araña)

Discovery Film Festival

Driven by a desire to have all the cool and trendy stuff they see advertised in TV commercials and department stores, three Chilean teenage girls from a Santiago shanty town set in motion a plan to climb buildings and plunder expensive apartments. Word spreads and soon enough they became the notorious ‘spider thieves’, but the impact of the nation’s interest begins to change their friendship and family relationships.

Inspired by actual events, this riveting teenage thriller offers a compelling social commentary on dreams, class, and unfulfilled expectations in contemporary Chile. As director Guillermo Helo says, “It’s neither a biopic, nor a documentary. It is a story about friendship, disappointments, dreams, adventure, vertigo, companionship, and the ingenuity of these young girls, who at heart only sought to enjoy the things they could never have.”