Amazonas is a documentary following an all female Mayan softball team in Yucatán, Mexico, whose decision to play has become an unexpected act of resistance. What begins on a softball field opens into a larger story about womanhood, independence and the courage to challenge the roles that have been defined for them.
In communities where deeply rooted machismo continues to shape expectations of women, the Amazonas have created a space of their own. On the field, they play, compete and find freedom in being together. Away from it, they are mothers, wives, daughters and workers, navigating family, tradition and the consequences of choosing something for themselves.
The film moves between the intimacy of their everyday lives and the collective energy of the team, revealing how something as simple as playing a game can become profoundly political. Their resistance is not always loud. It exists in friendship, humour, persistence and in the decision to keep showing up. At its core, Amazonas is not only about softball. It is about women reclaiming space in their own lives, rediscovering parts of themselves beyond the roles expected of them, and becoming examples for a younger generation of girls who may grow up imagining different possibilities.
Amazonas
A film by Eva Verbeeck and Britt Valkenborghs
For VRT, Moeders van het Verzet
Producer Eva Verbeeck and Britt Valkenborghs
Director of Photography Charlie Speeckaert
Edited by Febe Simons
Sound Noor Che’ree
Sound Design and Mix Désirée Helgesen
Additional editing Gill Vander Cluyzen
Special thanks to the many people who made this documentary come to life.