United Notions Film
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United Notions Film began with two filmmakers and one camera in Mauritania. Twenty years later it is a studio and a lab working between Bolivia and Australia. This is the story.

200520062009201520162017202120222023202420252026

2005

Violeta Ayala and Dan Fallshaw work together for the first time. They travel to Mauritania and make Between the Oil and the Deep Blue Sea, an investigative short documentary about corruption in the oil industry.

DVD cover of Between the Oil and the Deep Blue Sea, a film by Violeta Ayala and Dan Fallshaw.
DVD cover of Between the Oil and the Deep Blue Sea, a film by Violeta Ayala and Dan Fallshaw.

2006

They found United Notions Film.

2009

Stolen, a feature documentary about slavery in the Sahrawi refugee camps, premieres at the Sydney Film Festival. It screens at 80 festivals, including Toronto, wins 16 awards and airs on PBS. The film causes international controversy.

Three silhouettes stand on a ridge under an amber sky.
Three silhouettes stand on a ridge under an amber sky.

2015

The Bolivian Case premieres at Hot Docs. Three Norwegian teenagers are arrested in Bolivia with 22 kilos of cocaine, and the film follows how the media shaped each of their cases. It is shortlisted for the Premios Platino and the Premios Fénix and is distributed across Latin America.

Producer Redelia Shaw joins UNF.

A woman poses with open arms at a Hot Docs backdrop. The picture is repeated as a pattern.
A woman poses with open arms at a Hot Docs backdrop. The picture is repeated as a pattern.
A film team answers questions on stage under a cinema screen with the Hot Docs logo.
A film team answers questions on stage under a cinema screen with the Hot Docs logo.

2016

People with disabilities march across the Andes to La Paz to demand a pension. UNF films the protest.

People in wheelchairs travel along a mountain road. One of them waves. The march to La Paz, Bolivia, 2016.
People in wheelchairs travel along a mountain road. One of them waves. The march to La Paz, Bolivia, 2016.

2017

The Fight, the short film of that march, is released worldwide by The Guardian and wins a Walkley Award. Bolivia then passes a law that grants a monthly payment and labour inclusion to people with disabilities.

Cocaine Prison, filmed over four years inside San Sebastián prison in Cochabamba, premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival. It wins the Audience Award at Cinelatino in Toulouse, airs on the PBS WORLD Channel and is picked up by Amazon Prime.

Two people stand beside a small plane on a dry airfield.
Two people stand beside a small plane on a dry airfield.

2021

Prison X, Chapter 1: The Devil and The Sun, premieres at the Sundance Film Festival. It is a virtual reality experience set in a Bolivian prison and a founding work of Neo-Andean Futurism. It is selected for Cannes XR, Games for Change and SIGGRAPH.

After Prison X, UNF launches koa.xyz, a computational creativity lab.

A woman in profile wears a helmet with a camera mounted in front of her face.
A woman in profile wears a helmet with a camera mounted in front of her face.
A 3D character stands in a motion capture app, arms out, on a black grid.
A 3D character stands in a motion capture app, arms out, on a black grid.

2022

El Martadero, a leading cultural centre in Cochabamba, invites UNF to create its first physical installation. Violeta uses AI to imagine her female ancestors, the Awichas. The eight large acrylic portraits enter the centre's official collection.

2023

La Lucha, the feature film of the march, premieres at BlackStar Film Festival in Philadelphia and screens at SXSW Sydney. It later wins the NYWIFT Award for Excellence in Directing at its New York premiere, at ReelAbilities and the Museum of the Moving Image.

Marchers rest beside the road under a deep blue sky. The march to La Paz, Bolivia, 2016.
Marchers rest beside the road under a deep blue sky. The march to La Paz, Bolivia, 2016.
Three people take a selfie in front of an SXSW Sydney sign.
Three people take a selfie in front of an SXSW Sydney sign.

2024

Las Awichas becomes an augmented reality installation, co-produced with King's College London for GLOW. It shows on the Strand and in the Arcade gallery, with tullmas woven by Bolivian artisans and 3D-printed animals.

La Lucha premieres in Bolivia in the central plazas of Cochabamba, La Paz and Potosí, with sign language interpretation. Thousands attend.

La Lucha airs on PBS.

Prison X is released on Steam.

Yasmeen Hitti, scientist and creative systems engineer, joins UNF to develop embodied AI systems.

A person stands below a large Las Awichas panel on a stone building at night. Eight silver robotic animals surround the face of a grandmother. The Strand, King's College London, 2024. 3D animated characters by Brian Condori Marza.
A person stands below a large Las Awichas panel on a stone building at night. Eight silver robotic animals surround the face of a grandmother. The Strand, King's College London, 2024. 3D animated characters by Brian Condori Marza.
A full plaza watches a film on an outdoor screen at night. The Bolivian premiere of La Lucha, in a central plaza, 2024.
A full plaza watches a film on an outdoor screen at night. The Bolivian premiere of La Lucha, in a central plaza, 2024.

2025

Las Awichas wins Best Interactive / Immersive Documentary at the AIDC Awards. Las Awichas VR premieres at Surreality, at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) in China.

Huk the Jaguaress, an AI installation created at the Mila Québec AI Institute residency, premieres at CPH:DOX in Copenhagen and shows at NewImages Festival in Paris. It is part of Huk, an ongoing project.

Todo Nace Desde Lo Pequeño, a live performance where Andean cosmology meets AI, premieres at El Martadero in Cochabamba.

Two people stand under a CPH:DOX neon sign on a red wall. One raises an arm. CPH:DOX, Copenhagen.
Two people stand under a CPH:DOX neon sign on a red wall. One raises an arm. CPH:DOX, Copenhagen.
A dancer crouches on a checked floor under green light. The audience stands around him and two screens show blue creatures. El Martadero, Cochabamba, 2025.
A dancer crouches on a checked floor under green light. The audience stands around him and two screens show blue creatures. El Martadero, Cochabamba, 2025.

2026

UNF launches sala.red, investigative tech journalism from Bolivia, and sala.video, independent film distribution.

UNF is creating Yakumama, a robotic whale installation. It is set to premiere at MozFest 2026 in Barcelona.

A translucent 3D-printed whale glows orange on a workbench. Yakumama in the making, 2026.
A translucent 3D-printed whale glows orange on a workbench. Yakumama in the making, 2026.

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