All she wanted out of life was to have lots of kids, a monkey and a castle. For 70-something Julita, the spirited mother of Spanish actor and first-time filmmaker Gustavo Salmerón, all those dreams came true, yet there’s always room for just a little bit more. In love with a world that didn’t always return the feeling, Julita’s cluttered, raucous life has been one filled with the adoration of her six children and often exasperated husband, yet a piercing sadness brought on by childhood experiences during the Spanish Civil War has never quite faded. Now spending her autumn years ensconced in a real castle outside Madrid—and obsessed with locating a pair of her beloved grandmother’s vertebrae—Julita discovers that her country’s broken economy is forcing her to give up her castle, bringing her colorfully dysfunctional family together for one last hurrah in this poignant, touching and often hysterical love letter to an unforgettable woman.

Winner: Best Documentary, Karlovy Vary

In competition for the Schlesinger Award and the Cine Latino Award.