In the Mexican countryside children start work at a very early age. Among other things, they work in farming, graze sheep, fire bricks, sew clothes, look after younger siblings, bring water, and pick tomatoes, pepper and corn. They inherit tools and work techniques from their ancestors, along with living conditions and everyday hardships. Generation after generation, the underage workers remain in the vicious cycle of inherited poverty. The film Los Herederos (The Inheritors) portrays their lives and the day-to-day fight for survival.
EUGENIO POLGOVSKY (born 1977) is a Mexican director, cameraman and film editor. He graduated from Centro de Capacitación Cinematográfica in Mexico City. His film Tropic of Cancer (2004) is a naturalistic depiction of the struggle to survive in a Mexican desert. San Luis Potosi received numerous awards and the film has been shown at the most important film festivals, including Cannes and Sundance. The film Los Herederos was shot for three years in eight countryside regions in Mexico and its premiere took place as part of the Mostra of Venice in 2008.