Miguel Alonso is a retired biologist specializing in limnology. He is deeply in love with Mongolia and its lakes, which he has studied for years with the aim of creating the most comprehensive limnological catalogue ever made.

On his latest trip, a small film crew led by his niece, the film’s director, accompanies him to document this quixotic mission, embarking on a journey that will take them across Mongolia in a Soviet-era van. Biologist and filmmaker, uncle and niece, share the same desire for conquest and for escaping their everyday roles.

However, throughout the journey, their plans come into conflict, confronting taxonomic classification with cinematic construction: the biologist feels that the rhythms and methods of audiovisual work interfere with his mission, while the filmmaker begins to feel increasingly detached from the character and his desire for accumulative knowledge.

Two characters who see themselves as antagonistic to one another, yet who share a similar frustration in their particular “conquest of the useless.”

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With the support of the ICAA (Instituto de la Cinematografía y de las Artes Audiovisuales) and the ICEC (Institut Català de les Empreses Culturals).

Project selected for the Mentoring program of L’Alternativa Festival and for the Primer Test of REC Festival (2020).