As a filmmaker deeply committed to exploring themes of social justice, human rights, and women's narratives, I have always tried to use cinema and philosophy to light a candle of thinking. When presented with the opportunity to direct a female-led action film in Spanish as the first and only female action director originally from Iran, I knew it was a challenge worth embracing. Besides, I was familiar with Mexican culture.

When we were working on this movie, the whole world witnessed the great movement that young women in Iran started and made everyone join them worldwide. In "VERTICAL," every 100 years, a member of the Yayauhqui family is tasked with sacrificing a human at the altar to avert the impending apocalypse; it's Rita's turn. She is the first and only woman in this bloodline to do that, and as the story moves forward, it's not about the demons and monsters in the mountain. She needs to stand in front of demons in humanity. Coming from the power of storytelling and the beautiful ancient Mexican culture, Vertical is not only an action-adventure, horror, or fantasy movie. This is symbolically the story of what we are facing in this world.