Exiled Spanish poet and philosopher Maria Zambrano was a key personality in the '30s Spanish Republican movement. She was exiled when Franco came to power in 1939. Following an interview with the aging woman, journalist Lola is offered the chance to make her biopic, a project to which Zambrano agrees, after initial reluctance. Zambrano's recollections of her childhood and early involvement in politics are evoked by juxtaposing her words with old photos and footage. They double as a social and intellectual history of Republican Spain of the '30s.