Docs Hedy Lamarr 2026 | Data Centre Drought & Water for Data

Every search on the Internet, every conversation with an AI, every file we upload to the cloud has a real water cost. Data centers that sustain our digital life consume millions of litres of water a day to cool their servers, and Big Tech are building them, often with the support of local governments, in territories already hit by drought. This double session, exhibited for the first time in Spain, takes us on the ground, in Chile and Mexico, to see closely who pays the price of this globalized digital transition.

Chile: asséché par les data centers / Data Centre Drought

In Chile, the water disappears. And not only because of the endemic drought that the country has suffered for more than a decade, but because of the cloud: the one that never carries rain. In the northern periphery of Santiago, the wetlands dry out, the phreatic layers empty and the peasantry is forced to migrate, while the data centers of the big tech companies — those that turn artificial intelligence around the world— pump millions of liters every day to cool the servers. And this is just beginning: the Chilean government has just approved a national plan that wants to triple the data centers in the country and turn it into the densest digital hub in Latin America. Through the struggle of killicura wetland artisans, climate activists, peasant families and climate refugees, the documentary portrays a much broader battle: that of a digital transition that settles in fragile territories at the expense of local populations and ecological balances.

Technical details

• Pierre Morel, France, 2025, 25 min

• Recommended age: [to be confirmed]

• Original version in French subtitled in Catalan

Water for Data

Our data appetite grows quickly, and with it the number of centers filled with servers that store and process everything we generate online: from the publications on the networks to the files that we upload to the cloud. All this consumes massive amounts of water and electricity. Big Tech are building these infrastructures in areas already affected by drought, such as Querétaro, in Mexico. Water for Data gives a voice to the inhabitants of this region who struggle to survive in the middle of the water rationing while they see how they install, very close to their home, thirsty equipment that they drink without stopping. A film that puts on the table the uncomfortable question: what future are we building and who pays the price?

Technical details

• Oliver Jones, United Kingdom, 2025, 24 min

• Recommended age: [to be confirmed]

• Original version in English subtitled in Catalan

With a presentation by Carlos Bajo Erro, journalist, social researcher and consultant specialized in the critical analysis of digitization and artificial intelligence and its impacts on inequalities. Doctor in Communication, he has focused his research on the use of ICT for social change, especially in African contexts, and combines independent journalism with teaching and advice to social organizations.