Lucca’s World begins with a couple’s journey into labour that progresses quickly, causing the mother (Bárbara Anderson) to lose consciousness. Their child loses oxygen to their brain and has to be put into a medical induced coma. He is diagnosed with “Pediatric Cerebral Palsy – severe” (Chenillo, 2024, 03:38) and the family is thrown into a world of complex caregiving and advocacy for treatment.
Shortly after Lucca has a seizure and ends up in the hospital, Bárbara meets with a client who connects her with a doctor in India that has a new machine that he feels can help her son. He gives her hope that Lucca could one day walk and talk. Bárbara and Lucca’s dad Andrés have a hard time navigating the big decisions that come in making such an enormous decision. They go to India for the treatment and see some minor improvements in Lucca’s speech.
Bárbara becomes involved in advocating to have the machine come to the hospital in Mexico where they live. She encounters many challenges such as learning that the doctor’s associate is less than honest and is disappointed when the machine makes it to Mexico but will not be used for her son. Bárbara is fired from her job as she is involved in caring for Lucca and all of the advocacy work. Andrés is shown frustrated in trying to find a job, and juggling all of the tasks that they need to do is difficult for them.
Lucca’s caregiver and brother are often in the background but play an important role in the family’s life. For example, the caregiver is seen helping to bath Lucca, taking him to childcare, watching him while the parents talk, and later staying with him at school. Lucca’s brother is likely a support for Lucca as in the end Lucca is able to go to school with him.
Bárbara receives a phone call from the doctor in India and he offers her use of his machine at no cost for the rest of Lucca’s life. The go to India again and the credits tell us he returned three times. The film shows the realistic challenges that families face caring for a child with a disability, such as Bárbara being fired from her job and the family experiencing debt challenges. (Chennilo, M, 2025).
References
Chennilo, M. (Director). (2025). Lucca’s World. [Film] Netflix. https://www.netflix.com/ca/title/81436662
