Carlos works as the director and resident playwright at the local Children's Theater in Buenos Aires. Following the sudden disappearance of his wife, he discovers an unexplainable ability to imagine the precise locations and experiences of Argentina's missing citizens. He opens his garden to bereaved families, leading a quiet but powerful community resistance against the authoritarian regime through his artistic visions. He relies on his intellectual passion and creative energy to guide others through profound trauma.

Martín is an aging journalist who previously contributed satirical sketches to a French magazine under an assumed name. As the primary narrator of the story, he brings a practical, observational mindset to the surreal events unfolding in Buenos Aires. Though naturally skeptical, his deep affection for the Rueda family challenges his strict reliance on concrete facts. He acts as a witness to the community's suffering and the eventual growth of local resistance.

Cecilia is a determined and pragmatic journalist who works at La Opinión. Unlike her husband's artistic approach to life, she operates with a hard-lined, direct perspective on political reality. She bravely authors an exposé detailing the government's secret arrests of students, an act of defiance that directly leads to her abduction by military forces. Her disappearance forms the central driving force for her family's struggle.

General Guzman is a senior official in the Argentine military junta. Operating from a bare office in the Casa Rosada, he masterminds the systematic detention and disappearance of left-leaning dissidents. He studies Ancient Rome and the Third Reich, viewing himself as an architect of a purified, disciplined society. He enforces absolute conformity and brutal oppression while maintaining a facade of bureaucratic ignorance.

Teresa is the teenaged daughter of Carlos and Cecilia. Following her mother's sudden abduction, she displays remarkable maturity, often setting aside her own youth to care for her father. She actively helps organize and run the gatherings in their family garden, treating the arriving petitioners with empathy while seeking stability through family friends.

Silvio works as a colleague of Carlos at the Children's Theater. He is a steadfast rationalist and an avowed nonpartisan who struggles to accept anything he cannot physically verify. Extroverted and highly social, he treats Carlos's spiritual storytelling with doubt, acting as the ultimate nonbeliever who insists on concrete reality over faith.

Esme is a dedicated theater assistant who works alongside Carlos and Silvio. She is a compassionate and reliable presence in Carlos's life, helping to manage the practical aspects of his plays while providing quiet emotional support as the political situation deteriorates around them.

Enrico is a thirteen-year-old boy who stars as the lead actor in one of Carlos's productions at the Children's Theater. When his father is abruptly kidnapped by the authorities, Enrico falls into a deep despair, isolating himself from his peers. His suffering prompts Carlos to actively utilize his newfound gift for the first time.

Raimundo is a university professor and the father of Enrico. He speaks critically of the military government in his academic teachings, leading the state to abduct him in the middle of the night. His disappearance sets off a chain of events that pushes Carlos to embrace his abilities.

Amos is an elderly Holocaust survivor who manages a remote homestead named "Esperanza" in the Argentine pampas. Having endured severe trauma under a different authoritarian regime, he offers Carlos profound insight into surviving state-sponsored terror. He surrounds his home with various birds, viewing them as symbols of endurance and memory.

Sara is Amos's wife and a fellow survivor of the Holocaust. She lives a quiet life on the pampas, managing their farm. Though she has a cataract in one eye, she possesses a striking beauty and a resilient spirit. She helps to validate Carlos's journey and encourages him to trust his unique abilities.

Sasha is a middle-aged woman living with Amos and Sara Sternberg at their homestead. She is a survivor of a concentration camp, bearing tattooed numbers on her arm. She is entirely mute due to injuries inflicted by guards during her imprisonment, and she generally prefers solitude during meals.

Eugenia is an old friend of Martín Benn. She is an observant woman who easily recognizes when Martín is distressed. She offers a compassionate ear and often maintains an optimistic outlook, helping to balance out Martín's more cynical or self-critical tendencies regarding the political climate.

Rubén is a citizen of Buenos Aires who seeks out Carlos after his son, daughter-in-law, and infant granddaughter are abducted. Desperate for answers, he serves as an early example of the grieving citizens who increasingly look to Carlos for guidance and solace.

Clara is Rubén's wife. She shares his deep devastation over the loss of their son and his young family. She joins her husband in turning to Carlos for answers, reflecting the desperation of the city's older generation.

Rubén is a professional filmmaker and a former colleague of Carlos and Silvio. He attempts to develop a secret documentary exposing the truth about the disappeared people in Argentina, a brave act of artistic resistance that leads directly to his arrest.

Father Ullman is a compassionate priest who operates out of the Church of the Holy Cross. He attempts to provide a safe haven and moral support for the mothers of the Plaza de Mayo, offering them a space to consolidate their political demands away from the streets.

Mario is an operative for the Argentine junta. He directly executes state violence by carrying out abductions and functioning as a loyal enforcer of the generals' decrees. He readily abandons his personal identity to blend into the regime's standardized ranks.

Solomon is an old friend of the Sternbergs who attends Carlos's gatherings. Having lost most of his family during the Holocaust, he carries generational trauma and turns to Carlos in hopes of locating any surviving relatives who might have escaped.

Avrom is Solomon's grandson and a talented silversmith. He survived the Holocaust as a young boy by hiding behind a sofa, eventually growing up as an orphan in Paris. He later relocates to Argentina to build a new life with his wife and child.

Señora Madrigal is an older resident of the La Boca neighborhood. She pays close attention to the events on her street and actively preserves evidence of violence, keeping items safe inside her home in case the victims or their families ever return searching for answers.

Manuel is an old colleague of Martín Benn. He works as a writer but displays a distinctly opportunistic streak, seeking to capitalize on the community's tragedies by publishing sensationalized tabloid articles regarding Carlos's local fame.