Even though diasporic existence is often steeped in alienation and loss, fragmentation and mourning, the diasporic paradigm may also be shaped in a more creative and diverse way, reaching beyond the chasms of historical and geographical dislocation. Ramabai Espinet, born in Trinidad from Indian ancestors and living in Canada, has explored multiple itineraries on the path to diasporic self‐empowerment, away from the rifts and ruptures of domestic violence. By using the filmic image both as a theme and as a rhetorical tool, Espinet has opened up a renewed space of creation, restructuring the perspective her fiction character has on her own life. Returning to a certain number of geographical and symbolical sites is indeed necessary so as to evolve a new perception of the world and the self. Reconsidering the dark places of the past contributes to doing away with ‘traumatic residues’ (Judith Butler). This paper will refer to the novel by Espinet The Swinging Bridge and to her short documentary film Coming Home.