The 2011 Cannes film festival will have the short film Soy tan feliz, byVladimir Durán, produced by Gale Cine and Servo Films from Argentina in competition for the Golden Palm award, after winning best short film in the 2011 BAFICI (Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival). Continue reading
Tag Archives: festival
2011 BAFICI Buenos Aires Independent Film Festival approaches!
by Fer Murjica, contributing blogger
From April 6th until April 17th, different cinemas in Buenos Aires will be hosting the BAFICI (Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival) showing a selection with more than 426 different independent films from Argentina and all over the world.
Starting yesterday and until April 6th, people will be able to buy pre-sale tickets for the movies they want. The numbers are promising with almost 17400 tickets sold in the first day. Last year 280,000 people attended, making it the most important film event in Argentina. Continue reading
Mar del Plata Film Festival–The Most Important in South America has begun
by Rob Sykes, contributing blogger
Most famous for its fishing port and stretches of sandy beaches which attract thousands of Argentinean sun bathers every summer, for the next week Mar del Plata, on Argentina’s Atlantic coast, sees the return of an event of more high brow cultural significance. The 25th Mar del Plata Film Festival begins on Saturday13th November, its rich and varied programme continuing until the following Sunday.
Crowds line up for the Mar del Plata film festival at the famous Ambassador Cinema.
The Festival was first held in 1954, more as a showcase of world cinema than a competitive event. It has existed in its current format since 1996, when it returned after a 26 year absence. This year will see nearly 250 films (new and old) screened over the seven days and with awards in various categories, there is certainly something more at stake than in the festival’s early days. A fact illustrated by the excellent company the festival keeps; ranked in the same class ‘A’ category as other illustrious showcases of cinema such as Cannes, San Sebastián, Berlin and Venice by the FIAPF (International Federation of Film Producers Associations), the only South American film festival to be bestowed with such lofty status, making it the most important on the continent.
The sandy beach of Mar del Plata is surrounded by a buzzing city famous for its cultural offerings.
Whilst opening night focus will be honed on Oscar nominated (for Lost in Translation starring Bill Murray) Director Sofia Coppola’s latest work, Somewhere. There is a great deal more on offer throughout the festival’s week long stay down by the beach. Competition categories cover Latin American long and short films (with actor/director Diego Luna’s Abel in contention in the former and Luis Carlos Uribe´s animation Go To Sleep in the latter); Argentinean long and short films (now minus Luis Ortega’s Verano Maldito as it is not considered a soley Argentinean production); works in progress; and alongside Best International Film (such as the French-English co-production of L’ilusionniste directed by Sylvain Chomet), there are awards for best Actor, Actress, screenplay and Director within the International category. As such the vanguard of world cinema, with films showing from Mexico to China, Poland to the Philippines, Georgia to Germany, will converge on Mar del Plata this week. Continue reading
Sundance Winner “El Hombre de al Lado” opens in Argentina
By Tracey Chandler, contributing blogger
Winner of Best Film of Mar del Plata Film Festival 2009, World Cinema Cinematography Award for Dramatic Filmmaking premiers in Argentina.
“El hombre de al lado,” (The Man Next Door) written by Andrés Duprat and directed by Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn, is an excellent film not only because of the simple and yet exceptionally well structured plot line, but also because of the brilliantly natural performances given by leading actors Rafael Spregelburd (who plays Leonardo, an incredibly successful architect with a self-designed property that attracts visitors and fans of his work on a daily basis) and Daniel Aráoz (who plays Victor, Leonardo’s next door neighbor, or better said… “El hombre de al lado”).
The film in terms of location and structure is so simple that it would work excellently as a piece of live theatre, just as much as it does on the screen, and it is in this simplicity that “El hombre de al lado” manages to reach an unexpected and dramatic ending. (No more will be said about this…. Go and see it!)
The story follows a few months in the life of Leonardo and his “neighbor from hell,” Victor, from the moment that Victor decides to break through one of the walls in his apartment in order to create a window that looks directly into the living area of Leonardo’s house.
Leonardo and his wife complain about the window and threaten legal action from the beginning of the film to the end, but Victor, despite agreeing to filling in the hole that he has created on a number of occasions, continues to enjoy the light that the hole brings to his home and the view that it gives him of his neighbor’s house.
What is most interesting about the narrative of this film, however, is that basic stereotypes and pre-conceived notions that we all perhaps hold about who is a respectable neighbor and who is a “neighbor from hell” are manipulated and turned on their heads.
Is Victor really the one in the wrong? Is Victor really the neighbor that is causing all of the problems? Is Victor really the neighbor that you shouldn’t trust? Or is it Leonardo; the supposedly hard-working architect, with a wife and child and a well-organized life style?
“El hombre de al lado” is a spectacular Argentine flick, full of moral questions that begin to revolve around inside the audience’s heads as soon as the credits begin to scroll. For this reason Duprat and Cohn’s movie has a lot more to offer than perhaps it appears on the surface.
For only 8 pesos you can see “El hombre de al lado” at the INCAA Gaumont Cinema in Congreso every day at 2pm, 6pm and 10pm. Don’t miss out!
Link to Gaumont page: http://www.lanacion.com.ar/espectaculos/cartelera-cine/PeliculaCineFicha.asp?cine_id=107
First Green Film Festival Comes to Buenos Aires
by Amelia Batho, Contributing Blogger
Right now the environment is a hot topic and a major concern for many of us from all different walks of life. So why not combine your love of film with your concern for all things green and head down to the Green Film Festival taking place from the 12th to the 16th August at Cinemark Alto Palermo (Beruti 3399, Esquina Burnes). The aim of the festival is to showcase the best in current environmental cinema while providing interesting, high quality entertainment.
Tickets are available now from the Cinemark box office and cost $17 for one film or $150 for ten. It proves to be a diverse and thought provoking festival with ten unique, award winning films covering themes from climate change to sustainable development, and directed by a range of international Directors from the United States to Japan. A few notable films are “Food, Inc” and “The Age of Stupid.”
Check out the website for more details on showing times and film information, http://www.greenfilmfest.com.ar/index.html and have a look at this short trailer for a sneak preview of some of the fantastic cinematography on show.
And I’ll be updating you with reviews of films in the next few weeks!
Cinema and Soccer in Gaumont Cinema NOW!
Argentina may have been booted out of The World Cup 2010, but there´s still room to celebrate football in the cinematic arena thanks to a program that has been organized by the INCAA (Argentine Film Board) here in Buenos Aires.
In the Gaumont INCAA Cinema, on Avenida Rivadavia 1635, until Wednesday 7th July 2010, a series of different feature films, documentaries and shorts are going to be shown to celebrate the world of soccer. Click here to see the full schedule.
The program developed is a real mixture in order to delight a wide range of tastes and interests. The program includes films such as El Hincha (Manuel Romero), El Crack (José Martínez Suárez) and Amando a Maradona (Javier Vázquez) to name but a few.
Soak up a little of the football spirit that seems to have been lost in the city since Saturday´s defeat through the cinema instead.
link: http://www.incaa.gov.ar/castellano/nuevo_espaciosincaa_programacion.php
Free Documentary Film Showings in Buenos Aires
By Tracey Chandler, Contributing Blogger
On Wednesday 12th May, Wednesday 19th May and Wednesday 9th June, at The Centro Cultural de la Cooperación on Avenida Corrientes 1543, 1st Floor, Sala Tuñón, is a series of FREE documentary film showings about Argentina.
The films vary in length from 5 minutes to full length features and each evening is organized so that at least two or three films are shown every session. The topics cover everything from the reign of Peron to Argentine Rock; from the history of Boca Juniors Football squad to Argentina’s female boxing champion, “La Tigresa” Marcela Acuña. There is something in this documentary cycle for everyone and The Centro Cultural de la Cooperación is an excellent venue in which to view the works.
For a full outline of the dates, keep reading. . .
Argentine Cinema in Cannes Film Festival
By Tracey Chandler, Contributing Blogger
The two week Cannes Film Festival this year (12th – 23rd May 2010) promises to be a great fortnight for Argentine Cinema. Indeed, it is likely to be a great fortnight for South American Cinema in general, with unexpected strong entries from countries like Venezuela, Uruguay and Peru making appearances outside the official entries through what is known as “Critic’s Week” or “La Semana de la Crítica.” These entries that present merit and excellence in film-making and once again will provide a strong presence for Argentina in the Cannes Film Festival.
With reference to Argentine Cinema at Cannes this year, two films that were recently shown in the BAFICI festival in Buenos Aires are already included in the “Critic´s Week” or “La Semana de la Crítica” line-up. The first is “Un Certain Regard de Los Labios,” by Iván Fund-Santiago Loza and the second is a short entitled, “Cynthia Todavía Tiene Las Llaves,” directed by Gonzalo Tobal.
Perhaps even more exciting is the fact that “Carancho,” the most recent full length feature film by Pablo Trapero, stands a good chance of being listed in the official programme and thus stands a chance at receiving a Golden Palm. Take a look at the trailer below. In addition, CLICK HERE to find out how you can see Trapero´s recent work for half-price at Hoyts Cinemas when it is released in Buenos Aires on 6th May:
BAFICI Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival Starts Tomorrow
There are fes
tivals that are more competitive, that have more money, and that end up in more distribution deals, but few are as fun, as widely attended and as culturally important as BAFICI, the annual Buenos Aires festival that celebrates the weird, quirky and just plain good of global cinema.
BAFICI started in 1999 and grows each year: in 2008 there were 220 thousand spectators at the 1011 screenings in the 9 venues of the festival.
With its wide range of films including Argentine, Latin American and worldwide premieres as well as well-deserved retros, BAFICI is the greatest, most prestigious event for the independent cinema in Latin America. Many of the films shown go own to world fame but for the majority, this will be the only chance for them to be seen by an Argentine public.
And for the first time, buying tickets is easy! Yesterday I went on to the website, browsed films by date and hour and venue, read the descriptions, and then just clicked to buy on-line. A big improvement over past years, when you had to wait on long lines and they would always run out of schedules.
Be warned: many screenings sell out!
The advance sale of tickets for the 12th BAFICI, which starts on Wednesday the 7th of April, continues through this weekend. Through the internet, on the website www.festivals.gob.ar and personally at the Hoyts Abasto cinema complex (Av. Corrientes 3247). During the festival, from Thursday the 8th, tickets will be on sale at $10 pesos on the ticket booths in every cinema.
I won’t be able to go to as many films as years past (where I would go to 5 a day) but I will be posting reviews to the films I get to see.
See you at Abasto!
UNICIPAR: Short Film Festival on the Coast
We just got back from UNICIPAR, one of the longest running short film festivals in Argentina that is part of the international UNICA festival–also one of the longest running festivals in the world (to give you an idea, the Lumiere brother were the judges in the first festival!). Over 30 local and international shorts were shown, including San Telmo Production’s “Man Vs. Meteorite” short documentary.
Overall, it was a great experience–each morning we went to the beach of Villa Gesell (six hours away from Buenos Aires) and in the afternoon saw a wide range of shorts. We were pleasantly surprised by the technical quality of the Argentinian shorts.
We also caught some non-competition films, and were blown away by a documentary that takes viewers through one of the last violent fights between the military and armed political groups in Argentina, that ended badly, called “Tablada: El final de los 70″. Later we talked with director Fabian Agosta about his film and Gabriel Balanovsky, co-owner of San Telmo Productions shared with him his memories of this tragic event. You can read more about this documentary at http://tabladadoc.blogspot.com/
