Screen Daily announced the other day the contenders for best Latin American feature film of the year through the Méliès International Festivals Federation (formerly known as European Fantastic Film Festivals Federation) and Blood Window. The winner will be announced at Blood Window during Ventana Sur in Buenos Aires at the beginning of December.
“The Méliès International Festivals Federation is excited to continue its collaboration with Blood Window for the third year running,” said Chris Oosterom, chairman of Méliès International Festivals Federation.“Blood Window plays an important role in the development and dissemination of Latin American fantastic fiction. The Latin Award of the MIFF highlights and awards the wealth in quality and variety of fantastic films and their increasing profile worldwide.”
Jury members are Anaïs Emery from Neuchâtel, Maritte Sørensen from Lund and mi Padre de Terror Pablo Guisa from Morbido.
Looking over the list of the ten contendors it is nice to see films from your friends compete for the prize. I also see there is a lot of catch up that I have to do to keep up with the LatAm genre seen.
The ten contenders are as follows...
Abrakadabra (Argentina)Dirs: Luciano and Nicolas OnettiA magician, whose magician father died 35 years earlier attempting a dangerous trick, is implicated in a series of murders.You Shall Not Sleep (No Dormirás, Argentina-Uruguay-Spain)Dir: Gustavo HernándezMembers of a theatre company experimenting with insomnia in an abandoned psychiatric hospital encounter powerful forces.Bacurau (Brazil-France)Dir: Kleber Mendonça Filho, Juliano DornellesAllegorical tale about a small town in northeastern Brazil that vanishes from maps after the matriarch dies.Brief Story From The Green Planet (Breve Historia Del Planeta Verde, Argentina)Dir: Santiago LozaA trans girl, a dancer, and a heartbroken waitress attempt to return an alien companion of the trans girl’s late grandmother to its rightful place.Luz (Colombia)Dir: Juan Diego Escobar AlzateThe leader of an isolated cult finds himself under attack from his followers, including his three daughters, after bringing a false messiah into the community.Impossible Crimes (Crimenes Imposibles, Argentina)Dir: Hernán FindlingA seasoned detective with a tragic past is assigned to investigate series of deaths when a young nun tells him she is possessed by an evil force behind for the killings.Monos (Colombia)Dir: Alejandro LandesOn a faraway Colombian mountaintop, a group of child soldiers on the run from government forces try to keep their American hostage alive.I Am Toxic (Soy Tóxico, Argentina)Dir: Pablo ParésA man wakes up in a world destroyed by biological warfare with no memory of his previous life. He escapes from his captors with a young woman who turns out to be his daughter.The Father’s Shadow (A Sombra Do Pai, Brazil)Dir: Gabriela Amaral AlmeidaA nine-year-old girl attempts to bring her mother back from the dead so she can reconnect with her estranged father.The Unseen (Los Ultimos, Argentina-Chile)Dir: Nicolás PuenzoA young, pregnant indigenous woman and her Creole companion escape from a refugee camp and encounter a veteran war photographer who tries to save them from guerrillas in the area.