Four Latin American Films Awarded at Sundance 2010

Four Latin American productions were awarded at the 2010 edition of the Sundance Film Festival which ends today. The Bolivian film Distrito Sur (Southern District) by Juan Carlos Valdivia got the Directing and Screenwriting Awards in the World Cinema category; while the Peruvian film Contracorriente by Javier Fuentes León and British-Brazilian co-production Waste Land by Lucy Walker won the Audience Awards (in the World Cinema Dramatic and Documentary categories respectively). Mariano Cohn and Gastón Duprat's El hombre de al lado (The Man Next Door) from Argentina was also awarded with the Cinematography Prize in the World Cinema category. Congratulations to them all!

Mexican Director Amat Escalante Wins Sundance/NHK Award

Sundance Institute and NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) announced the winners of the 2010 Sundance / NHK International Filmmakers Awards which include Mexican filmmaker Amat Escalante for his project untitled Heli. Born in Guanajuato, México, Escalante has directed two feature films, Sangre (2005) and Los Bastardos (2008). The annual award is given to outstanding filmmakers from Europe, Latin America, the U.S. and Japan and helps them on their next film. Past Latino recipients of this award include Lucrecia Martel, Fernando Eimbcke, Alex Rivera, Andrucha Waddington, Juan Pablo Rebella and Pablo Stoll and Diego Lerman.

Mexico City Film Fest Gets Cancelled

After some recent speculation, Cine Premiere magazine confirmed today that the FICCO (Festival Internacional de Cine Contemporáneo de la Ciudad de México) has been cancelled. The publication cited the festival's PR company Burston Marsteller as the source of the confirmation and financial reasons as the main reason behind the decision. The 7th edition of the film festival was scheduled to take place February 24th - March 7th. Under the initial direction of Paula Astorga, the Mexico City film festival gained a strong reputation in a very short time and became one of Mexico's most important film festivals along with Morelia and Guadalajara. Astorga and her team quit the festival in 2008 quoting irreconcilable differences with Cinemex, the exhibition chain behind the festival.  We regret the disappearance of such an important platform as it leaves a big vacuum for Mexican cinephiles.

Two Latin American Films Shortlisted for the Oscars

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today that the Argentinean film El secreto de sus ojos by Juan José Campanella, as well as the Peruvian film La teta asustada (The Milk of Sorrow) by Claudia Llosa, both were shortlisted for the Oscars. The shortlist is comprised of nine films all of them competing to get a nomination in the category of Best Foreign Language Film for the 82nd edition of the Academy Awards. The nominations will be announced on February 2.

In Memoriam: Sandro

Sandro (aka Sandro de América), one of Latin America's most popular stars of the last decades, died last Monday in Argentina at the age of 64 after complications derived of a heart and lungs transplant. Even though the Argentinean idol was best known as the singer of such hits as "Rosa Rosa" and "Dame fuego," he also starred in more than a dozen feature films that were equally successful throughout Latin America. Some of his most popular films: Quiero llenarme de ti (1969) and Embrujo de amor (1971). Furthermore, few people are aware that we even debuted as a filmmaker directing (and also starring along with Susana Giménez) Tú me enloqueces in 1976.

Check the original trailer for his film Destino de un capricho (1972):