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From the day that Christopher Columbus set sail from Huelva to beach up in the Caribbean, the Spanish city has always had strong ties to Latin America.

With Spain still laboring under the dictatorship of Francisco Franco, when a group of young film buffs at Huelva’s Film Club aimed to galvanize the city’s culture, “It was logical that we looked to the richness and plenitude of culture that came from abroad,” recalls José Luis Ruíz Díaz, Huelva’s first director. “It was also logical that we had a large interest in Latin America, adds Vicente Quiroga, its longtime head of press. Relaxing, censorship in Spain also allowed access to a suddenly broader sweep of foreign titles.

Huelva’s first 50 editions have proved a faithful reflection of the evolution of cinema in Latin America, Portugal and Spain. Some milestones:

1975: Ruíz Díaz launches Huelva’s first Ibero-American Film Week with Argentina’s “La Raulito.

Peter BelstioThis was the best film I saw in my Sundance — Slamdance week recently. This is the best film I’ve seen in the past year. So good waw it, that when I left the theater at the Slamdance top of Main Street in Park City I thought, ‘I might as well go home now, I’ll not see anything here close to this.’Mountain Inn, home ofr Slamdance

Well, I stayed, saw others and this remained the best film for me there. Won the Slamdance grand prize for dramatic features too.

The film is U.S. dramatic. Period — U.S. midwest small town in the ‘50s.

A young boy-girl couple — teenage friends, not lovers — run a manual switchboard for phones, using old fashioned plugs to connect callers. They listen to radio.

Then strange sounds begin emanating from the switchboard and they do not know what it is and decide to find out.

The 1973 coup d’etat in Chile, which ushered in decades of military dictatorship, seems a bit far afield as the topic for an Italian documentary, particularly after the classic works by local directors like Patricio Guzman and Miguel Littin (who both make appearances here). The attraction, of course, is that Santiago, Italia is written and directed by the politically insightful Nanni Moretti, who can be counted on to approach any subject from an unconventional and thought-provoking angle.

In the present case, the new angle (local as it might be) is the generous support that the Italian embassy in Santiago gave ...

The 1973 coup d’etat in Chile, which ushered in decades of military dictatorship, seems a bit far afield as the topic for an Italian documentary, particularly after the classic works by local directors like Patricio Guzman and Miguel Littin (who both make appearances here). The attraction, of course, is that Santiago, Italia is written and directed by the politically insightful Nanni Moretti, who can be counted on to approach any subject from an unconventional and thought-provoking angle.

In the present case, the new angle (local as it might be) is the generous support that the Italian embassy in Santiago gave ...

‘The Salesman’ (Courtesy: Habib Majidi)

By: Carson Blackwelder

Managing Editor

It might not be everyone’s cup of tea, but we’re well on our way to seeing how the best foreign language film race will shape up at the Oscars in 2017. Leading the pack of the shortlist is The Salesman from Iran, which could land filmmaker Asghar Farhadi a rare second win in the category. How often do we see someone with more than one win in this worldwide competition?

The shortlist of nine films — more about those here — will, on January 24, be trimmed down to the official five nominees that will eventually face off at the Oscars on February 26. This site’s namesake, The Hollywood Reporter’s Scott Feinberg, lists the current frontrunners as: Germany’s Toni Erdmann (written and directed by Maren Ade), Denmark’s Land of Mine (written and directed by Martin Zandvliet), Sweden’s A...

I have been visiting Cuba since 2000 when I went there to perfect my Spanish. My Spanish is still far from perfect but I have grown to love Cuba. Since I went there to learn and happened upon the Havana Film Festival which is held this year December 3rd to 13th, I have returned to the Festival every year and have found a world of great talent which increasingly is raring to get out into the world.

Ivan Giroud is a part of that Festival world and actually is now its most important part (aside from the films and filmmakers that is). Starting from zero, he is now considered one of the most qualified specialists in Latin American Cinema.

Read on to see who he is and how he sees Cuban and Latin American Cinema.

How did you get into film?

I was born in Havana in 1957.

I have loved cinema since I was very young. However I did not study film as there was no cinema school in Cuba until 1986.

I had a general education and graduated in Civil

Engineering from the Polytechnic Institute of Havana in 1981.

I am self-taught in film – what’s that called?

You are an autodidact.

Yes, an autodidact.

In the 70s, Cuba had the best cinema in the world and the best posters as well. These posters remained the finest posters in the world throughout the 70s, 80s and 90s.

Yes, they are silk-screened and on display and for sale. I myself treasure the poster of one o my favorite fims, “Suite Habana” by Fernando Pérez .

In my last year working as a civil engineer I contacted Icaic seeking employment. In 1981 friends in film, like Daisy Granados, the star of “Cecilia” gave me work on her film. I met her husband, Pastor Vega, a filmmaker who was also the first Director of the Festival from 1979 to 1990, a post he took after finishing “Portrait of Teresa” Pastor said ‘Come work with me’ and so in 1988 I entered the industry at the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (Icaic), as a senior specialist and organizer of Cuban and Latin American cinema destined for Europe and North America. The job was like a programming job.

The International Festival of the New Latin American Film in Havana (aka Havana Film Festival) had sections for auteurs, socialist countries, American films and docs. It had the best films, was the preeminent film festival for Latin American cinema and was the only market where all of Latin America gathered to consider the films. It still remains a gathering place for the cineastes throughout Latin America and includes a well-respected coterie of the pioneers of Latin American cinema who created the films that best defined Latin America Cinema in the 60s and then were silenced by the dictatorships which prevailed until the 90s….like Raúl Ruiz, Aldo Francia, Patricio Guzmán and Miguel Littin from Chile, Glauber Rocha, Nelson Pereira dos Santos from Brazil Fernando Solanas and Octavio Getino from Argentina.

At the time of the Soviet collapse in 1991 (known in Cuba as “The Special Period”), I entered the Directorate of the Festival and Vega left and returned to filmmaking. There were other Directors, and in 1994 I became the Director. Alfredo Guevera, the public face of the festival for many years came back to Cuba and became President; we worked together from 1994 to 2010, my first term as the Festival Director.

The Special Period was very, very difficult, the worst of times for everyone and for all Latin American cinema. Brazilian cinema nearly disappeared. The state film organization Embrafilme had been producing 800 films a year and that disappeared for a long time.

Argentina declined in the 90s. Mexico remained active but also declined in the quality of its films. When I began as Director, Cuba was very poor, both economically and creatively. But there was also a generational change and I learned that every decline gives birth to a new generation and new creativity, and so it was.

Schools of films began training new talent. Eictv, the International Film School, funded by Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s Nobel Prize money opened its doors in 1987. New schools opened in Argentina and Brazil as well. The Havana Film Festival stood as a testimony to this growing generation as it showed the first works and shorts of the likes of Trapero and others in whom you could see new Latam talent developing.

The Havana Film Festival catalogs are a history of cinema as it was the biggest programmer of films. It still gives the best view of Latam cinema today. It is still important as it gives a full picture of Latam cinema and the people in Latam cinema. Eictv is producing the most interesting film makers in the world. For 37 years the Festival was the best, though today there are not many Latam fests. This one was different. You could get to know the whole cineaste community. It never lost a generation; the older members still make movies and the festival helps them to be seen and known.

In 2010 I went to Madrid where I spent five years. In 2002 I began working on a Dictionary of Iberoamerican Cinema. This 1,000 page book was finished in 2008. From 2008 to 2010 I was the director of the festival from Spain. I also ran an arthouse theater in Madrid, the Sala Berlanga, named after a very important Spanish director a little younger than Bunuel.

In 2012 I wanted to return to Cuba where I worked on the Cuban Dictionary of Film. In April Guevera died and Icaic pulled me back to be President and Director.

Since May 2013 I have been Director of the Casa del Festival and President of the International Festival of New Cinema in Havana.

What about the filmmaker Pavel Giroud? Is he your brother?

No, he’s my nephew. He came into the business a different way, through design. He began producing music clips and then went to Eictv. From a painter he evolved into a moviemaker. He has made three films. His newest, “El Acompañante” (“The Companion”) won the best project award at San Sebastian’s 2nd Europe-Latin America Co-production Forum in 2013.

This is Giroud’s third solo film after “The Silly Age” and “Omerta”. The producers: Luis Pacheco’s Jaguar Films is Panama’s best-known production/services company. The Cuban producer is Lia Rodriguez who also runs the industry section of the Havana Film Festival. It is also produced by the Cuba/ Panama-based Arete Audiovisual, Panama’s Jaguar Films, Venezuela’s Trampolin Impulso Creativo and France’s Tu Vas Voir (Edgard Tenembaum) who produced Walter Salles’ “The Motorcycle Diaries”.

Set in 1988 Cuba, “The Companion” is about a friendship between a disgraced boxer forced to serve as a warden – in Cuban government jingo-speak, a “companion” – for an HIV victim.

What is different about the current state of your festival?

Now there are many Latin American Film Festivals, but ours was and still is different because it allows you to know the whole cineaste community. We never lost a generation. The older generation still is making movies and the younger generation is very present. The Festival helps make them known.

What about the new developments between USA and Cuba?

That is the most asked question today.

We have always had U.S. films and U.S. citizens have always visited in cultural exchanges. We’ve had Gregory Peck, Jack Lemmon in the earliest years. We’ve invited Arthur Penn, Sean Penn, John Sayles, the Coen Brothers. Danny Glover and Benecio del Toro are frequent visitors. Annette Benning and Koch Hawk of the Academy were guests. We were always well connected to the U.S. independents so that is nothing new.

The change is that It will be easier for Americans to visit and to learn.

When I went to Cuba the first time, I was actually surprised to see so many Afro-Cubans. For some reason I assumed USA was the only nation with former slaves. I should have realized the Spanish also traded in slaves but only when I was in Cuba did I “get” it. Now I see the world so differently.

In Cuba black and white races mixed and the mixture (the mulatto) is what is a Cuban today. U.S. has segregation by and large. Latinos live together, Asian, African-Americans are all separated and that creates a totally different mentality.

I am very interested in African Diaspora films and Cuba has a lot. I have always enjoyed the documentaries. You can’t see them anywhere else.

This year there is a great documentary, “They are We" (“Ellos son nosotros”). It is anthropological about the Cuban town Matanza. Matanza has some of the best music in Cuba. It investigates their African roots in Sierra Leone and identifies ancestors and where they were from. Determined to find the exact origin of songs coming from there, the Australian filmmaker - researcher spent two years showing images throughout the region in Sierra Leonie until he confirmed that the Cubans were singing songs similar to the language of an ethnic group made extinct because of the slave trade.

I’ll send you the BBC article. (Read it here)

Thank you Ivan for this hour of your time. I am so happy to have finally connected with you after seeing you for so many years in Havana and in Toronto (where you stay with Helga Stephenson, the subject of an earlier post: Read it here )

More on Ivan:

Ivan has provided advice to other Latin American film festivals and has collaborated on research projects and screenplays, as well as in the production of theater and classical music. In 2008 he was invited to speak at the seminar Contributions of Latin American cinema to world cinema in the first American Film Congress held in Mexico City in the Congress book stories presented in common 40 years / 50 movies of Latin American cinema, of which he is one of its editors.

He was a visiting professor of the Master in Management of the Film Industry Carlos III University courses in 2010, 2011 and 2012. He is one of four directors of the Dictionary of Latin American Cinema; with Carlos F. Heredero, Eduardo Rodríguez Merchán, Benard da Costa and João project Sgae of Spain, consisting of 10 volumes and 16 thousand entries. Between 2008 and 2012 he was Director of audiovisual programming and Berlanga Room Buñuel Institute Foundation Author of Spain, a period in which he was international adviser Icaic.

As of this article's publication only five countries have announced their official Oscar entries for the 88th Academy Awards: Hungary ("Son of Saul"), Romania ("Aferim!"), Bosnia & Herzegovina ("Our Everyday Life"), Luxembourg ("Baby(A)lone"), and Kazakhstan ("Stranger"). Taking into account last year's record number of submissions, 83 in total, there are certainly a lot more coming in the next few weeks. Several national film organization have already narrowed the field down to a shortlist of films that qualify to be considered, other countries skip the shortlist and simply announce their participant title without revealing what was being considered.

Trying to predict what a particular nation will enter is a tall order because of the numerous factors that weight in, especially when dealing with countries with a large film industry. In other cases, however, there are usually just a couple standouts that meet the standards to be submitted. Whatever the case, even with the most obvious choices there could be surprises such as Indian choosing not to submitting "The Lunchbox" or Chile choosing another film over Silva's "The Maid."

While there is no sure-fie formula to predict what films will be competing for the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award, by looking at festivals, release dates, national awards, previous submissions, and with a hefty dose of educated speculation, I've put together a list of 35 titles that, at this point, seem like excellent choices.

Update 08/28: Several countries have announced their official submissions: Croatia ("The High Sun"), Germany ("Labyrinth of Lies"), Guatemala ("Ixcanul"), Switzerland ("Iraqi Odyssey"), and Palestine ("The Wanted 18").

Argentina

"The Clan" (El Clan)

Dir. Pablo Trapero

Isa: Film Factory Entertainment

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Argentine Release Date: August 13th, 2015

Coming off the success of this year’s nominee “Wild Tales,” which also did very well at the U.S. box-office for Sony Pictures Classics and became a spectacular hit back home, Argentina seems to have another strong contender this year with Pablo Trapero’s latest work “The Clan” (El Clan). Two of the director’s previous films have been submitted before (“Lion’s Den” and “Carrancho”), and this one about the Puccio family, which was criminal organization that kidnapped and murdered wealthy people, looks more than promising. “The Clan” is also produced by Almodovar’s El Deso, just as Damian Szifron’s “Tales” was. There are several other films that have enough merits to be considered, but might prove insufficient when faced with Trapero’s film. “Refugiado,” “El Patron,” “Two Shots” and, even “Jauaja,” starring Viggo Mortensen, qualify

Brazil

"The Second Mother"

Dir. Anna Muylaert

Isa: The Match Factory

U.S. Distribution: Oscilloscope Pictures

Brazilian Release Date: August 27, 2015

Undoubtedly the most awarded Brazilian film of the year is also their best bet at the Oscars. Anna Muylaert's “The Second Mother” premiered at Sundance where it won a Special Jury Prize for both of its leading actresses Regina Casé and Camila Márdila. It went on to screen in the Panorama section of the Berlinale and took home the C.I.C.A.E. Award and the Audience Award. The film tells the story of a live-in housekeeper and his daughter as they navigate the class divisions prevalent in Brazilian society. Another factor in its favor is the fact that the film has secured U.S. distribution thanks to Oscilloscope. “The Second Mother” opens in Brazil on August 27 and, in a strange turn of events, on August 28 in the U.S. While there are plenty of other great Brazilian works that qualify to be submitted, it’s unlikely that the selection committee will look elsewhere. Other films that could have a shot at being chosen are “August Winds,” “Casa Grande.” “Blue Blood,” and “White Out, Black In”

Bulgaria

"The Judgement"

Dir. Stephan Komandarev

Isa: Premium Film

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Bulgarian Release Date: October 16, 2014

Following last year’s scandalous selection of “Bulgarian Rhapsody” over the more deserving “Viktoria,” the Eastern European country has a two-way race in which both candidates have almost equal chances at being chosen. Stephan Komandarev’s drama “The Judgement” is the larger production of the two and revolves around a desperate father trying to amend his relationship with his estrange son. At the same time the protagonist is also trying to make ends meet and decides to take on the dangerous job of smuggling illegal immigrant from Syria through a remote area of the Turkish-Greek-Bulgarian border. The other film is Kristina Grozeva & Petar Valchanov's “The Lesson,” about a devoted teacher who is faced with corrupt bureaucracy after her classroom is burglarized. Winning awards at the Sofia International Film Festival, San Sebastian, Thessaloniki, and screening at Tiff and Rotterdam, “The Lesson” should be the frontrunner. However, “The Judgement” might have the edge not only because it sports a larger budget and wider appeal, but because Komandarev is the filmmaker behind “The World is Big and Salvation Lurks Around the Corner,” which is the one Bulgarian film that has gotten the closest to Oscar glory when it was shortlisted by the Academy in 2010. Less likely to be selected but still viable possibilities are “Adultery,”"Buffer Zone," and "The Petrov File."

Canada

"Felix & Meira"

Dir. Maxime Giroux

Isa: Urban Distribution International

U.S. Distribution: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Canadian Release Date: January 30th, 2015

As of now Canada’s ideal representative would be the small, but touching, “Felix & Meir,” about a married woman from the Orthodox Jewish community who falls in love with a secular man, as way to know life beyond the restrictions of her faith. This tiny gem won the Best Canadian Feature award at last year’s Tiff and received four awards at the Whistler Film Festival including Best Film and Best Director. “Felix & Meira” was acquired by Oscilloscope for U.S. distribution and was released last April. To date it has grossed nearly $500,00, which, for a subtle and niche film like this, is a great feat. Giroux’ film should take this easily, unless the new film by Oscar-nominated director Philippe Falardeau decides to push for the opportunity. Falardeau newest film “Guibord Goes to War” (Guibord s’en va-t-en guerre) is a political dark comedy that premiered at Locarno and is scheduled to open in Canada on October 2- just two days after AMPAS’ deadline. If the distributor decides to have a one-week qualifying run ahead of the release, then it would become the new frontrunner to represent Canada. However, it’s still unknown if that is being considered or if the film will just wait till next year. Falardeau was nominated in the category for “Monsieur Lazhar” in 2012. “Chorus,” which premiered at Sundance, Berlin’s “Corbo,” Tiff’s “In Her Place,” and the “Les Loups” also qualify.

Chile

"The Club" (El Club)

Dir. Pablo Larraín

Isa: Funny Balloons

U.S. Distribution: Music Box Films

Chilean Release Date: May 28, 2015

With Pablo Larraín’s Silver Bear-winner film, Chile has an easy choice to make. “The Club,” which was recently picked up for U.S. distribution by Music Box Films, has received universal critical acclaimed and has cemented its director as one of the most important figures in Latin American cinema. Larraín’s latest centers on a group of priests and nuns sent to a beach town to purify their sinful pasts involving everything from pedophilia to kidnapping. The only other film that truly stands a chance is Matias Lira's “El Bosque de Karadima,” which deals with similar themes regarding secrecy and crimes against children within the Catholic Church. But even if this film has been well-received at home, “The Club” has had more much more international visibility and it has the distinction of being the newest work from the director behind “No,” Chile’s only Oscar-nominated film to date. Other notable works that will be part of the conversation include historical drama “Allende en su Laberinto” by veteran director Miguel Littin, Rodrigo Sepúlveda’s touching “Aurora," and indie flick “La Voz en Off.”

China

"Mountains May Depart" (山河故人)

Dir. Zhangke Jia

Isa: MK2

U.S. Distribution: Kino Lorber

Chinese Release Date: Unknown

Censorship has always played a role in China’s decision-making process when it comes to their Oscar submissions. Some of the best Chinese films in recent years are never considered given their controversial topics or because they were made outside of the state-run system. Under this circumstances patriotic epics or lavish period dramas are often selected even when their quality is subpar. The country’s big production this year is “The Lady of the Dynasty,” which was a box-office disappointment and garnered mostly negative reviews locally. With this in mind, the hope is that they will finally look at more compelling films with greater international exposure, such as Jia Zhangke’s “Mountains May Depart.” Premiering at Cannes to mostly positive responses, the film looks at Chinese society from three perspectives scattered over three decades. The film has passed the censors' revisions and will be allowed to screen in mainland Chine, which means it’s possible one of Zhangke’s film might finally represent his homeland. His previous effort, “A Touch of Sin,” was ignored because of its thematic elements. Jean-Jacques Annaud’s stunning “Wolf Totem” is a close second choice, but given the fact that China submitted a film by a French director last, they might want to highlight a homegrown talent this time. There is also “Red Amnesia,” a thriller about a widow that compulsively needs to take careof those around her until strange incidents shake her life. Er Cheng’s “The Wasted Times,” which appears to be a delirious visual treat, but it opens just a few days after the September 30th deadline. A qualifying run prior to that date is possible, but not likely. “Mountains May Depart” is definitely the strongest candidate.

Colombia

"Embrace of the Serpent" (El Abrazo de la Serpiente)

Dir. Ciro Guerra

Isa: Films Boutique

U.S. Distribution: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Colombian Release Date: May 25th, 2015

The Colombian film industry has had an outstanding year and that has produced an impressive lineup of films from which their strongest Oscar entry to date will emerge. Three films that screened at the Cannes Film Festival - two of which earned prizes – are at the top of the list. Winning the Art Cinema Award at the Directors’ Fortnight Ciro Guerra’s black-and-white “Embrace of the Serpent” is the one to beat among these trio of art house wonders. Guerra’s film is a period piece about the clash between the native people of the Amazon and a European explorer, which has received stellar reviews and was picked up for U.S. distribution by Oscilloscope. Two of Guerra’s previous films, “Wandering Shadows” and “The Wind Journey,” also represented Colombia at the Academy Awards. Nevertheless, the other films that screen at the Croisette, Golden Camera-winner “Land and Shade” and war drama “Alias Maria,” shouldn’t be completely counted out of the running. Films like Franco Lolli's “Gente de Bien” (Cannes 2014), Josef Wladyka's “Manos Sucias,” "Todos Se Van," and “Ruido Rosa” qualify and testify of the great moment Colombian filmmaking is experiencing, but they will have a difficult time pulling off an upset.

Croatia

"The High Sun" (Zvizdan)

Dir. Dalibor Matanic

Isa: Cercamon

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Croatian Release Date: Septemeber 2015

It’s not often that a Croatian feature manage to grab Cannes’ attention and take home a prestigious award like the Un Certain Regard Jury Prize. “The High Sun” achieved such feat and should be almost a lock to become the country’s Oscar entry. This intense drama, that expands over three decades and explores the Balkan region’s turbulent history, also won 7 awards at the Pula Film Festival including Best Film, Director, Leading Actress, Supporting Actor, and Supporting Actress. If there’s another film with a reasonable shot, it would be Ognjen Svilicic's “These Are the Rules” about a family questioning their moral compass after a violent incident, which did well in the festival circuit winning awards in Venice, Warsaw, Stockholm, and Pula. Svilicic’s 2007 feature “Armin” represented the country at the 80th Academy Awards. “The Bridge at the End of the World,” “Ungiven,” “The Reaper,” “Number 55” are other noteworthy Croatian films released during the past year, but Matanic’s highly praised wok should have no trouble becoming the official entry.

Dominican Republic

"Sand Dollar" (Dólares de Arena)

Dir. Israel Cárdenas & Laura Amelia Guzmán

Isa: FIGa Films

U.S. Distribution: Breaking Glass Pictures

Dominican Release Date: November 13th, 2014

Thanks to a growing film industry, Dominican films have participated every year starting in 2011 after being absent from the race since 1995. Their submissions have included romantic comedies and low-budget crime dramas that weren’t successful at getting AMPAS’ attention. Fortunately, this year they might have their strongest candidate yet with “Sand Dollars.” In Israel Cárdenas & Laura Amelia Guzmán's film starring Geraldine Chaplin, a local girl becomes the object of desire for an older French woman visiting the Caribbean country, influenced by her boyfriend the Dominican beauty decides to take advantage of the foreigner’s interest. “Sand Dollars” has screened at countless festivals around the world winning a handful of awards and has secured U.S. distribution. Guillermo Zouain's road-trip comedy “Algún Lugar” has also been well-received at a couple of international festivals, but is less likely to be picked. “Pueto Pa’ Mí,” a drama about urban music, documentary “Tu y Yo," and biopic “Maria Montez,” might be out of luck. It’s unclear if Agliberto Meléndez political film “Del Color de La Noche,” has premiered yet, so that could a contender next year given that the director was behind the country’s first ever Oscar submission.

Ethiopia

"Lamb"

Dir. Yared Zeleke

Isa: Films Distribution

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Ethiopian Release Date: Unknown

The East African nation has only sent two films for consideration. Last year it was the Angeline Jolie-supported “Difret,” which was part of the World Cinema competition at the 2014 Sundance Film Festival. This year only two films seem to qualify. “Lamb” is the first-ever Ethiopian film to screen at Cannes, which makes it the unquestionable favorite. It’s a rural story about a boy and his beloved sheep moving in with relatives as his mother goes to work in the city. Reviews were positive praising the film’s cinematography and layered storytelling. The other film that could possibly be selected is Hermon Hailay’s “Prince of Love” about a prostitute and a cab driver struggling to get by in the capital city of Addis Ababa. “Prince of Love” represented the country at Fespaco, one of Africa’s most renowned festivals, and will screen at Tiff in September. Ethiopia might choose to send “Lamb” this time around and save Hailay’s feature for next year depending on release date.

Finland

"The Fencer" (Miekkailija)

Dir. Klaus Härö

Isa: The Little Film Company

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Finnish Release Date: March 13th, 2015

Peculiar teen drama “They Have Escaped” won four Jussi Awards from the Finnish Academy earlier this year including Best Film and Best Director; however, it will probably face an uphill battle to become Finland’s Oscar entry. Instead, Estonian-language period piece, “The Fencer,” looks like a more feasible alternative because of its classic story, elegant cinematography, and the director behind it: Klaus Härö. The film tells the story of a young Estonian fencer who leaves his homeland to become a Pe teacher and escape persecution by the Russian authorities in the 1950s. Some critics have gone as far as to call it “the best Finnish film in a decade.” Three of Härö’s previous films (“Elina: As If I Wasn’t There,””Mother of Mine, “ and Letter to Father Jacob) were selected as Oscar entries. The only obstacle in its path is the fact that this is an Estonian story with mostly Estonian dialogue. If the selection committee can overlook that, this will be their pick. Antti Jokinen's “Wildeye,” a visually arresting war drama that opens in September is another strong option, particularly because Jokinen’s previous film, “Purge,” represent the country in 2013. “Absolution,” “Head First,” ”Homecoming,” and “Tsamo” are proof a strong year in Finnish cinema but won’t make the cut.

France

"Dheepan"

Dir. Jacques Audiard

Isa: Wild Bunch

U.S. Distribution: Sundance Selects

French Release Date: August 26th, 2015

Given the amount of films produced in France each year, this is the most difficult country to narrow down. However, this year there is a heavyweight contender among the scores of worthy productions. Surprise Palme d’Or-winner “Deephan” by the Academy Award-nominated director of “A Prophet," Jacques Audiard, is a clear favorite. Audiard is a legend and it’s hard to think France won’t support the film that took home one of cinema’s most coveted prizes. Following the relevant immigrant story of a Sri Lankan warrior in France, “Dheepan” is almost a safe bet. If for some unimaginable reason Audiard’s latest is not chosen, the most likely alternative would be well-received “My Golden Days” by Arnaud Desplechin, which has been picked up for U.S. distribution by Magnolia Pictures. While there are dozens of films that could be considered, here are some other important French films that qualify based on their release dates: “Girlhood,” “Standing Tall,” “The Measure of Man,” “The New Girlfriend,” “Valley of Love,” “Eden,”"The Connection."

Germany

"Labyrinth of Lies" (Im Labyrinth des Schweigens)

Dir. Giulio Ricciarelli

Isa: Beta Cinema

U.S. Distribution: Sony Pictures Classics

German Release Date: November 6th, 2014

After an 8-film shortlist was released, - which sadly doesn’t include “Phoenix” because it opened late last September – things look pretty clear for the German selection committee. It’s really a 3-film race between “13 Minutes,” Labyrinth of Lies,” and “Victoria.” Unfortunately, and despite incredibly positive reviews, Sebastian Schipper's “Victoria” might be considered a risky choice because a big part of it is in English. That leaves Oliver Hirschbiegel’s “13 Minutes,” about a man who tried to assassinate Hitler in 1939. On the surface this looks like the prime title to send to AMPAS since Hirschbiegel’s “Downfall” earned him a nomination and he has worked in Hollywood for several years now. Yet, reception wasn’t as warm for his first German film in a decade. On the other “Labyrinth of Lies,” which deals with Post-World War II Germany and how the government tried to cover up its recent Nazi past, had better luck. Critical reception has been better for this film and it was a financial success in Germany and France, which gives the edge. Both “13 Minutes” and “Labyrinth of Lies” were acquired by Sony Pictures Classics for U.S. distribution. The complete list of shortlisted films can be found Here

Greece

"Xenia" (Ξενία)

Dir. Panos H. Koutras

Isa: Pyramide International

U.S. Distribution: Strand Releasing

Greek Release Date: October 2nd, 2014

Although it’s not an official rule, Greece almost-automatically selects the winner of the Best Film Prize at the Hellenic Film Awards as their Oscar submissions. This year’s winner was the Lgbt dramedy “Xenia,” which follows two Albanian brothers searching for their Greek father after their mother’s death. The film was nominated for 15 Hellenic Film Awards and won a total of six. “Xenia” premiered in the Un Certain Regard section at the Cannes Film Festival and will be released in the U.S. in October by Strand Releasing. I can’t see any other film being selected other than Koutras’ Almodovar-infused film, but if that were the case the other Best Film nominees – that meet AMPAS requirements- would be the ones to look to: “Electra,” “A Blast,” and “Forever.”

Guatemala

"Ixcanul"

Dir. Jayro Bustamante

Isa: Film Factory Entertainment

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Guatemalan Release Date: August 27th, 2015

This is a no-brainer. Guatemala has only sent a film once back in 1994, but this year director Jayro Bustamante delivered the most awarded Guatemalan film in history. That should be a good enough reason to enter the race once again. “Ixcanul” won the Alfred Bauer Award at the Berlinale and has screened across the world to great success. Bustamante’s film centers on a Mayan girl who wants to escape the arrange marriage that awaits her to see what’s beyond her village. Another Guatemalan film, which also screened in Berlin, Edgar Sajcabún's “La Casa Más Grande del Mundo,” will probably not open theatrically in time and should be considered next year.

Iceland

"Rams" (Hrútar)

Dir. Grímur Hákonarson

Isa: New Europe Film Sales

U.S. Distribution: Cohen Media Group

Icelandic Release Date: May 28th, 2015

Two middle-aged brothers in an Icelandic rural town leave their differences behind and come together to save their beloved farm animals in the Un Certain Regard Award-winner “Rams.” With such recognition under its belt and having just been picked for U.S. distribution by Cohen Media Group, Grímur Hákonarson's film is certainly the handsomest choice. Still, “Rams” is not without a strong rival. Crowd-pleaser “Virgin Mountain,” about a lonely man whose life changes when he meets a new friend, had its U.S. premiere at the Tribecca Film Festival where it won three awards: Best Narrative Feature, Best Actor, and Best Screenplay. It could go either way, but the Cannes prestige and having found a U.S. distributor give “Rams” the upper hand. Iceland produced several qualifying features this year including “Brave Men’s Blood,” “East of the Mountain, “ and “The Homecoming.”

Iran

"Muhammad: The Messenger of God"

Dir. Majid Majidi

PC: Nourtaban Film Industry

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Iranian Release Date: August 26, 2015

Iran will have to make an incredibly difficult decision that unfortunately may have political repercussions. Majid Majidi’s latest film “Muhammad: The Messenger of God” is the most expense Iranian feature ever made. The historical epic brings to life the early years of the prophet's life with impressive locations, costumes, and cinematography courtesy of Three-time Oscar-winner Vittorio Storaro. Majidi himself is no stranger to the Academy having earned Iran’s first-ever Academy Award nomination with “Children of Heaven.” Taking these facts into consideration, “Muhammad” seems to be the obvious selection, but there are many religious and political concerns that could get in its way. Islam prohibits the depiction of the prophet and other sacred figures in any artistic work. Knowing this, Majidi shot the entire film - which is the first part in what’s to become a trilogy – without ever showing the prophet’s face by shooting most scenes from his point of view or showing him with his back to the camera. This was acceptable for Iran’s censors, as the film will open this week in theaters across the Middle Eastern country. However, other Muslim countries, particularly Sunni Muslims, have been outspoken about their discontent with the film. Whether Iran will still choose to submit the film to AMPAS is a mystery, but it will certainly have more to do with outside influences rather than artistic merit. “Muhammad” will have its North American premiere at the Montreal World Film Festival.

“Nahid” by Ida Panahandeh, about a woman’s journey from divorce to remarrying, won the Avenir Prize in the Un Certain Regard section at Cannes, but - although censors have said the film will be allowed the screen in Iran - it might not open theatrically in time. It also deals with a controversial subject and that might limit it chances. A third, and much safer option, is romantic drama “What’s the Time in Your World?” starring Leila Hatami (“A Speration”) and Ali Mosaffa (“The Past”). Directed by Safi Yazdanian, the film looks beautifully done and sports two of the most talented Iranian actors working today. It could definitely be a good alternative. Other films include “Borderless,” “Track 143,” "Tales” and “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind.” Perhaps Iran will ignore the risk and submit their most lavish film to date by one of their most celebrated filmmakers who still works within the state’s parameters.

Israel

"The Kind Words" (Ha'milim ha'tovot )

Dir. Shemi Zarhin

Isa: Beta Cinema

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Israeli Release Date: May 28, 2015

With 12 nominations to Israel’s Ophir Awards, “The Kind Words” including Best Film, Best Director, Best Screenplay, Best Actor, and Best Actress Shem Zarhin’s film is the one to beat. Since the winner of the Ophir Award for Best Film automatically becomes Israel’s Oscar submission, “The Kind Words” has a strong shot at both honors. The film follows a group of siblings as they travel abroad to uncover a secret. By default the other contenders are the rest of the films nominated for Best Film: “Wounded Land,” ”Afterthought,” “Wedding Doll,” and “Baba Joon.” Of this Elad Keidan's “Afterthought,” which premiered at Cannes to positive reviews, and Erez Tadmor's intense drama “Wounded Land” appear to be the strongest alternatives. Despite being nominated several times Israel has never won the Best Foreign Language Film Academy Award.

Italy

"My Mother" (Mia Madre)

Dir. Nanni Moretti

Isa: Films Distribution

U.S. Distribution: Alchemy

Italian Release Date: April 16th, 2015

Nanni Moretti is back with “Mia Madre,” a new family drama that screened in competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and won a few awards at the Italian David di Donatello Awards. Since the big winner at the national awards, “Black Souls,” was considered last year, Moretti’s film is the frontrunner. However, there is a wild card that could change things. Veteran filmmaker Marco Bellocchio will release his newest work “Blood of My Blood,” a historical drama about a 17th century woman accused of being a witch, on September 9 - just in time to qualify. It’s likely that Moretti will have enough support to pull it off, but there is still a chance that might not be set in stone. Besides these two films there is Mario Martone’s “Leopardi,” a biopic about poet Giacomo Leopardi, which won several David di Donatello Awards and was also recognized in Venice. With even less possibilities are Sundance’s “Cloro,” “Greenery Will Bloom Again,” and Albanian-language “Sworn Virgin,”

Ivory Coast

"Run"

Dir. Philippe Lacôte

PC: Banshee Films

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Ivorian Release Date: December 17th, 2014

The first and only time a film represent Ivory Coast at the Oscars was back in 1977. That film, “Black and White in Color,” won the first and only Academy Award attributed to a Sub-Saharan African country. Nevertheless, that landmark work was directed by a Frenchmen, Jean-Jacques Annaud, and had mostly French talent in the leading roles. Now, almost 40 years later, an actual Ivorian film looks presents a fantastic opportunity for the country to return to the race. Philippe Lacote’s political drama “Run” screened in the Un Certain Regard section in Cannes 2014, Tiff, and AFI Fest, and later opened commercially in Abidjan, the Ivorian Capital, and Paris. Ivory Coast has only one eligible film to submit as their Oscar entry, and fortunately it’s a good one.

Japan

"Our Little Sister" (海街 diary)

Dir. Hirokazu Koreeda

Isa: Wild Bunch

U.S. Distribution: Sony Pictures Classics

Japanese Release Date: June 13th, 2015

Japan hasn’t had a successful entry since unexpectedly winning the award in 2009 with “Departures.” Their selections are often baffling because they tend to ignore festival winners and critically acclaimed films to pick obscure titles that rarely connect with voters. In recent years outstanding films such as “Like Father, Like Son” have been overlooked. Having said this, one can only hope that this time around they will chose more wisely. This year another film by Hirokazu Koreeda, “Our Little Sister,” debuted at Cannes and has been picked up for U.S. distribution by Sony Pictures Classic – a powerhouse distributor in the Best Foreign Language Film race. Based on a manga series, the film revolves around a group of young women who decide to adopt their stepsister after their father dies. “Our Little Sister” was also a financial success in its homeland. Even with all these positive qualities on its side, Japan might refuse to submit Koreeda’s film and look elsewhere. Other options from the festival circuit include Naomi Kawase's “An- Sweet Red Bean Paste,” which less positive reviews; “Journey to the Shore,” though it opens on October 1; “Kabukicho Love Hotel,” which screened at Tiff last year, and “Cape Nostalgia.”

Jordan

"Theeb" (ذيب)

Dir. Naji Abu Nowar

Isa: Fortissimo Films

U.S. Distribution: Film Movement

Jordanian Release Date: March 19th, 2015

In 2008 Jordan submitted their first-ever Oscar submission, and the first feature film made in the country in half a century. That film, “Captain Abu Raed,” did very well in festivals like Sundance and Dubai. Since then, Jordanian cinema has been scarce forcing the country to be absent from the race. That could change this year with “Theeb” by UK-born filmmaker Naji Abu Nowar. His period piece about a Bedouin boy during World War I has played at numerous festivals and will have a U.S. theatrical release via Film Movement.

Lithuania

"The Summer of Sangailé" (Sangaile)

Dir. Alanté Kavaïté

Isa: Films Distribution

U.S. Distribution: Strand Releasing

Lithuanian Release Date: August 21st, 2015

The Sundance Film Festival screened its first-ever Lithuanian feature this past January, “The Summer of Sangailé” by Alanté Kavaïté. This Lgbt coming-of-age story showcases captivating cinematography and nuanced performances. “Sangailé” went on to win the Directing Award in the World Cinema Competition at the Park City festival. It will also become one of the very few Lithuanian films to have been distributed in the U.S. when Strand Releasing schedules its theatrical release. Being the most awarded narrative film from the Baltic nation, it should be a shoo-in. "Sangailé" also won three Silver Crane Awards (Lithuanian Oscars): Best Film, Best Actress for Julija Steponaityte and best set design for Ramunas Rastauskas. Its only realistic adversary is the documentary “Master and Tatyana,” which won the Best Documentary, Best Director, and Best Cinematography prizes at the Silver Crane. Lithuania has shown to be fond of submitting documentaries, but one could presume that “Sangaile’s” wider international appeal will help it succeed.

Mexico

"The Thin Yellow Line" (La Delgada Línea Amarilla)

Dir. Celso R. García

Isa: Latido Films

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Mexican Release Date: Unknown

Among the 14 films that the Mexican Academy announced as candidates to become the official Oscar submission, only a handful of them have a real chance at representing Mexico. It’s really a three-way race between “600 Miles,” “La Tirisia,” and “The Thin Yellow Line.” Each of these has distinctive assets as well as factors that could play against them. Gabriel Ripstein's “600 Miles” stars Tim Roth, which could be beneficial because Academy voters would see a familiar face on screen. At the same time Roth’s participation means that there is a considerable amount of English dialogue that could make the film feel less authentic when considered as a “foreign language film” representing a country. Then there is Jorge Pérez Solano's art house marvel, “La Tirisia,” about the role of women in a very traditional Mexican community. This is a film that truly showcases an unseen aspect of Mexican culture and has garnered international recognition, but it might be too small in scope to be selected.

Lastly, “The Yellow Thin Line,” which was awarded at the Guadalajara Film Festival but hasn’t travel much. It will screen at the Chicago International Film Festival in October. “The Thin Yellow Line” tells the story of a group of men working on a deserted road as they are forced to come to terms with their yearnings and failures. The premise seems unique; the cast includes some of Mexico’s most recognizable talents, and it’s partly produced my Guillermo del Toro. That last fact is what could set the film apart from the rest because the general public and Academy voters will be intrigued to see what was it about this story that interested Del Toro, who hasn’t been involved in a Mexican project in several years. It’s a tough race, but having someone like the “Pan’s Labyrinth’s” director supporting the film could be a deal breaker.

Peru

"The Vanished Elephant" (El Elefante Desaparecido)

Dir. Javier Fuentes-León

Isa: Mundial

U.S. Distribution: Oscilloscope Laboratories

Peruvian Release Date: October 9th, 2015

Javier Fuentes-Leon’s “The Vanished Elephant” premiered at last year’s Tiff and was also part of this year’s Los Angeles Film Festival making it the highest profile Peruvian film of the year. At home, the critical response was very positive and the quality of the film, in comparison to other Peruvian works released in the last 12 months, is undeniable. “The Vanished Elephant” tells the cryptic story of a writer whose girlfriend disappears without a trace. After receiving a series of strange photographs, he delves into deceitful conspiracy that defies the lines between reality and fiction. Fuentes-Leon debut feature “Undertow” was submitted to the Academy back in 2010. Enrica Perez’ “Climas” about three Peruvian women from different walks of life and Héctor Gálvez forensic mystery “Nn” have both screened at several international festivals, and though they are much smaller film’s than “The Vanished Elephant,”either of them could be the next best choice to become Peru’s Oscar entry. Less likely titles include “Videophilia,” “Solos,” and historical drama “Gloria del Pacífico.”

The Philippines

"Trap" (Taklub)

Dir. Brillante Mendoza

Isa: Films Distribution

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Filipino Release Date: Unknown

Brillante Mendoza is one the Philippines most acclaimed auteurs and yet none of his films have ever been selected to represent the Southeast Asian nation at the Oscars. His latest work, “Trap,” won Special Mention from the Ecumenical Jury at Cannes and it’s the prime contender to travel to L.A. this year. “Trap” follows a group of survivors soon after Typhoon Haiyan devastated a great part of the country. The film stars Filipino actress Nora Aunor, who also the lead in Mendoza’s “Thy Womb,” which was the Filipino entry at the Golden Globes a couple years back. Given that Mendoza’s work has never been selected, there is a chance he might miss out once more. If that happens, the film that could benefit is Paul Soriano's Manny Pacquiao biopic titled “Kid Kulafo,” which would evidently ring a bell with Americans. Other films to be considered include “Justice,” also starring Aunor, “Crocodile,” or even lighthearted comedy “English Only, Please.”

Russia

"Sunstroke"

Dir. Nikita Mikhalkov

Isa: Wild Bunch

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Russian Release Date: October 4th, 2014

Even after winning the Golden Globe and being nominated for an Academy Awards, Andrey Zvyagintsev “Leviathan” couldn’t get the Best Film award from the Russian Academy. Instead, they decided to bestow that honor on veteran filmmaker Nikita Mikhalkov's period piece "Sunstroke.” This is the type of film that Russia loves to submit: patriotic, historical, and epic. Even though last year the Russian selection committee showed they could overlook their political agenda to ensure the best film represented the country, this year they will go back to their old ways. This is not to say “Sunstroke” is a bad film, as hardly anyone outside of Russia has seen, but it does mean that other more daring offers like Yuriy Bykov's festival darling “The Fool” and Aleksey German's “Under Electric Clouds" have little hope at becoming the country’s entry and getting the exposure that comes with it. Mikhalkov won the Oscar in for “Burnt by the Sun” in 1995 and was nominated again for "12" in 2008, which means he will be hard to beat this year. "The Fool" would be a much more interesting selection but its story about a regular citizen fighting the corrupt system might prove too controversial. There is also another war epic titled "Batalion" by Dmitriy Meskhiev, which could pull off a surprise.

Serbia

"Enclave" (Enklava)

Dir. Goran Radovanovic

PC: Nana Filam

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Serbian Eelease Date: March 19, 2015

Serbia’s 6-film shortlist includes worlds that deal with a variety of subjects, from the recurrent tales of war and its aftermath, triumphant sports stories, and even the peculiar case of a boy who grew up wild in the woods. Of all these possibilities, the film that seems to have the most gravitas is Goran Radovanovic's “Enclave,” a film about the ethnic divide in Kosovo and the atrocities that perpetuates. This is definitely not the film with the most international exposure, but the story might be enough to warrant its submission. Films that deal with similar issues like, “Circles,” have been previous selected. But the Serbian committee wants to stay away from both war and sports dramas, they might go with Vuk Rsumovic “No One’s Child” which did very well at a few festivals including Venice and Palm Springs. It could either way. Original comedy "Monument to Michael Jackson" could also be a more lighthearted choice. The shortlist is completed by "We Will Be the World Champions"," The Man Who Defended Gavrilo Princip," and "The Disobedient" (Sundance 2014).

Spain

"Ma Ma"

Dir. Julio Medem

Isa: Seville International

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Spanish Release Date: September 11, 2015

For a long time I had hope that Spain would find a loophole and submit their most honored film at this year’s Goya Awards, “Marshland” (La Isla Minima), but that seems like a farfetched hope now. Luckily, another film that looks like a winner will be released just in time. “Ma Ma” directed by Julio Medem and starring Academy Award-winner Penelope Cruz has Oscar written all over it. Cruz plays a mother diagnosed with cancer and whose ferocious battle with the disease will reinvigorate her love for life. The actress also served as a producer in what has become one of the most anticipated films of the year. The only films that could challenge are coming-of-ager “A Cambio de Nada” and Basque-language drama “Loreak.” The former appears to be feel-good story that might seem slight in comparison to both “Ma Ma” and “Loreak,” which deals with a woman who starts receiving flowers from a mysterious sender. “Magical Girl” is a brilliantly twisty film, but being so edgy it will probably be considered to risky for the Oscar race. Penelope Cruz’ star power will decide this race.

Sweden

"A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence" (En duva satt på en gren och funderade på tillvaron)

Dir. Roy Andersson

Isa: Coproduction Office (Paris)

U.S. Distribution: Magnolia Pictures

Swedish Release Date: November 14th, 2014

The two previous chapters sin Andersson’s trilogy about being human were submitted to AMPAS, and even if they didn’t get a nomination, it’s hard to imagine them not submitting “A Pigeon.” The film has been critically acclaimed and it won the Golden Lion at last year’s Venice Film festival. Furthermore, it has already been released in the U.S. by Magnolia, the company that handled last year’s Swedish submission, “Force Majeure.” While I’d love to see Andersson be selected, there are several other films that could prevent that from happening. Kay Pollack, who earned Sweden’s most recent nomination for “As It Is in Heaven,” has a new film opening in early September titled “Heaven on Earth.” Depending on how that film is received the tables may or may not turn. The third strongest option is the romantic costume drama “Gentlemen,” which won several awards from the Swedish Academy and has already been picked up for U.S. distribution by, of course, Magnolia. Smaller, yet worthy candidates, include “My Skinny Sister” and “Flocking,” both of which premiered in Berlin.

Switzerland

"Vanity" (La Vanité)

Dir. Lionel Baier

Isa: Wide

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Swiss Release Date: September 2, 2015

Out of the 7 films shortlisted by the Swiss, the one that immediately stands out is dark comedy “Vanity.” The film just premiered at Locarno and it stars Spanish actress, and one of Almodovar’s favorites, Carmen Maura, as well as Patrick Lapp. Although the film deals with suicide, the approach seems to be very comedic. In a list of several obscure titles, “Vanity” should come out on top. A second option could be Stina Werenfels' “Dora or the Sexual Neuroses of Our Parents,” which screened in Berlin’s Panorama section and tells the story of a mentally disabled woman discovering her sexuality. “War” by Simon Jaquemet, about a rebellious teenager, had some festival play as well but is less likely to be chosen. The other four titles in the shortlist are: “Pause,” doc “Iraqi Odyssey,” “Chubby,” and “L’oasis des mendiants.”

Taiwan

"The Assassin" (聶隱娘)

Dir. Hsiao-hsien Hou

Isa: Wild Bunch

U.S. Distribution: Well Go USA Entertainment

Taiwanese Release Date: August 28th, 2015

There is really no race here. “The Assassin” will be Taiwan’s entry almost certainly. Winner of the Best Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival and clearly one of the best reviewed films of the year, this martial arts epic, which is said to showcase marvelous imagery, should be consider a strong contender. I can’t see Taiwan not choosing the film, but there are still other films that could be considered. Of those the most viable, but very distant, second choice could be Tso-chi Chang's “Thanatos, Drunk,” which was awarded in Berlin and received six prizes at the Taipei Film Festival. The film revolves around to brothers in Taipei trying to find jobs.

Thailand

"Cemetery of Splendor" (รักที่ขอนแก่น)

Dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul

Isa: The Match Factory

U.S. Distribution: Strand Releasing

Thai Release Date: Unknown

It was a great year for Thai art house cinema, which means the country has several prominent titles to choose from. Strangely enough, even when there are films with international recognition, Thailand often decides to submit a quirky romantic comedy or a random horror film. The reasons behind their selections are unknown. Still, assuming that they will pay attention to their most respected filmmakers, the number one choice should be "Cemetery of Splendor." However, Apichatpong Weerasethakul's films are not as well liked in his homeland are they are abroad, but it seems irrational for them not consider the film. It might be too abstract for AMPAS’ taste, but it’s still the most prestigious work. Other possibilities include “How to Win at Checkers (Every Time)," which is partially in English, “The Blue Hours” (Berlin’s Panorama), and Rotterdam’s “Vanishing Point.” Of course, there are scores of more commercial titles from which the committee might pick.

Turkey

"Mustang"

Dir. Deniz Gamze Ergüven

Isa: Kinology

U.S. Distribution: Cohen Media Group

Turkish Release Date: Unknown

Last year Nuri Bilge Ceylan’s Palme d’Or-winning film “Winter Sleep” failed to receive a nomination, perhaps due to it’s length and cerebral screenplay. This year another title out of Cannes shows more promise. “Mustang” tells the story of five sisters living in a small village and subjected to the sexist prejudices of the townspeople. With extensive festival play and in the hands of Cohen Media Group - the company behind this year’s nominee “Timbuktu" - Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s film is the ideal pick. Sundance’s “Ivy” by Tolga Karaçelik, about a group of men trapped aboard a ship could definitely be a top contender. Kutlug Ataman's “Kuzu,” winner of the C.I.C.A.E. Award in Berlin’s Panorama section would be the third most likely film to represent Turkey at the Oscars. Lastly, “The Miracle,” a romantic period piece, is a large local production that could be considered, but lacks the festival exposure of the other three.

Venezuela

"Gone With the River" (Dauna, Lo que lleva el río)

Dir. Mario Crespo

Isa: Centro Nacional Autonomo de Cinematografía

U.S. Distribution: None Yet

Venezuelan Release Date: March 20, 2015

With Alberto Arvelo’s “The Liberator,” the South American nation got as close as it’s ever been to Oscar glory this year. The biopic about Simón Bolívar starring Edgar Ramírez managed to become one of the 9 shortlisted finalists out of 83 submissions. Venezuela has several options to submit for the 88th Academy Awards, but they are much smaller in magnitude on this occasion. Appearing at the NATIVe sidebar of the Berlinale, “Dauna, lo que lleva el río” or “ Gone with the River” is the most important Venezuelan film of the year and gives voice to the country’s indigenous people by telling story that rarely gets seen on screen. On the other hand, the film “3 Beauties,” about another of Venezuelan’s most well-known obsessions, beauty pageants, has received critical praise at home but it seems to be a lighter satirical comedy. Their Oscar entry could be either one of the two, but I think they will go with the more socially relevant story. A smaller film, “Espejos,” could be part of the conversation but is possibilities are very limited.

Chilean authorities and representatives participate once more in one of the most important film festivals in the world and CinemaChile’s Executive Director, Constanza Arena, will again coordinate the mission. Among the authorities traveling with the delegation are:ProChile’s Roberto Paiva, the Europe Department coordinator,Patricia Matta, ProChile’s representatives in France,Pedro Durán andCamille Perón, representing the Cnca the Arts and Audiovisual Industry Council’s Executive Secretary,Martin Rodríguez, and the Strategic Programs and International Affairs Director, Tatiana Emden, also present, Joyce Zylberberg, Film Commission Chile general Coordinator.

CinemaChile’s Executive Director, Constanza Arena, noted the ongoing presence of the Chilean delegation abroad, which accounts for the powerful Chilean audiovisual industry development and stated regarding the Cannes Film Festival, “This is simply the most important yearly mission for our country and we are fully prepared”.

Culture Minister till last week, Claudia Barattini, claims that Chilean cinematography has obtained incredible international acknowledgments in recent years, this being the result of several factors: A state that invested in audiovisual production and filmmakers that have created quality works. Films are the most potent instruments for the country’s image today, as others were in other times. At some point, Chile was known for the dictatorship, sadly, Chile was known by its political aspects, but today people talk about Chilean films around the world and they know about Chile via its cinematography”, states Barattini.

Chilean Films at Marche du Film

This year Chile participates with a 45-person delegation integrated by filmmakers, producers, directors and authorities that attend the festival’s industry market with 40 projects in different stages of production, including several titles that have already been awarded in other film festivals.

According to ProChile’s Director, Roberto Paiva, who reassures the support of the agency to the national audiovisual industry: “Creative industries in its cultural and economic dimension, contribute to the establishment a powerful country image abroad. That is why we support the audiovisual sector in a joint effort with the private sector, with CinemaChile’s sector trademark and our Creative Industries sector plan. Both projects’ objectives are to diversify the sectors and markets that national artists and entrepreneurs aim for."

ProChile France- Commercial Director, Pedro Durán, “Our presence at the Cannes Film Festival with the highest quality films and production abilities, convey the culture and creativity that are the essential basis for our country’s development. It also fosters Chile’s image placing it at the highest level in France, where education and culture are the building blocks that portray our new generation’s projections for the Xxi century”.

The task will be completed with the help of the Arts and Audiovisual Industry Council (Caia) of the Cnca. Martín Rodríguez, Caia’s Executive Secretary states, “It has been 45 years since the last screening of a Chilean film at the Director’s Fortnight and powerful political and social content is the common denominator of the films that reach Cannes. 45 years ago the new Chilean Cinema showed a strong connection with the political-social accounts of what happened in our country. This year the Chile Factory film, as well as, 'Allende, mi Abuelo Allende,' are marked by the 70’s heritage, which was branded in our souls and memory”.

Precisely due to the support and funding from the Arts and Audiovisual Industry Council of the Cnca, via its program to support International Market and Festival attendance, 8 production houses, their delegates and their projects will be in attendance.

The official delegation includes Errante Productions, represented by the producer Paola Castillo, who takes the projects: "El último lugar," "Cielo," "La Frontera," "La directiva" and "Allende, mi abuelo Allende;" ChileDoc, represented by Flor Rubina and the documentaries: "Escapes de Gas," "Habeas Corpus," "Surire," "Chicago Boys," "Sin Alma," "Al final del día," "Aquí nos quedamos," "Estadio en el Desierto" and "Temporeras."

Fábula, represented by Juan de Dios Larraín, with: "La Princesita," "Neruda" and "Una mujer fantástica;" Invercine, represented by Esteban Larraín, with the films: "Mary & Mike" and "El fotógrafo de Dios." Also part of the delegation, Josephine Schroeder of Cinestación, with "1976," "Tarde para morir joven," "Mar," "San Cristóbal," "Lo que queda," "La última Tierra;" Producer Karina Yuri –representing Miguel Littin and his production house, Miguel Littin Eirl, who will attend with "Allende en su laberinto;" StoryBoard, represented by Gabriela Sandoval, with "La mujer de Barro," "El Paraíso" and "Forastero," represented by Gregorio González with: "No soy Lorena," "Aurora," "Tierra Yerma," "Mucha ex poco Sex" and "Invumche."

The rest of the delegation is comprised by 21 directors and producers, among these, Marcia Tambutti, director of "Allende, mi abuelo Allende," the only national feature in the official selection of the Director’s Fortnight; Mariana Tejos (producer) and Ignacio Juricic (director), with the short film, "Locas perdidas," competing in Cinéfondation along with school films from all over the world. Also attending, Manuela Martelli, Ignacio Rodríguez, Matías Rojas Valencia and Teresita Ugarte, selected directors of the Chile Factory program, produced in alliance with the Cannes Director’s Fortnight, CinemaChile, The Culture and Arts National Council and Quijote Films.

In regards to new talents, Rodrigo Espinosa, director of Dirac (Cultural Affairs Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), confirms their support, “Chilean filmmaking has shown undeniable growth, which translates into ongoing presence on International festivals, receiving awards and extending widely within distribution circuits. For Dirac, it’s fundamental to contribute to the visibility of a new generation of creators, who reflect in their works the different realities and problems of our current Chilean society. We proudly present, via these new talents, our sponsorship to national cinema."

Chile Factory

Within the Chile Factory project, The four Chilean filmmakers were selected: Manuela Martelli, Ignacio Rodríguez, Matías Rojas Valencia and Teresita Ugarte, they each co-directed a short film with a foreign director. Their premieres will take place at the Cannes Director’s Fortnight. The Taipei Factory and the Nordic Factory preceded this initiative unheard of in Chile; these are milestones that highlight the trajectory of these four productions that will represent our country. The Factory aims to reveal new talents through a selective workshop that concludes with a feature film made collectively by all four national directors and four international directors. Each pair creates a 15-minute short film that gives way to the Chile Factory feature, which will have its international premiere at the Directors’ Fortnight opening.

“The Cannes Film Festival is the most important showcase and gathering point for the international audiovisual industry in the world. The Chile Film Commission is part of these efforts to foster the promotion done by the national audiovisual industry, reinforcing Chile’s positive image, which is not only seen as privileged with spectacular filming locations, but also relying on a powerful and united filming community that meets international standards, ready to take on the most demanding international productions on Chilean soil," said Joyce Zylberberg, Chilean Film Commission General Manager.

I arrived at the new Cuban airport where deep dark eyes of the customs officer looked into my soul and asked me on what I was bringing in, what I planned to do while in Cuba, had I ever been in Cuba before, what electronic equipment I was bringing in. I answered all and mentioned the computer, the iPad, the iPod, the cel phone and the camera. He asked what I would take pictures of – a puzzling question asked with no trace of friendly teasing and I was puzzled and answered (all in Spanish) whatever took my fancy, places, people…”Aves?”, he asked (“Birds?”) which really confused me, but I answered sure, birds, flowers, “las cosas bonitas” and he let me go. Maybe he considered Aves code language for Satellites. Anyway, I was relieved as I took a cab into Vedado, the “Forbidden” neighborhood just outside of Central Havana where my apartment is just across the street from the Hotel Nacional, the Havana Film Festival headquarters.

Cuba Journal: Nuevo? Cine? Latinoamericano?

The 35th Festival Internacional del Nuevo Cine Latinoamericano (aka Havana Film Festival), December 5 - 15th held its Opening Night at The Karl Marx Theater. Opening night film, Gloria, was preceded by an impressive performance of Cuba’s Contemporary Dance Company which was followed by a tribute to the animator Juan Padron whose cartoons are so loved that as film clips were played, the audience would finish lines in unison and would yell the well known punchlines to jokes with great joy. They displayed great cultural cohesion derived from the days of limited television stations when everyone watched the same shows.

Cuba had the third largest number of theaters in Latin America. Three theaters were devoted to 3D.

At the opening night, Ivan Giroud, the festival's new director memorialized the passing of the Festival's founding father, Alfredo Guevera, The National Cuban Film Institute, Icaic, also lost its head of production, Camilo Vives. And then, the death of Nelson Mandela, a very good friend of Cuba was announced. The audience stood and observed two minutes of silence. The next day they announced that all screenings would be canceled on day 3 as would all entertainment (music, dancing) throughout Cuba in a national day of mourning on the day of Mandela's funeral. After the funeral, everyone was talking of President Obama's handshake and conversation with Raul Castro who was quoted as saying Cuba would do all it could to have a rapprochment with the U.S. as long as they were treated with respect. As Cuba does not tell U.S. how to run its country, so they did not expect U.S. to tell them how to make its policy or run its country. But short of that Raul said Cuba was open to any and all discussion.

In an interview on the second da with Gloria’s male lead, Sergio Hernández, in Cuba for the first time, he was so moved by Cuba that the experience made him recall his Chilean identity before the regime of Augusto Pinochet drove him into exile. “The Cubans have a very strong spirit, a very affective manner of communicating. And they have lucid, clear-minded temperament. They constantly seem to be moving as well,” he said.

He was sad at the realization of how much the Pinochet era had changed the character of the Chileans The movies which came after Pinochet’s ouster were “repetitive, recurrently telling of our sadness but very poorly told.” Forty years later, Chile is not the same. “Actually there is now a richer literature, more metaphorical. Currently in artistic and creative terms, cinema is more attractive. New developments in diverse currents are taking place.” Gloria shows this diversity. “Gloria also plays political themes. His own character is what Chileans call a pastel, someone who does not know how to compromise. He is a man who cannot free himself from his history to begin a life. He is weighed down by his established family and cannot transform himself from within.”

The actor who has worked in cinema, theater and television with such great directors as Costa-Gavras, Miguel Littin, Raul Ruiz, Ricardo Larrain, Gustavo Graef-Marino and Pablo Larraín says that the success of Gloria in festivals worldwide is a result of the type of cinema created by the director Sebastián Lelio. “He is very young, but he is a master of his craft. He has revolutionized cinematic language. His features have enormous credibility and the contexts of his stories are real spaces; there is nothing false, no lies and no pretense.”

To learn more about the Havana Film Festival visit Here. And stay tuned for more notes from Havana. It was a great experience!

Early Entry Deadline: September 13, 2013

Entry Fees: Short Film ($15), Feature Film ($25)

Normal Entry Deadline: October 11, 2013

Entry Fees: Short Film ($25), Feature Film ($35)

Late Entry Deadline: November 8, 2013

Entry Fees: Short Film ($40), Feature Film ($60)

For entry form, click here.

or

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Media Arts Center San Diego is now seeking films and videos for 20th Annual San Diego Latino Film Festival (March 13-23, 2014)! Come celebrate our landmark 20th year with an even broader program of exhilarating new activities, special events, and initiatives.

The 21st Annual San Diego Latino Film Festival (Sdlff) is now accepting entries for the 2014 festival. Sdlff will take place March 13-23, 2014 at the Ultrastar Cinemas Mission Valley at Hazard Center located in beautiful San Diego, California.Submit early for discounted entry fees!

Last year's festival was attended by an audience of 20,500 actively-engaged film lovers, filmmakers, actors, programmers, distributors, industry representatives and journalists from around the world. The San Diego Latino Film Festival has used the unique geographical and cultural position of the San Diego Border Region to make the festival a premiere venue for the exhibition of international and U.S. Latino features, shorts and documentaries.

Never participated in Sdlff before? Become apart of San Diego's proud celebration of the best in Latino film.

The 2014 San Diego Latino Film Festival will include expanded opportunities for participating filmmakers and their films/videos to take the spotlight. The following is just a taste of what filmmakers and attendees can experience by participating at the upcoming San Diego Latino Film Festival:

* 155 feature and short films to be screened

* over 100 guest filmmakers and actors

* Sdlff Awards Competition

* "Country of Focus" showcase

* Workshops/Seminars with industry representatives and filmmakers (i.e. "Financing", "Distribution")

* Special 20th Anniversary Spotlight

* Celebrity Guest Curator

* "Tributes" to acclaimed filmmakers/actors

* Concerts @ the Fest

* Pre-Fest Launch Parties

* Opening, Centerpiece, and Closing Night Gala Celebrations

* Sdlff Awards Ceremony

* Free Student Outreach Screenings

* "Meet the Filmmaker" Dialogues

* Sdlff's Annual "Border Visions" Sidebar

For entry form, click here.

Stars!

Twenty-one years ago, the San Diego Latino Film Festival was originally established as a student film festival focusing on works by Latinos and/or about the Latino Experience. Since that time, the San Diego Latino Film Festival has developed into one of the biggest and most well respected Latino film festivals in the country.

Over 240,000 people have attended during the past seventeen years, and2,100 films/videos from across Latin America and the United States have been screened. Past festival guests have included such renowned individuals asLou Diamond Phillips, Gina Rodriguez, Jorge Salinas, Dulce Maria, Rafael Amaya, Ana Serradilla, Eduardo Verastegui, Barbara Mori, Alfonso Arau, Robert Young, Miguel Littin,Angelica Maria, Dayanara Torres, Demian Bichir, Kate del Castillo, America Ferrera, John Leguizamo, Bruno Baretto, Barbara Mori, Roselyn Sanchez, Alfonso Cuaron, Diego Luna, Gael Garcia Bernal, Carlos Carrera, Rodrigo Prieto, Alex Lora, Lupe Ontiveros, Bruno Bichir, Carmen Salinas, Luis Mandoki, Danny Trejo, Adal Ramones, Tony Plana, Elpidia Carrillo, Humberto Solas, Dennis Leoni, Arturo Ripstein, Paul Rodriguez, Patssi Valdez, Luis Valdez, Gregory Nava, Edward James Olmos, Lourdes Portillo, Moctesuma Esparza, Ray Bradbury, Jacob Vargas, Patricia Velasquez, Fernando Sarinana, Lucia Murat, Nancy de los Santos, Vanessa Bauche, and hundreds of other emerging and established Latino filmmakers.

Selection Process (Important Information)

Sdlff 2014 is seeking innovative works that are 'by', 'about' or 'for' the Latino community, that have been completed between 2013-2014. Work previously exhibited in the San Diego / Tijuana Border Region - whether theatrically at another local festival or broadcast on television, - is not eligible to apply. A panel of distinguished curators from the San Diego and Tijuana community will select the films and videos to be screened during the "Official Selection" of the festival. All entries will be pre-screened for eligibility by curators, however, not all entries will be programmed.

Films must be submitted with English subtitles if the dialogue is in a language other than English. Films must have been completed after January 2013. Because we use entry fees to make grants to filmmakers, fee waivers will not be granted. Exceptions will only be made for non-profit organizations and international governmental organizations.

*DVD screeners and press kits will not be returned.

Upon acceptance to the festival, a press kit is required, to include the following:

Features: 100 word synopsis in English, 2 hi-res film stills (300dpi, Cmyk color), digital trailer

Shorts: 50 word synopsis in English, 1 hi-res film still (300dpi, Cmyk color)

Optional: digital trailer

For exhibition the following formats will be accepted:

Features: 35mm, HDCam, Blu-ray, Dcp. Features must be received by March 1, 2014

Shorts: must be received by February 1, 2014 in Digital format via Usb or email using a file sharing service like DropBox or HighTail (Previously YouSendIt). USBs will not be returned.

*Submitters will be notified by January 4, 2014. Judges’ decisions are final. Due to the large number of films we receive, feedback on individual films will not be provided. Films entered after the November 8 deadline will not be reviewed or returned.

An additional panel of distinguished filmmakers, film critics, and actors will sit on this year's Awards Jury. Awards are given for excellence in form and content. Films to be considered for competition will be determined by the Festival Curator.

For entry form, click here.

Entry Categories:

Narrative Feature (40 or more minutes)

Documentary Feature (40 or more minutes)

Short (under 40 mins)

Local Film

Youth Short (no entry fee)

Awards Categories:

Best Narrative Feature

Best Documentary Feature

Audience Award Narrative Feature

Audience Award Documentary Feature

Best Short Film

Best Local Film

Best Youth Film...

It’s Cuba! Where else would The Havana International Film Festival’s Opening and Closing Night take place except in The Karl Marx Theater? Opening with music by Cuba’s greatest salsa group, Los Van Van, the 34th edition is still headed by its founder and Fidel Castro’s teacher in Communism, Alfredo Guevara, who dedicated this edition to the new generation of filmmakers which represents the future of cinema. The 10 day festival showcased a broad range of new and not-so-new films from Cuba, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Peru and fellow Caribbean nations, Trinidad & Tobago, Jamaica, Curacao and others whose cinema is being aided by their governments and whose youth is creating a new international cinema with the support of Europe and even, sometimes, Asia.

While this edition paid homage to the youth, also present and recalled were the members of the generations from the ‘60s like Aldo Francia, Chileans Miguel Littin, Patricio Guzman, Jorge Sanjines, Fernado Birri, Fernando Solano, Cacho Pallero, Santiago Alvarez, Glauber Roch, Carlos Diegues, Leon Hizsman, Juaquim Pedro, Tomas Guierrez Alea, Mario Handler, Walter Achugar and many others who in the years ‘67 and ‘68 were themselves inspired by such luminaries as Joris Ivens. Together they were the originators of the phenomenon El Cine de America Latina or New Latin American Cinema influenced mainly by Italian neorealism and other movements of social cinema. Its function was to go against U.S. models and to illuminate the troubled realities of Latin America in the hope of restoring cinema of the continent. Its key moment was the meeting of Latin American Cinema 1967 , which had its impetus in the Chilean Aldo Francia , the Cinema Club of Viña del Mar , the Cuban Alfredo Guevara, the Instituto Cubano de Arte e Industria Film (Icaic) and the Argentine Edgardo Pallero.

Illuminaries such as Annette Benning whose film The Kids are All Right was screening there and Hawk Koch, president of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, wrote fan letters to Fidel and Raoul and then mixed and caught up with the top critics and journalists of Latin America and festival participants in the gardens of the Hotel Nacional. Miguel Litten and spouse, the parents of Chile’s Christina Littin, one of Chile’s current top producer/ distributors, were often seen there. Their presence reminded me of Gabriel Garcia Marquez’s book Clandestine in Chile about the time when Miguel disguised himself to reenter Pinochet’s Chile from whence he had been exiled. So many stories of exile and return mark the modern history of Latin America.

The first day of the Havana festival was devoted to Eictv, the international film school that Gabriel Garcia Marquez founded in 1986 with his Nobel Prize money on land donated by Cuba. Today it is headed by Rafael Rosal who in his own country, Guatemala, set up the first infrastructure for a film industry – a film school, a film festival and production facilities.

Eictv has a student body from everywhere in Latin America, Europe and even from North America. Last year as the emissary for Woodbury University in Burbank CA, I brought them their first agreement with a U.S. institution and exchanges between students and staff have already begun, bringing TV documentary filmmaker Rolando Almirante for a second time to teach documentaries.

Eictv’s event at the Festival de Cine Nuevo en Habana is Nuevas Miradas, 12 chosen projects whose producers and directors present themselves to the industry and compete for three awards.

Coincidently with the lateness of this blog which I wrote from the Palm Springs International Film Festival -- some of Eictv’s staff’s and students’ films were among Psff’s 22 Latino projects vying for the Cine Latino Prize being offered by Festival Internacional de Cine en Guadalajara. This fact along shows a new unity of purpose among the Latino countries and their festivals (Cuba, Guadalajara and Palm Springs, which as part of the Coachella Valley, has the largest Latino population in the United States.) Among the 22 candidates for Psff’s Best Iberoamerican film were Clandestine Childhood (Argentina/ Brazil/Spain) by Benjamín Ávila, who was the coordinator of Fiction at Eictv and screenwriter Marcelo Muller also participated in Eictv; La Voz Dormida (España) of the emerging filmmaker Benito Zambrano, and 7 Boxes (Paraguay) co-directed by Juan Carlos Maneglia, a student in many of the workshops of Eictv. Eictv considers this exchange of ideas and talents as globally important.

The winners of Nuevas Miradas should be watched as one or several reach fruition. Last year The Visitor (Chile) won and has since raised the budget for a feature length film debut.

The projects, Un Viejo Traje, Moora Moora directed by Australian Rhiannon Stevens and produced by Chilean Esme Joffre, Tus padres volverán directed by Uruguayan Pablo Martínez and produced by Virginia Hinze, Cocodrilos tomando el sol, Cuerpos Celestes by Mexican director Lorena Padilla and producer Liliana Bravo, Revolución de las polleras by Bolivian director Sergio Estrada and producer Valeria Ponce received recognition and free software from Assimilate.

The documentary, Un Viejo Traje (aka The Old Suit), by Cuban director Damián Saínz (a student of Eictv) and producer Viana González received a $2,000 prize.

Fiction project, Cocodrilos tomando el sol, directed by Colombian Carlos Rojas and the Venezuelan producer Carolina Graterol, received a $1,000 prize and a course in directing at Eictv.

A film package for those interested in Cuban film programming

Ann Cross, a Scottish woman married to a Trinidadian is always in Havana. She programs the best selection of current Cuban features for U.K. distribution. This year she gave me this list of her favorites and many people concurred with her.

Y sin embargo (aka Nevertheless) by Rudy Mora also won the Beijing Film Festival prize which is surprising in that it is about school children challenging the school system, and challenging any systems in China (and perhaps in Cuba as well) is highly problematic. The child actors are exceptional. The type of burlesque comedy is typical of Cuba. Produced and Isa (international sales agent) is the Cuban government film group Icaic.

Irredemediablemente Juntos (aka Irredeemably Together) by Jorge Luis Sanchez Gonzalez is brave and challenging. Purportedly about classical music and Cuban music and the conflict between the two, it is really about race and the synthesis between black and white, Cuban and European Classical is reached in the story.

Cresciendo en la musica is about teaching music to children.

El sangre en la casa, en la escuela y en la calle (aka Blood in the House, in the School and in the Street) is a British-Cuban coproduction about Matanza, a town just outside of Havana where Cuban music roots are.

La piscine (aka The Swimming Pool) by Calvo Machado might not stand alone in the U.S. but would be good in a package.

Binchi by Eduardo Galano is about the 2 classes clashing in prison.

At the top of Ann’s list and on top of many others’ lists is Melaza.

What I saw and liked

It was also a time for me to catch up of Latin American cinema I have missed. My favorite was Chilean film Jueves a Domingo (aka from Thursday to Sunday) by Dominga Sotomayer. This road trip by a young couple and their 7 year old son and 11 year old daughter tells a story through the daughter’s eye of a loving family’s vacation and their father’s decision to move from Santiago to the countryside. We never know what he is getting away from (Pinochet?) but we see what is supposed to be a vacation transforms the family’s wholeness. The loving light touch of Sotomayer reminds me of Eric Rohmer’s four films of the seasons.

Lucie Malloy’s Una Noche was mobbed by the Cuban public wanting to see this film about two young defectors from Cuba; the police were called to break up the crowd and the overflow had a special screening set up. We hear that the young woman star who defected with her costar on the way to the Tribeca Film Festival and who landed up in Las Vegas is now in “exile mode” bewailing how she misses her family. La probrecita!! Yet another exile story. Had she waited a month, travel from Cuba would be legal. Una Noche is now here in Palm Springs as well, competitng for the Cine Latino Prize.

Other films I saw and liked

El Limpiador and Ombras were both without subtitles (as was Pablo Lorrain’s closing night film No) and so I could only watch a part of them. However I did see El Limpiador here in Palm Springs and was impressed with its simplicity and its authenticity and loving heart. A low tech take on a mysterious illness killing people in the Peruvian city of Lima, the film was simple, sometimes funny and in the end very satisfying.

A film which divided the audience neatly between men and women was the Brazilian feature Brecha Silencia (aka Breaching the Silence) about domestic violence from which 3 siblings barely escape. The subject of violence toward women was also the subject of a short which showed in every public screening. Called Ya No, this short Latin American backed PSA brings public awareness to the unacceptable violent behavior of men toward women often found in schools, in dating, and in homes.

Desde de Lucia playing in Palm Springs also takes on the subject of bullying, this time in a bourgeois Mexican school and centering on a teenage girl who has recently lost her mother.

Taken by Storm

The next segment of the festival was taken up with Trinidad + Tobago Film Festival (t+tff). Emilie Upszak, Artistic Director of t+tff, whom I had met in Havana last year through Icaic’s Luis Notario, and Bruce Paddington the founder and exec director of t+tff were in Havana with a delegation of filmmakers and their films. Since I had missed them all during the extraordinary experience I had at t+tff, I got to see Storm Saulter’s Better Mus Come which has been picked up by the new African Diaspora film distributor for U.S. Affrm (African-American Film Festival Releasing Movement).

Storm is Jamaican and took film courses at L.A. Film School, that large private film school on Sunset near Vine, across from the Arclight Theater, where many foreign students go and where many vets go seeking to learn filmmaking. Storm, however, had been making films since he was a kid using super 8mm and at the ripe old age of 27, he has since formed a collective in Jamaica called, the New Caribbean Cinema. His new fiction feature Better Mus Come screened at Trinidad + Tobago film festival and showed here in Havana as well. He will be announcing an international sales agent and a U.S. distributor very soon.

What fun and interesting days and evenings and nights I had with the t+tff folks.

We heard live music, I danced salsa with a Puerto Rican Actor/ Director who dances salsa and has a short in the festival.

Salsa in Havana seems to be losing steam. Reggaeton closes every dance event as the drunken, monotonous final act before going home. However in Jamaica it is transforming itself into Dancehall (what could be more sexual than that except for sex itself?). There is also Rumba, the traditional dance of Afro-Cubans. It is now taking new forms as the newest generation of Cuba takes the stage. Woodbury faculty, in Havana on a hosted tour with the Jose Marti Cultural Institute, led by my friend Cookie Fischer were invited to the top of the Lincoln Hotel on the night the world was to end (remember the Mayan calendar prediction?) and we danced the night away to the live music of Septeto Nacional a 70 year old group. Son was my dance of choice there. For those of you who want to see Cuba before the transition is over, now is the time. You can travel legally from L.A. and Miami, Mexico or anywhere else in the world with a general license. Take advantage of it Now as it is going to get more crowded with tourists. For us film folk, we get a privileged perch, so plan on next December taking in a week of films plus another week or two to see a country whose land and people are unique in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Indian actor Shabana Azmi will head the main competition jury of 6th Abu Dhabi International Film Festival. She will be the first woman to chair the jury of the festival in its five year history.

Shabana will be accompanied by Iranian actress-director-screenwriter Niki Karimi, French filmmaker of Moroccan origin Ismael Ferroukhi, Czech producer Cedomir Kolar and Chilean director-producer-screenwriter-novelist Miguel Littin.

Shabana has earlier served on the jury of Montreal World Film Festival, Cairo Film Festival, Apsa Asia Pacific Screen Academy and Mannheim Film Festival.

Mumbai Cha Raja by Manjeet Singh and I.D by Kamal K.M are screening in the New Horizon section of the festival. (Read: Interview with Manjeet Singh)

Indo-Canadian Documentary “The World Before Her” by Nisha Pahuja has been selected in the documentary competition. (Interview: Nisha Pahuja)

Shlok Sharma’s short film “Sujata” will compete in the short film competition, while Gauri Shinde’s “English-Vinglish” will have a special screening.

Chilean-born film-maker who became the darling of the French avant garde

Raúl Ruiz, the Chilean-born film director who has died aged 70 after suffering a lung infection, held audiences with his glittering eye for more than 40 years. Baroque imagery, bizarre humour and labyrinthine plots made his elusive and allusive oeuvre unlike anything else in contemporary cinema.

Although most of his films were made while he was an exile in France, his work was part of the fabulist tradition that runs through much Latin American literature, such as the writings of Gabriel García Márquez, Jorge Luis Borges and Alfonso Reyes. Ruiz liked to quote the Cuban surrealist writer José Lezama Lima, who stated that the task of the poet is "to go into a dark room and build a waterfall there".

Born in Puerto Montt, in southern Chile, Ruiz studied law, theology and theatre before becoming a prolific avant-garde playwright. His first feature,...

Patricio Guzmán was born in 1941 in Santiago de Chile. He studied at the Official Film School in Madrid where he specialized in documentary cinema. His work is regularly selected for and awarded prizes by international festivals. In 1973 he filmed The Battle Of Chile, a five-hour documentary about Salvador Allende's period of government and its fall. Cineaste described it as "one of the 10 best political films in the world." After the coup d'état, Guzmán was arrested and spent two weeks in the Santiago National Stadium where he was threatened with simulated executions on several occasions. He left Chile in 1973 and moved to Cuba, then Spain and France, where he made other films: In the Name of God (on liberation theology during the Chilean dictatorship), The Southern Cross (about popular religion in Latin America), Barriers of Solitude (about the historical memory of a small Mexican village), Obstinate Memory (about political amnesia...

In terms of Chilean filmmaking, this has been a great year for me as an interviewing journalist. First, I had the opportune pleasure of conversing with Miguel Littin (Dawson Island, 10, 2009) earlier this year at the Palm Springs International Film Festival and then had that welcome opportunity bookended at this year's Tiff when I was given time to converse with Patricio Guzmán (Nostalgia For the Light, 2010). Two Chilean masters in one year!! My thanks to Sylvia Savadjian of Icarus Films for facilitating a time and place in Toronto to sit down to talk with Patricio Guzmán, to Patricia Beiger for her attentive translations, and to Danny Kasman and Mubi for optioning the transcript.

Cross-published on The Evening Class.

I was frustrated when I arrived for my scheduled interview with Miguel Littin only to be advised that the interview had to be postponed due to a family emergency in Chile requiring Littin to leave for Palm Springs a day later. So with a two-hour time block at my disposal, I decided to take advantage of the press lounge. Chance morphed into opportunity when Liberation Entertainment's Director of Operations Zach Hunchar and filmmaker Caroline Bottaro sat down next to me. Eavesdropping (behind the ruse of reading Variety), I gathered that Bottaro's film Joueuse (Queen to Play, 2009) would be screening that evening and so I introduced myself and invited her--in effect--to convince me to change my schedule to catch her film instead.

 ...

"We wanted to change history, but destiny led us to this strange sensation of uncertainty and defeat. What did we do wrong? What mistakes did we make?"--Sergio Bitar, Dawson Island prisoner, and author of Isla 10.

"I felt like the protagonist of one of those World War II movies. When we arrived at the camp, some of us cried to see so many wire fences. There were 27. It was difficult to believe."--Baldovino Gomez, Dawson Island prisoner.

"A story starts when someone is born, someone dies, someone leaves, or someone arrives."--Director Miguel Littin, quoting Ernest Hemingway.

 ...

The nine semi-finalists in the Foreign Language Film category for the 2010 Academy Awards have been announced. They are: Argentina, El Secreto de Sus Ojos / The Secret of Her Eyes, Juan Jose Campanella, director; Australia, Samson & Delilah, Warwick Thornton, director; Bulgaria, The World Is Big and Salvation Lurks around the Corner, Stephan Komandarev, director; France, A Prophet, Jacques Audiard, director; Germany, The White Ribbon (above), Michael Haneke, director; Israel, Ajami, Scandar Copti and Yaron Shani, directors; Kazakhstan, Kelin, Ermek Tursunov, director; The Netherlands, Winter in Wartime, Martin Koolhoven, director; Peru, The Milk of Sorrow, Claudia Llosa, director. Sixty-five films had originally qualified in the category. Notably absent from the list are Xavier Dolan’s I Killed My Mother (Canada); Miguel Littin’s Dawson, [...]...

Veteran Chilean filmmaker Miguel Littin’s Dawson, Island 10, Chile’s submission for this year’s best foreign language film Academy Award, tells the story of several prisoners held at a military concentration camp on Dawson Island, Chile’s own Guantanamo back in the days of right-wing dictator Augusto Pinochet. Men who had sided with democratically elected left-wing president Salvador Allende — overthrown by Pinochet’s military (with the blessing of the Us government) in 1973 — were sent to desolate Dawson Island at the tip of South America, where they were stripped of both their identities and their civil rights. Based on Sergio Bitar’s 1987 autobiographical book Isla 10, Littin’s film chronicles the stories of various men held at Dawson Island, among them Bitar (Benjamín Vicuña), [...]...

Michael Hoffman's "The Last Station," a portrait of Leo Tolstoy and his wife, will kick off the 2010 Palm Springs International Film Festival, which runs Jan. 7-17.

Daniel Adams' "The Lightkeepers," starring Richard Dreyfuss, will serve as the closing-night film.

James McAvoy, who stars in "Station" with Christopher Plummer and Helen Mirren, will attend the opening night, and Dreyfuss and his co-star Blythe Danner will be on hand for the close.

The fest has lined up 189 films from 70 countries. "Our film lineup this year is a strong reflection of the current zeitgeist in world cinema," festival director Darryl Macdonald said. "Sixty-seven first-time feature film directors will screen this year, representing a surge of new filmmaking talent on the world stage."

The fest will present the world premieres of "Dark Resonance," "Dumbstruck," "Expecting Mary," "Is It Just Me?" "The Making of Plus One With Kate, Cate and George: The Story of a Hollywood Nobody,...

If you asked me what films I'd like to see in the final 5 tally, I would love to see the Academy embrace non-mainstream items such as the Romanian pic from Corneliu Porumboiu (Police, Adjective) and Bong Joon-ho's Mother (South Korea)... - Finally. With a disqualification here and there, the official list of countries competing for a nomination and then Oscar gold have been submitted and now its time to make some prognostications as to who among 65 will make the final five, or final three, since Sony Pictures Classics have a slam dunk in Palme d'or winner Haneke's The White Ribbon and Jacques Audiard's A Prophet - a "second place" winner at Cannes. If you asked me what films I'd like to see in the final 5 tally, I would love to see the Academy embrace non-mainstream items such as the Romanian pic from Corneliu Porumboiu (Police, Adjective) and...

From Albania to Vietnam, 65 countries are hoping that their film entries will get picked to fill one of the five slots for Best Foreign Language Film for the 82nd annual Academy Awards.

Five slots, 65 countries, the competition is fierce! Our friends from Variety gave us this list, is your country of choice one of the 65 hopefuls?

I'm happy that my home country, the Philippines, has a fighting chance with the dramedy "Ded na si Lolo" ("Grandpa is Dead"). Take a look at the complete list.

Albania

Alive!

(Artan Minarolli)

Synopsis: A carefree Albanian student gets drawn into an ancient blood feud when he returns home for a funeral, only to find himself a wanted man.

Awards: Belgrade Film Festival B2B development grant

Sales: Wildart Film

Argentina

El secreto de sus ojos

(Juan Jose Campanella)

Synopsis: An ambitious, complex work that combines two generation-spanning love stories, a noirish thriller, some...

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences unveiled the long list of 65 countries vying for a Best Foreign Language nomination Oscar.

Variety says that a shortlist of nine semi-finalists will be unveiled in January, with the complete nominees to be announced Feb. 2 along with the contenders in the other categories.

The Academy Awards will be presented March 7 at the Kodak Theater.

And now, from Albania to Vietnam, see the complete list right now (I.m proud that my home country of the Philippines has an entry!!!):

Albania, "Alive!," Artan Minarolli, director

Argentina, "El Secreto de Sus Ojos," Juan Jose Campanella, director

Armenia, "Autumn of the Magician," Rouben Kevorkov and Vaheh Kevorkov, directors

Australia, "Samson & Delilah," Warwick Thornton, director

Austria, "For a Moment Freedom," Arash T. Riahi, director

Bangladesh, "Beyond the Circle," Golam Rabbany Biplob, director

Belgium, "The Misfortunates," Felix van Groeningen, director

Bolivia, "Zona Sur," Juan Carlos Valdivia, director

Bosnia and Herzegovina,...

Jacques Audiard's French film "A Prophet," Michael Haneke's German film "The White Ribbon" and Korea's "Mother" -- three films that have figured prominently on this year's festival circuit -- are among the 65 films being considered for the foreign-language film Oscar.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences released its list Thursday of the 65 countries that have submitted films for the 82nd Annual Academy Awards.

Nominations will be announced on Feb. 2, and the awards ceremony will be held March 7.

The 2009 submissions follow (click the links on select countries for full stories):

Albania, "Alive!," Artan Minarolli, director;

Argentina, "El Secreto de Sus Ojos," Juan Jose Campanella

Armenia, "Autumn of the Magician," Rouben Kevorkov and Vaheh Kevorkov

Australia, "Samson & Delilah," Warwick Thornton

Austria, "For a Moment Freedom," Arash T. Riahi

Bangladesh, "Beyond the Circle," Golam Rabbany Biplob

Belgium, "The Misfortunates," Felix van Groeningen

Bolivia, "Zona Sur," Juan Carlos Valdivia

Bosnia and Herzegovina,...

• So, you've seen the list of the films shown at the Montreal World Film Festival this year and you weren't particularly impressed with them? It's true that most of the films, except a very few, were made by directors virtually unknown in Montreal cinephiles, but who knows, maybe we'll have some pleasant surprises! In this piece I'll go over some key attractions of the 2005 selection. First, despite what people will tell you, the line-up does include works by established directors, among them Marta Meszaros with The Unburied Man (Hungary), Roots by Pavel Lounguine (Russia), Harry's Daughters by Richard Hobert (Sweden), La última luna by Miguel Littin (Chile) and many more. Amongst those other films, I'll highlight a few here. Canadian writer/director Larry Kent will present his latest film at the festival. The Hamster Cage relates the story Lucy and Paul who return to their childhood home for a

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