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It’s been worth the wait. Mexican indigenous filmmaker Angeles Cruz and her producing team could have bowed her feature debut “Nudo Mixteco” at one of the many virtual film festivals last year, but they decided to wait for an in-person film festival to launch it to the world.

“Premiering ‘Nudo Mixteco’ during the maelstrom of last year did not feel appropriate,” said Cruz. “In my community, there has never been a movie theater so when I first saw a film projected in a cinema, it completely changed my outlook,” she asserted.

So more than a year after it participated in the 2019 San Sebastian Film Festival Films in Progress showcase, “Nudo Mixteco” world premieres at the 38th Miami Film Festival, which will run a hybrid virtual and in-person event over March 5 -14.

“Nudo Mixteco” is also one of only eight films vying for the big prize at Belgium’s Mooov Film Festival in April.

Among the many praiseworthy qualities of “My Tender Matador,” the most notable is its honesty. It would have been so easy for the film, about a transgender woman in Pinochet’s Chile and her relationship with a straight political activist, to have overplayed its hand with ill-judged sentiment or sensationalism, but instead director Rodrigo Sepúlveda Urzúa guides everything just right, from the refusal to treat anyone with less than full respect to the superb ensemble, and from Sergio Armstrong’s carefully calibrated camerawork to the thoughtful understanding of how daylight changes a person who’s lived fullest under the protection of the night. Based on the groundbreaking novel by queer icon Pedro Lemebel, the film deserves better treatment than most international gay-themed dramas get.

Alfredo Castro’s versatility shouldn’t be taken for granted, but how can we not when he keeps delivering one fully rounded performance after another? Here...

Chile’s Forastero has shared with Variety the first trailer for it is highly anticipated, pan-Latin American co-production “My Tender Matador,” staring the country’s most prolific lead actor Alfredo Castro “The Club”).

Co-produced by Forestero in Chile, Tornado in Argentina, Caponeto in Mexico and Zapik Films in Chile, the feature is directed by Rodrigo Sepúlveda Urzúa and based on the the novel by celebrated Chilean writer Pedro Lemebel, a figure decades ahead of his time is his advocacy of gender issues, in an archly conservative Chile under and after the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet.

Turning on an intimate friendship, the 1986-set feature tells the story of an impoverished, elderly, cross-dresser known as the Queen of the Corner (Castro). After falling in love with a charming guerrilla, the character gets swept up in a covert anti-Pinochet operation.

In the trailer we see the first encounter between the two, and the...

Among the 87 entries this year, down five from 2017’s whopping 92, there are more documentaries than ever, plus two African countries submitting for the first time: Malawi and Niger. Here’s a guide to the films, including logline, sales, and production contact.

Afghanistan

“Rona, Azim’s Mother”

Director: Jamshid Mahmoudi

Logline: A touching drama set in the milieu of Afghan immigrants in Iran who lack full citizens’ rights, with laborer Azim struggling to care for his mother.

Key Cast: Mohsen Tanabandeh, Fatemeh Hosseini

Intl. Sales: Noori Pictures

Algeria

“Until the End of Time”

Director: Yasmine Chouikh

Logline: An elderly grave digger and a 60-something widow meet in the cemetery of Sidi Boulekbour and develop feelings for one another.

Key Cast: Djillali Boudjemaa, Djamila Arres

Intl. Sales: MakingOf Film

Argentina

“El Ángel”

Director: Luis Ortega

Logline: A portrait of the infamous teenage serial killer “The Angel of Death,” who took Argentina by...

The Chilean Minister of Culture on Wednesday announced that Silvio Caiozzi's And Suddenly the Dawn will be the country's bid for the Oscar in the foreign-language film category.

The film, winner of the Grand Prix des Amériques at the Montreal Film Festival, marks the return of renowned Chilean helmer Caiozzi after a decade. Starring Julio Jung and Sergio Hernández, the drama tells the story of Pancho Veloso, an old gossip writer who returns to his hometown 40 years after fleeing to the capital. There, he faces both his past and the process of writing a novel where ...

The Chilean Minister of Culture on Wednesday announced that Silvio Caiozzi's And Suddenly the Dawn will be the country's bid for the Oscar in the foreign-language film category.

The film, winner of the Grand Prix des Amériques at the Montreal Film Festival, marks the return of renowned Chilean helmer Caiozzi after a decade. Starring Julio Jung and Sergio Hernández, the drama tells the story of Pancho Veloso, an old gossip writer who returns to his hometown 40 years after fleeing to the capital. There, he faces both his past and the process of writing a novel where ...

The thirteenth edition of Santiago International Film Festival, Sanfic (August 20–27, 2017), the largest film festival in Chile, will present more than 100 international and Chilean films, including productions shown and awarded in festivals such as Cannes, Berlin and Venice. Among the feature films will be 7 world and 14 Latin American premieres.

Sanfic (Santiago International Film Festival) is opening the festival to international press this year with Variety Dailies and important international guests for their Sanfic Industry section. Guest attending include Kim Yutani (Sundance programmer), Javier Martin (Berlinale delegate), Molly O ́Keefe (Tribeca Film Institute — fiction features) and Estrella Araiza (Industry director of Guadalajara Iff), to name a few. Matt Dillon is its special guest along with the renowned director of photography Rainer Klausmann.

The Summit starring Ricardo Darín, Dolores Fonzi and Erica Rivas, with an appearance of Christian Slater and renowned Chilean actors Paulina Garcia and Alfredo Castro

The opening film of the...

“About three years ago, a 20-year-old boy was murdered in Santiago because he was gay. He was tortured for hours: his legs broken, a swastika carved on his stomach using shattered bottles, a piece of his ear torn out. By coincidence, that young boy was a fan of my work as a musician and I knew who he was because we’d spoken a couple of times. I met his family and they urged me to continue “speaking on behalf of boys like him”, not usually represented in the media or even art: in short, a gay and poor kid.”

This is what motivated Alex Anwandter, a widely acclaimed Chilean musician to make “You’ll Never Be Alone”/ “Nunca vas a estar solo”. However, he adds,

“This story, however, shifts its focus onto the father of the boy. This is my way of saying: it was not one boy, it’s many boys and girls, and women and men. And the life we should examine more carefully is not the boys’, it’s the rest of us. We who allow this to repeat over and over.”

Born in Santiago, Chile in 1983 Alex’s career as a musician started in 2005 to immediate and widespread acclaim in Chile and South America. His first four albums were released to critical and commercial recognition and subsequent touring the U.S., Europe and Latin America, becoming one of Chile's most renowned artists.

Growing up as a big cinephile, Alex Anwandter took to directing music videos for his own projects and other artists in 2005.

Named by Time Magazine as an artist “poised for U.S. stardom”, his music

and videos have been featured everywhere from Billboard to Vice Magazine and MTV, with NPR celebrating his video for “Cómo puedes vivir contigo mismo?”, an homage to “Paris is Burning”, for its courageous message of equality and non-discrimination.

In 2012 Alex Anwandter started preparing a new phase in his career.

Moved by the murder of young Daniel Zamudio, a gay boy murdered in a hate-crime in Santiago and fan of his work, Anwandter wrote his first script “You’ll Never Be Alone”. The film won both Sanfic’s and FICGuadalajara Work in Progress sections in 2015. In 2016 at its World Premiere in the Berlinale’s Panorama it won the Teddy Award’s Special Jury Prize and went on to win Ficg’s Premio Maguey, its top Lgbt Award.

In Guadalajara I caught up with the producer, Isabel Orellana Guarello of Araucaria Cine and asked her the following questions:

Sydney Levine: How did you finance “You’ll Never Be Alone”?

Isabel Orellana Guarello: We financed the shooting with private investment and sponsorship provided by the Recoleta Municipality of Santiago and the association with the film school of University of Development ( Escuela de Cine Udd) and Ortega Maniques.

After the shooting we obtained help from the Postproduction Fund supported by Council for the Arts & Culture of Chile (Cnca).There was also an important amount of investment provided by 5Am Producciones & Araucaria Cine, the companies that produced the film.

Sl: Did you participate in pre-markets, workshops, etc.?

Iog: The film participated in two competitions of work in progress, one in Sanfic October 2014, just 2 months after we wrapped the shooting, and which we won. And after that the film participated at Films in Progress at FICGuadalajara,where we won two prizes provided by Retina HD and Red Melissa.

Also the project participated at Sanfic Net and Industry Days of Locarno Film Festival both in 2014 and 2015 as part of the catalogue of projects of Araucaria Cine.

Sl: How did you choose your actors?

Iog: For the main character of Juan we directly contacted Sergio Hernandez, whom we loved from previous collaborations with Raul Ruiz and Sebastián Lelio.

It happened in the same way with other cast members such as Edgardo Bruna (the boss of Juan), Antonia Zegers (the doctor) Camila Hirane (the bank executive).

For the young cast we did an open call organized by Ivan Parra Reinoso, We searched in several acting schools and finally reached out to Andrew Bargsted (Pablo) and her real-life best friend Astrid Roldan (Mari). Both had an amazing chemistry between them.

In the open casting call we also found Jaime Leiva (Felix, Pablo's lover) and Benjamín Westfall (Martin, the leader of the Nazi gang).

All together, they created an amazing casting of which we're very proud.

Sl: How did the producers come on board, and particularly Daniel Dreifuss (my friend)?

Iog: I met Daniel Dreifuss at Sanfic Net in 2014. I pitched the project to him since I felt he could connect with this story and he definitely did. Then he finally came on board as Executive Producer of the film in 2015.

Sl: Does the film have Chilean distribution and if so what is the plan?

Iog: The film has already secured Chilean distribution and we're expecting soon to have the specific release dates. The film is gaining a lot of attention back in Chile and audiences are waiting for it after its success at the Berlinale and Guadalajara.

Does it have an international sales agent?

Iog: Yes, the international sales are handled by Wide Management, a French company. We actually met them at Films in Progress 2014!

Sl: How did you come to this project?

Iog: I came on board in February 2014, after meeting Alex through a common friend.

When I read the script - that he'd been working for 2 years already- I was profoundly moved by it. We started working right away. The shooting was in July 2014, so everything was pretty fast.

Sl: Does this depict Chile today?

Iog: Unfortunately yes. Just the same day we received the Teddy Jury Award at Berlinale, a Chilean transgender boy was shot and killed in San Bernardo, Santiago. His name was Marcelo Lepe.

These homophobic killings will continue to occur if there is not deeper reflection about our society and our actions. That's why we made “You'll Never Be Alone”.

Sl: Will this film go toward changing the situation?

Iog: We hope so. We still believe that cinema can make strong change of hearts and minds. So we're eager to show the film in Chile and also Latin America, and hopefully open some debates around the issues of homophobia and social injustice depicted in the film.

We also have a plan with the Municipality of Recoleta to show the film at high schools inside their Sexual Diversity Program, when we complete our commercial release.

It's very important to us that the film is discussed inside Chile and we're making all our best efforts for that to happen.

Sl: What are your current and next projects?

Iog: The director Alex Anwandter is currently releasing his new album "Amiga" in April. So new music videos and songs are coming up from him.

About me as producer, Araucaria Cine is currently producing a feature documentary with director Roberto Collio (“White Death”) and Rodrigo Robledo, named “Petit Frère” which will compete at Focus Chile in Visions du Reel 2016. Also I'm developing a feature doc with Maria Jesus Valenzuela, “Interna." Both projects were funded by the Council of the Arts & Culture and Corfo Chile.

Read More: Berlinale 2016's Complete Competition Lineup Announced: Only 9% Directed By Women Chilean musician Alex Andwandter is trying out directing for the very first time in debut feature "You'll Never Be Alone," and, boy, does it look to be quite the emotional gut punch. The drama stars Chilean stalwart Sergio Hernández and Andrew Bargsted in his acting debut as a gay 18-year-old. The film looks to explore a coming-of-age story not just for the son, but also for the father. The social and economic layers of the film are inspired by the political climate of modern Chile.  The official synopsis reads: "After his gay teenage son, Pablo, is badly beaten up by some homophobic youngsters, Juan, a withdrawn manager at a mannequin factory struggles between having to pay his son's exorbitant medical bills and his last attempt at making partner at his company. As he runs into dead-ends and unexpected betrayals,...

Films include Shepherds and Butchers with Steve Coogan; Don’t Call Me Son from Anna Muylaert; and a documentary about a director and actress who were kidnapped by Kim Jong-il.

The Berlinale (Feb 11-21) has completed the selection for this year’s Panorama strand, comprising 51 films from 33 countries. A total of 34 fiction features comprise the main programme and Panorama Special while a further 17 titles will screen in Panorama Dokumente.

A total of 33 films are world premieres, nine are international premieres and nine European premieres. The 30th Teddy Award is also being celebrated with an anniversary series of 17 films.

Notable titles include Shepherds and Butchers from South Africa, which is set toward the end of Apartheid and stars Steve Coogan as a hotshot lawyer who faces his biggest test when he agrees to defend a white prison guard who has killed seven black men. What ensues is a charge against the death penalty itself, in a case...

Films include Shepherds and Butchers, starring Steve Coogan; Don’t Call Me Son from Anna Muylaert; and a documentary about a director and actress who were kidnapped by Kim Jong-il and forced to make films.

The Berlinale (Feb 11-21) has completed the selection for this year’s Panorama strand, comprising 51 films from 33 countries. A total of 34 fiction features comprise the main programme and Panorama Special while a further 17 titles will screen in Panorama Dokumente.

A total of 33 films are world premieres, nine are international premieres and nine European premieres. The 30th Teddy Award is also being celebrated with an anniversary series of 17 films.

Notable titles include Shepherds and Butchers from South Africa, which is set toward the end of Apartheid and stars Steve Coogan as a hotshot lawyer faces his biggest test when he agrees to defend a white prison guard who has killed seven black men. What ensues is a charge against the death penalty itself...

Gloria

Written by Sebastián Lelio and Gonzalo Maza

Directed by Sebastián Lelio

Chile and Spain, 2013

The advantage that the new film Gloria has is its uniqueness. At one moment, the title character winds up face to face with a striking white peacock, a creature as rare as she. Though a number of actresses continue to work in Hollywood after reaching the age of 50, not many can claim to have an impressive filmography from that point onwards. (Not everyone can be Meryl Streep.) For any movie, from the Us or abroad, to put an older woman in the spotlight and to surround her with an intentionally no-frills story and world is extremely hard to find nowadays. The story told in Gloria is not heavily plotted, nor is it full of shocking, heart-wrenching twists; its charm is that it’s content to be a low-key, intelligent character study.

Paulina Garcia plays Gloria,...

A smart, incisive portrait of a woman who lives life on her own terms and doesn’t let herself get pushed around. I’m “biast” (pro): a movie about an older woman? hooray

I’m “biast” (con): nothing

(what is this about? see my critic’s minifesto)

Gloria is smart, funny, and stylish. She’s got lots of interesting friends and an active social life on the Santiago singles scene. She’s fifty-eight years old, and romance and sex are what is on her mind. Can you handle that truth? Chilean TV actress Paulina García is a revelation in this festival favorite (and Chile’s official submission for the Foreign Language Oscar) as a woman who lives life on her own terms and doesn’t let herself get pushed around… especially not by her new beau, Rodolfo (Sergio Hernández), who can’t seem to decide whether he’s actually divorced or not.

Gloria Roadside Attractions Director: Sebastián Lelio Screenwriter: Sebastián Lelio, Gonzalo Maza Cast: Paulina Garcia, Sergio Hernández, Diego Fontecilla, Fabiola Zamora, Coca Guazzini, Hugo Moraga Screened at: Review 2, NYC, 12/11/13 Opens: January 24, 2014 How many movies have you seen with their title characters inhabiting every frame? I mean every frame! Sebastían Lelio provides us with one of those rare specimens which, in addition to being virtually unique does not give such a role to someone looking like Rachel McAdams or Amy Adams. But who needs such hot looks when you can contribute such a powerful performance? The Gloria of the title is Chilean but is someone that no small  [ Read More ]

The post Gloria Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

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!

Gloria, Chile's Submission for the Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. U.S. : Roadside Attractions. International Sales Agent: Funny Balloons

Acculturated by the constant reinforcement on the media, most audiences are only capable of associating passion, sensuality, and exhilaration with young people. All other age groups above 20 or perhaps 30 years seem to be thought of reminders of times past, left to ponder the joys of better days rather than being seekers of even more profound experiences. In his magnificent film Gloria, Sebastián Lelio demystifies such preconceptions of individuals in midlife. He bestows on his characters a certain candor that makes them hard to look away from and provides us with an incredibly delightful cinematic ride.

Rekindling her ability to be amused is a task the eponymous character, Gloria (Paulina García), an older divorced woman, diligently works on everyday. She goes out dancing by herself expecting nothing beyond having a great time. Sure, if a gentleman approaches her she won’t deny herself the pleasure of his company. However, it is evident that her glowing happiness is grounded on her own love for living, not on the attention of men. Gloria sings fervently to classic love songs wherever she feels the urge to do so and she shows no signs of disabling inhibitions. She is truly content. One night, as she lets loose to the rhythm of the music she meets Rodolfo (Sergio Hernández), an older man who is instantly infatuated with her joyous demeanor. Their friendship quickly blossoms into a fiery romance that reminds them both of what they were missing in their lives. Gloria is an open book, but her disposition to include Rodolfo in every facet of her existence, including her role as a mother, is not shared by her new companion. Having just had gastric bypass surgery, and still financially responsible for his adult, unemployed daughters and ex-wife, he is seems unwilling or unable to make their relationship a priority.

Autumnal love is sporadically explored in modern cinema, but here, Leilo shows imperfect bodies making love with the ardor of a teenage couple. Gloria gives herself a second chance and sees unfortunate twists as she steps up to get to something even better. Living in the moment is one of her talents. As she tries bungee jumping or practices yoga or seeks a very comedic paintball-shooting revenge, for her these are all just new opportunities to grow. Her children Pedro (Diego Fontecilla) and Ana (Fabiola Zamora) have their lives in place, and though she loves them, she knows they are following their own paths and she has to continue to shape her own fate. Sitting at the table with her them, her ex-husband, his new wife, and Rodolfo, Gloria contemplates all aspects of her life, the good and the bad, and has no regrets, just raw emotion to share.

Effortlessly captivating, Paulina Garcia is irreverent, full of heart, and essentially as glorious as her name implies. It is impossible not to fall in love with Gloria’s charisma and reinvigorating will to enjoy every second of the day. She is blessed with an unbreakable positivism, and even when the cards she is dealt are not all that favorable, she laughs it off and moves to the next adventure. Sebastian Leilo created a fearless character that is inspiring, mature, and who is living proof that is never too late for reinvention. Crafted by both actress and director, this is an astonishing performance up there with the best of the year from any female lead.

Uplifting like very few other films, Gloria is a work achieved with incredible sincerity and it embodies a joie de vivre sentiment that is rapturous. Undoubtedly, the film places its director, Sebastian Leilo, on par with other masters of characterization as he shows his mastery of hitting the right tone and nuances to create a powerful story with a female protagonist, a sort of Chilean Woody Allen. Unmistakably truthful to his national particularities, yet engaging for everyone else, Gloria is an unforgettable, not-to-be missed, near perfect film.

Read Sydney Levine's interview with Sebastian Leilo and Pauline Garcia at Tiff Here.

Read more about all the 76 Best Foreign Language Film Submission for the 2014 Academy Awards...

Short Term 12 | Philomena | Thor: The Dark World | Milius | Gloria | Nosferatu The Vampyre | Drinking Buddies | Cutie And The Boxer | Child's Pose | The Nun | The Haunting In Connecticut 2: Ghosts Of Georgia | A Nightmare On Elm Stret

Short Term 12 (15)

(Destin Cretton, 2013, Us) Brie Larson, John Gallagher Jr, Kaitlyn Dever, Keith Stanfield, Rami Malek. 97 mins

A film that makes you care about people who care about people, this compact indie doesn't have to look hard for drama in a foster care home, whose young workers need help as much as the damaged teens in their charge. The storylines are a little convenient, but it's an emotional watch, and Larson is outstanding.

Philomena (12A)

(Stephen Frears, 2013, UK/Us/Fra) Judi Dench, Steve Coogan. 98 mins

Faith issues, "human interest" and even buddy comedy blend smoothly in this true-life tale of a retired Irish woman's search for her adult son, aided by a sceptical English hack.

Sebastián Lelio's tale of a divorcee in a new relationship perhaps has a wider resonance for Chile's Pinochet generation

Pablo Larraín's No and Patricio Guzmán's Nostalgia for the Light were movies that offered fascinating glimpses of modern Chile, struggling with its past. Now this film by Sebastián Lelio gives us another perspective: it is Chile's foreign-language Oscar entry. Gloria is a free-spirited divorcee, played with terrific exuberance by Paulina García; she is vivacious and attractive, though with a rather 80s hairstyle and big glasses that make her look weirdly like Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie. She hangs out at singles bars in Santiago, looking for love and sex, and finds herself falling for a silver-fox type called Rodolfo (Sergio Hernández), also divorced, who satisfies Gloria in the bedroom, and takes her bungee-jumping and paintballing in the amusement centre he owns, symbolically called Vertigo Park. Yet the relationship is...

Watch the official trailer for Gloria, starring Paulina García and Sergio Hernández. This is Chile's official entry for the Best Foreign Language Film category of the 86th Academy Awards. Sebastián Lelio and Gustavo Maza write the script for the film directed by Lelio. Gloria can be seen in theaters on January 17th, 2014 and follows the title character who is a "woman of a certain age" but still feels young. Though lonely, she makes the best of her situation and fills her nights seeking love at social dance clubs for single adults. Her fragile happiness changes the day she meets Rodolfo. Their intense passion, to which Gloria gives her all, leaves her vacillating between hope and despair -- until she uncovers a new strength and realizes that, in her golden years, she can shine brighter than ever.

Sebastián Lelio, Anne-Katrin Titze, Paulina García overlooking the plaza of Lincoln Center. Photo: Denise Sinelov

During the New York Film Festival, I met up with Gloria star Paulina García and her director Sebastián Lelio to discuss costumes inspired by David Lynch's Wild At Heart, Chilean beatnik poetry, sphinx-y energy, and the rhythm of Gael García Bernal on the skateboard in Pablo Larrain's No synching up with a skeleton dance.

Paulina García plays Gloria with glorious abandon in Lelio's film about a woman who tries to find happiness. She is a divorcee, has grown children, goes to singles dances, works, does yoga, gets drunk, has an affair with Rodolfo (Sergio Hernández), the sheepish owner of an amusement park, and gets to tolerate a neighbor's visiting Sphynx cat, the naked center of the film, an omen of kindness to come.

Anne-Katrin Titze: Gloria wears many styles. Sequins and bright lipstick in one scene,...

Cinematic portrayals of the trials and tribulations of a more mature love saga usually go hand in hand with an obvious comedic sentiment that forgives any flaws or misdemeanours in the actions of the older protagonist. In 1989’s Shirley Valentine, say, the middle-aged heroine played by Pauline Collins was mocked for having a mid-life crisis, complete with one last fling in the sun. Things improved for the older actor with the more recent The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011) exploring the relationship dramas of a bunch of retired Brits, but it was still cloaked in humour.

The striking difference with Chilean writer-director Sebastian Lelio’s engaging and often dark Gloria is how the lead role of the same name could be played by any aged woman. Also, how events unfold very matter of fact in navigating the rocky relationship scene – the comedy is subjective and subliminal, if at all. With the...

Title: Gloria Director: Sebastián Lelio Starring: Paulina García, Sergio Hernández, Diego Fontecilla, Fabiola Zamora, Alejandro Goic, Coca Guazzini, Hugo Moraga, Luz Jiménez, Cristián Carvajal, Liliana García, Antonia Santa María, Eyal Meyer, Marcial Tagle, Marcela Said. ‘Gloria’ is a Chilean-Spanish drama directed by Sebastián Lelio, that premiered in competition at the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival, where Paulina García won the Silver Bear for Best Actress. Gloria (Paulina García) is a 58 year old divorcée. Her children have all left home but she has no desire to spend her days and nights alone. Determined to defy old age and loneliness, she rushes headlong into a whirl of singles’ parties on the [ Read More ]

The post Gloria Movie Review appeared first on Shockya.com.

The 63rd Berlin International Film Festival (February 7-17) has announced the first six titles in its competition lineup. Productions and co-productions from Germany, France, Austria, the Republic of Korea, Chile, Romania, Spain and the U.S. are included, with Gus Van Sant's "Promised Land" and the new film by Hong Sang-soo, "Nobody's Daughter Haewon," and the third in Ulrich Seidl's "Paradise" trilogy ("Paradise: Hope"), part of the program. The festival also announced the world premiere of doc "Unter Menschen" ("Redemption Impossible"), directed by Christian Rost and Claus Strigel, in the Berlinale Special section. Competition: Gloria Chile/Spain By Sebastián Lelio (La Sagrada Familia, Navidad, El año del tigre) With Paulina García, Sergio Hernández World premiere Nugu-ui Ttal-do Anin (Nobody's Daughter Haewon) Republic of Korea By Hong...

The 63rd Berlin International Film Festival has announced the first six films from its competition lineup.  The films include productions and co-productions from Austria, Chile, France, Germany, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Spain and the USA. In addition, the festival announced that Christian Rost and Claus Strigel will present the world premiere of their documentary "Unter Menschen" (Redemption Impossible) in the Berlinale Special. The 63rd Berlin International Film Festival runs February 7-17, 2013.   Competition   Gloria Chile/Spain By Sebastián Lelio (La Sagrada Familia, Navidad, El año del tigre) With Paulina García, Sergio Hernández World premiere   Nugu-ui Ttal-do Anin (Nobody's Daughter Haewon) Republic of Korea By Hong Sangsoo (Night and Day, Hahaha, In Another Country) With Eunchae Jung, Sunkyun Lee World premiere   Paradies: Hoffnung...

The Berlinale’s Competition section has picked the first six films for the 63rd Berlin International Film Festival. They include productions and co-productions from Austria, Chile, France, Germany, the Republic of Korea, Romania, Spain and the USA.

In addition, Christian Rost and Claus Strigel will present the world premiere of their documentary Unter Menschen (Redemption Impossible) in the Berlinale Special.

Competition

Gloria

Chile/Spain

By Sebastián Lelio (La Sagrada Familia, Navidad, El año del tigre)

With Paulina García, Sergio Hernández

World premiere

Nugu-ui Ttal-do Anin (Nobody’s Daughter Haewon)

Republic of Korea

By Hong Sangsoo (Night and Day, Hahaha, In Another Country)

With Eunchae Jung, Sunkyun Lee

World premiere

Paradies: Hoffnung (Paradise: Hope)

Austria/France/Germany

By Ulrich Seidl (Dog Days, Import Export, Paradise: Love)

With Melanie Lenz, Vivian Bartsch, Joseph Lorenz, Michael Thomas

World premiere

Poziţia Copilului (Child’s Pose)

Romania

By Călin Peter Netzer (Maria, Medal of Honor,...

#25. The Year of the Tiger Director: Sebastián LelioCast: Luis Dubó, Sergio Hernández, Viviana HerreraDistributor: Rights Available Buzz: One more standout item from the Vanguard programme offerings is this low budget Chilean film that garnered favorable reviews (Variety, THR and IndieWIRE) but went home empty handed at this year's Locarno Film Festival. Sebastián Lelio's third feature film (following his Cannes selected Navidad in 2009) puts a damaged landscape from Chile's deadly 2010 quake to extremely good use. The Gist: Perhaps a good starter-kit prior to the release of Life of Pi, Chile's devastating earthquake of February 27th, 2011, inadvertently converts prisoner Manuel into a fugitive. As he futilely searches for loved ones, he encounters a caged tiger washed up on shore. After freeing the beast, Manuel realizes that neither of them have much of a chance for survival in the present landscape. Tiff Schedule: Saturday September 10 Tiff Bell Lightbox 3 7:30pm Monday September...