News

Miro Remo’s Better Go Mad in the Wild won the Grand Prix – Crystal Globe, the top award, at the closing ceremony of the 59th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff) on Saturday, where Stellan Skarsgård was also honored with the Kviff Crystal Globe Award for his “outstanding artistic contribution to world cinema.” The Special Jury Prize went to Iranian filmmaker Soheil Beiraghi‘s fourth feature, Bidad (Outcry), whose announcement the fest had held back to ensure the safety of its creators.

This year’s jury, consisting of Nicolas Celis, Babak Jalali, Jessica Kiang, Jiří Mádl, and Tuva Novotny, lauded the “delightfully inventive documentary” Better Go Mad as “a funny valentine to the fading art of being true to yourself” and “a portrait of bickering twin brothers who may live a weird, off-grid life on their dilapidated farm, but who, in a world as mad as ours,...

Miro Remo’s stunning portrait of identical twins, “Better Go Mad in the Wild,” took top honors at this year’s Karlovy Vary Film Festival, meaning the festival’s Crystal Globe and a cash prize of $25K will be staying at home in the Czech Republic.

A hybrid documentary with plenty of visual power and also a wise-talking bovine, the film immerses us in the daily lives of Ondřej and František Klišík as they live with only each other (as well as their animals) for company in their remote home. Surrounded by the beautiful Šumava forests, their lives are defined by reflections (often literal in that there is a mirror that becomes a haunting yet breathtaking way through which to view their world) about life, death, and isolation. At the same time as it is visually stunning, with Remo and his co-cinematographer Dušan Husár working wonders within the twins’ humble world,...

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival announced its winners on July 12 during its closing ceremony. More than 128,000 tickets were sold for 465 screenings of 108 features, 23 documentaries, and 44 shorts. The festival is key in the year’s film circuit, nestled between Cannes and Venice.

The 59th outing, held from July 4-12, gave out its top honor, the Grand Prix — Crystal Globe, to director Miro Remo’s “Better Go Mad in the Wild” from Czech Republic and Slovak Republic. The filmmakers — producers included — received $25,000.

“A funny valentine to the fading art of being true to yourself, Miro Remo’s delightfully inventive documentary is a portrait of bickering twin brothers who may live a weird, off-grid life on their dilapidated farm but who, in a world as mad as ours, actually might be the sanest people on earth,” the Crystal Globe jury, which consisted of Nicolas Celis, Babak Jalali, Jessica Kiang, Jiří Mádl, and Tuva Novotny,...

The 59th International Karlovy Vary Film Festival passed by in a blur this week after playing host to a stream of largely uncontroversial guests compared to previous years. With appearances by Festival President’s Award winners Vicky Krieps, Dakota Johnson and Peter Sarsgaard, plus a special cameo from Michael Douglas, it was left to Crystal Globe for Outstanding Artistic Contribution winner Stellan Skarsgård to generate headlines, which he did rather spectacularly by describing venerated Swedish auteur Ingmar Bergman as “manipulative” and “the only person I know who cried when Hitler died”.

The lineup of this year’s Crystal Globe Competition was similarly strong, a fact reflected in the sharing out of the awards; all the word-of-mouth titles seemed to win something, which isn’t always the case. That said, the winner was something of a surprise at a festival where the strongest films featured female leads (Broken Voices; Don’t Call Me Mama...

Miro Remo’s hybrid doc “Better Go Mad in the Wild” picked up Karlovy Vary Film Festival’s Grand Prix on Saturday – and $25,000, shared by the director and the producers.

Following hermit twins František and Ondřej Klišík, the Slovak director first discovered them thanks to Aleš Palán’s book. “I contacted Aleš right away, and he brought me into their world,” he said. “I fell in love with them and with their environment. I was fascinated by everything magical and enchantingly unusual.”

Jurors Nicolas Celis, Babak Jalali, Jessica Kiang, Jiří Mádl and Tuva Novotny called it “a funny valentine to the fading art of being true to yourself” and a “delightfully inventive documentary.” Despite living on a dilapidated farm, “in a world as mad as ours, [they] actually might be the sanest people on earth.”

They added: “ ‘Better Go Mad in the Wild’ feels like a gulp of fresh, woody air,...

Fireworks on July 4 are nothing special in the U.S. But the Friday night fireworks over the Czech spa town Karlovy Vary brought an upbeat end to the opening night of the 59th edition of the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff), which proved to be an emotional rollercoaster.

It included stars Peter Sarsgaard and Vicky Krieps, who were both honored during the opening ceremony, sharing political thoughts about a divided U.S. and world, laughs and rare behind-the-scenes insights thanks to the opening film, We’ve Got to Frame It! (A Conversation With Jiří Bartoška in July 2021), and words of thanks in heartfelt tributes to the long-time festival president and legendary Czech actor Bartoška, who died in May at the age of 78.

Big names in attendance for the opening night included members of the jury for the fest’s main Crystal Globe Competition, which includes Roma producer Nicolás Celis,...

Depending on who you ask, the state of Mexico’s film industry is either waxing or waning.

The twin labor strikes of 2023 saw fewer U.S. film and TV productions that year and the following year. However, the first trimester of 2025 has reported a 16% spike in overall audiovisual activity, said Guillermo Saldaña, Mexico City’s Film Commissioner.

“I’d like to think that we have a symbiotic relationship with the U.S. and Colombia because we share talent, industry and information. We always work closely with the MPA, the major studios, Netflix and the others,” he said, adding: “Lately, there has been a sense of uncertainty — I’d call it a sort of tariff threat — but we’re not 100% dependent on the U.S. industry, as you well know. We also have a strong local industry that produces content for both domestic audiences and the U.S. Latino community.”

“Some...

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has unveiled the lineup for its 59th edition, including 11 of its 12 films in the Crystal Globe Competition. The title of the 12th, an entry from Iran, has been withheld for the “safety of its makers.”

“It has been decided to postpone its announcement until closer to the festival,” Kviff artistic director Karel Och said in a statement.

Considered the most prestigious film festival in Eastern Europe, the Czech-based Kviff runs July 4-12. Mexican producer Nicolás Celis (“Roma”), filmmaker Babak Jalali (“Radio Dreams”), film critic Jessica Kiang, and Czech actor/director Jiří Mádl (“Waves”) will serve as the Cystal Globe jury.

“Answering exclusively to their artistic integrity, the filmmakers who have accepted the invitation to premiere their brand-new works in Karlovy Vary fearlessly protect the right to challenge expectations, to disrupt stereotypes and to win over hearts and minds with equal intensity,” Och said. “Disregarding budgetary constraints,...

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has unveiled the official selection for its 59th edition, including new features by Bence Fliegauf, Miro Remo and Ondřej Provazník.

Scroll down for full lineup

The festival, which runs from July 4-July 12 in the Czech spa town, has announced 11 titles for its main Crystal Globe Competition, comprising nine world premieres and two international premieres.

Artistic director Karel Och said that one more title from Iran will be added to the Competition closer to the festival, with the announcement postponed “for the safety of its makers.”

Hungarian director Bence Fliegauf, whose Forest - I See...

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival has unveiled its official selection and jury members for the upcoming 59th edition of the upcoming festival. It has announced 11 titles from its usual dozen films in its Crystal Globe Competition, which include the world premiere of Ondřej Provaznik’s Sbormistr (Broken Voices) and Hungarian title Jimmy Jaguar from Bence Fliegauf.

The festival said that the final competition title is from Iran and will be announced closer to the start of the festival “for the safety of its makers.”

Jury members this year include Mexican producer Nicolás Celis, who has worked with directors such as Alfonso Cuarón and Jacques Audiard as well as filmmaker Babak Jalali, whose second feature Radio Dreamswon the Tiger Award at Rotterdam Iff in 2016.

“The 59th Karlovy Vary Iff’s Official Selection offers an exciting display of the diversity of contemporary arthouse cinema, “ said Karlovy Vary Festial Director Karel Och in a statement.

The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (Kviff) on Tuesday unveiled the lineup of the main competition and other sections for its 59th edition, including a competition movie from Iran whose title and creators will only be shared closer to the fest “for the safety of its makers.”

The fest in the Czech spa town, whose 2025 edition will be running July 4-12, also unveiled its competition jury, including Mexican producer Nicolás Celis (Alfonso Cuarón’s Oscar-winning Roma) and Czech actor and director Jiří Mádl (Waves).

The Crystal Globe competition this year includes Turkish filmmaker Gözde Kural’s Cinema Jazireh, her second feature, about a woman who “radically changes her identity” in “Afghanistan under the brutal rule of the Taliban,” documentary Divia, which reminds us that nature suffers with war, through the lens of Russia’s war against Ukraine, and Norwegian writer-director Nina Knag’s Don’t Call Me Mama, a drama about forbidden love.

Exclusive: Greenwich Entertainment has acquired Ex-Husbands, a dramedy starring Oscar nominee Griffin Dunne, which the company will release in approximately 50 markets in the U.S. and Canada and on home entertainment platforms early next year.

Written and directed by Noah Pritzker, Ex-Husbands follows Peter Pearce (Dunne), a Manhattan dentist wryly floundering in a late midlife crisis, as he tries to stay close with his directionless sons and chart a new course in life. Peter is stunned when his elderly father (Richard Benjamin) tells him he’s decided to divorce Peter’s mother after 65 years with the unlikely prospect of taking one last shot of finding true love. Six years later, with his father in a nursing home, Peter is decorating his own bachelor pad, finding himself out on his ear at the behest of his wife (Rosanna Arquette) of 35 years. His eldest, under achieving, self-defeating...

The Gotham Film & Media Institute (The Gotham) has announced the winners of the inaugural Gotham Week Honors.

Gina Duncan, President of Bam (Brooklyn Academy of Music), was awarded with the first-ever Gotham Week Cultural Impact Honor. Filmmakers RaMell Ross and Sean Wang each received an inaugural Gotham Week Alumni Honor of Distinction Award.

The romantic comedy “Here for the Weekend,” written and directed by Jane Casey Modderno, won the U.S. Features in Development honor. “Thirstygirl,” written and directed by Alexandra Qin, took home the the U.S. Shorts to Features honor. “Matininó” won the Spotlight on Documentaries award.

Sophie Luo, producer of “Valley of the Tall Grass,” was recognized as the Global Producer of The Year. “Valley of the Tall Grass” is centered around “a trashed TV/Vcr combo set that survives and circulates through the lives of various Indigenous characters in an Oregon town.”

The Gotham Week...

Jacques Audiard’s predicted Oscar-bound “Emilia Pérez” has unveiled its full bombastic trailer.

The Cannes award-winning musical follows four women in Mexico who are each pursuing their own happiness. The official synopsis reads: “The fearsome cartel leader Emilia (Karla Sofía Gascón) enlists Rita (Zoe Saldaña), an unappreciated lawyer stuck in a dead-end job, to help fake her death so that Emilia can finally live authentically as her true self.”

Selena Gomez plays Jessi, with Adriana Paz as Epifanía and Edgar Ramírez as Gustavo.

The film won the Cannes Jury Prize and the Cannes Best Actress Prize for the four lead stars of Gascón, Saldaña, Gomez, and Paz. The ensemble cast is also being feted at a slew of festivals.

The feature was also awarded the Cannes Soundtrack Award upon its world premiere, with music by Clément Ducol and Camille.

“Emilia Pérez” was selected by France as its International Feature Oscar submission,...

This piece was originally posted in 2022. We have updated the “Where to Watch” section for each film.

***

Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean and Central and South America. To celebrate, we got to thinking about some of our favorite Indies from the Hispanic world. These stories are narrative and documentary, drama and comedy, and are both harrowing and heartfelt. A little of everything, and plenty to add to your watchlist.

Prayers For The Stolen (2021)

Writer/Director: Tatiana Huezo

Producers: Nicolás Celis, Jim Stark

Starring: Guillermo Villegas, Mayra Batalla, Eileen Yañez, Alejandra Camacho

Synopsis: In a solitary town nestled in the Mexican mountains, the girls wear boyish haircuts and have hiding places underground. Ana and her two best friends take over the houses of those who have fled,...

Mexico has picked Sundance Film Festival winner Sujo to represent the country at the 2025 Oscars in the Best International Feature category. The drama from Identifying Features directors Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez premiered at Sundance this year, where it won the Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema. It is currently doing the festival tour and will screen in San Sebastian and the London Film Festival this fall.

The coming-of-age story focuses on the titular Sujo, the son of a small-town cartel sicario who is orphaned when his father is murdered as a traitor. Under constant threat of death — the cartels traditionally kill male heirs of assassinated members lest they grow up to avenge their fathers — Sujo goes into hiding in the mountains, living in isolation with only his aunts and two young cousins for company. But as a young man, Sujo, played by Identifying Features actor Juan Jesús Varela, drifts...

Mexico has selected the drama film “Sujo” as its entry for the Best International Feature Film category at the 2025 Academy Awards. The movie tells the story of a young man growing up in a small Mexican town threatened by cartel violence.

“Sujo” follows the life of its title character after his cartel member father is murdered. Sujo is raised by his aunt in the countryside but grows up surrounded by poverty and danger. As a teen, Sujo gets drawn into the local drug gang. He later tries to escape his violent past. The film explores how destiny and the cycle of cartel activity impact Mexico.

The movie from directors Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez won the Grand Jury Prize at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year. Juan Jesús Varela plays the adult Sujo, supported by Yadira Pérez, Alexis Varela and others. Rondero, Valadez, and producers Diana Casarreal, Jewerl Keats Ross,...

Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez’s Mexico-set drama Sujo has been selected as Mexico’s Oscar submission in the best international feature film category.

‘Sujo’: Sundance Review

The Forge has scheduled a November 29 theatrical release in select US and Canadian markets on the coming-of-age drama about the son of a slain cartel hitman who, now a young man after growing up in hiding, must reckon as a young man with destiny as his father’s legacy catches up with him. Juan Jesús Varela stars

Sujo premiered in Sundance where it won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Drama. It...

Sujo, which won the Sundance Film Festival’s Grand Jury Prize for World Cinema following its world premiere there earlier this year, has been selected to represent Mexico in the 2025 Oscar race for Best International Feature Film.

Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez’s drama centers on Sujo, the beloved son of a small-town cartel gunman who narrowly escapes death when his father is murdered. His aunt takes him in and raises him in the isolated countryside amidst hardship, poverty and the constant peril associated with his identity.

When Sujo enters his teens a rebelliousness awakens in him and he joins the local cartel. As a young man (Juan Jesús Varela), he attempts to make his life anew, away from the violence of his hometown. But when his father’s legacy catches up with him, he will come face-to-face with what seems to be his destiny.

Yadira Pérez, Alexis Varela, Sandra Lorenzano,...

The Forge has bulked up its arthouse slate of major festival winners and acquired North American rights to Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner Sujo. The company plans to support the film with a full awards campaign.

Astrid Rondero and Fernanda Valadez’s Mexico-set drama premiered in Park City in January when it won the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Drama.

The feature will participate in a number of upcoming festivals including San Sebastian’s Horizontes Latinos strand spotlighting films from Latin America and AFI Latin American Film Festival, both of which take place later this month.

The Forge will release...

Mexican filmmaker Elisa Miller (“Hurricane Season”) is teaming up with “Roma” producer Nicolás Celis and his Pimienta Films on a legal drama-cum-psychological thriller that the duo is pitching this week at the Venice Production Bridge’s Gap-Financing Market, which runs Aug. 30 – Sept. 1.

“Legítima” is based on the remarkable true story of Yakiri Rubio, a young woman who was kidnapped and raped by two brothers in Mexico City in 2013. After killing one of her attackers in self-defense, Rubio wound up finding herself behind bars and charged with murder in a case that shocked and scandalized the nation.

The film is based on “En legítima defensa,” a book written by Ana Katiria Suárez, the charismatic and unconventional lawyer who took up Rubio’s case, doing battle with Mexico’s corrupt and misogynistic legal system until justice was finally served and the young woman was freed.

Speaking to Variety from Mexico City, Miller...

Former Pimienta Films executive producer Paulina Valencia has boarded coming-of-age drama “The Weird” (“Lo Raro”), the debut feature of Nicolasa Ruiz, whose most recent short, “Extinction of the Species,” which she co-directed with Matt Porterfield, participated in Cannes’ Critics Week last year.

Valencia joins Chile’s Matías de Bourguignon of Cordyceps Content, a producer of “The Dog Thief,” directed by Chile’s Vinko Tomicic and sold by Luxbox, which competes in the Santiago Film Festival’s (Sanfic) international section. Set in La Paz, Bolivia, it stars Alfredo Castro (“El Conde”) as a lonely tailor, Señor Novoa, whose dog is stolen by a 15-year-old shoe shiner who imagines Sr. Novoa to be his father.

Mexicali-set “The Weird” follows Consuelo, a shy teenage nerd with a deep passion for technology who has built Alita, a robot pet driven by artificial intelligence. Her love for science and robotics is matched only by her growing crush on Ángel,...

“People from all over the world fall in love with Mexico City as soon as they see the dimension of this beautiful capital,” says actress Eiza González, star of Extrapolations and Godzilla vs. Kong, of her mile-high hometown. With top-flight restaurants, a thriving cocktail scene and some 150 museums, Mexico City — or el Df, for Federal District, as it’s called locally (though in 2016 it was officially renamed Ciudad de Mexico, acronym Cdmx) — is one of the hottest global cities. “What people don’t expect is how cosmopolitan and diverse it is and how many trendy and cool spots it has,” says Schmigadoon! star Jaime Camil. “Mexico City has to be one of the most energizing and fascinating cities in the world.” Or as Eva Longoria (who has a home there) describes the city in her 2023 CNN series Eva Longoria: Searching for Mexico, “It’s crazy. It’s crowded. It’s noisy.

The first Floodlight Summit will take place from Nov. 30 to Dec. 3 in Cartagena, Colombia. The event, curated and organized by Philippa Kowarsky and Alesia Weston, is a one-of-a-kind pilot for a long-term alliance that seeks to connect investigative journalists and their reporting with the film and television industry.

The event has been established by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (Occrp) and the Gabo Foundation as part of both institutions’ public interest focus. It will attempt “to nurture a symbiotic relationship between investigative journalism and fiction filmmaking that will result in storytelling that entertains, educates, and inspires,” according to a press statement. “Investigative journalists can help adapt their extensive reporting about organized crime and corruption into new formats to reach more audiences while filmmakers can pull from a wealth of content and expertise across subjects to inform their projects.”

Writer-director Rodrigo García, Gabo Foundation board member and son of author Gabriel García Marquez,...

Festival completes its 2023 programme.

Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival has unveiled the juries for its 27th edition, with jurors including Danish star Trine Dyrholm, and John Altman, who has worked on the music for Titanic, Life Of Brian and No Time To Die.

Jury head Dyrholm and English composer Altman are on the official selection competition jury, alongside filmmakers Xie Fei from China, Hilmar Oddson from Iceland, and Inna Sahakyan from Armenia.

The first feature competition jury consists of Mexican producer Nicolas Celis of Pimienta Films, who heads that jury, alongside Diana Ilijine, former Filmfest Munchen director; Chinese filmmaker Ran Huang...

Trine Dryholm Photo: Courtesy of Poff Tallinn Black Nights Film Festival (PÖFF) has announced the juries for this year's edition as well as the rest of its line-up. Danish star Trine Dyrholm (Margrete - Queen Of The North) will head the official jury alongside composer John Altman (Life Of Brian) and directors, Xie Fei (The Women From The Lake of Scented Souls), Hilmar Oddson (Driving Mum) and Inna Sahakyan (Aurora's Sunrise).

In total, 185 feature films from 73 countries will be screened. Youth and Children sub-festival Just Film will show 51 feature films, 37 shorts and six animated films. PÖFF Shorts sub-festival will present 240 short films. Among them will be 51 world premieres and 24 international premieres.

There are five competition sections in total, with the First Feature jury headed by Nicolás Celis, the founder of the Mexico City based Pimienta Films, while the Critics' Picks competition will be headed by Dina...

After a world premiere at the San Sebastian International Film Festival and its North American premiere over the weekend at the Hamptons International Film Festival, Noah Pritzker’s (Quitters) second film goes for a mix of Woody Allen, John Cassavetes, Paul Mazursky, Noah Baumbach and other white male filmmakers, past and present, who enjoy basking in the midlife marital crisis in which many guys find themselves trapped. While not on the level of those acclaimed filmmakers, in this case, Pritzker manages to cast his net wider into an early-, mid-, and late-life crisis over three generations of the men in the Pearce clan.

The result is an engaging indie exercise that’s for sale to any distributor who finds promise in a premise that might be a tough sell for mainstream buyers despite a game cast that lifts it up a notch or two. Art houses would seem to be its theatrical future,...

Noah Pritzker’s San Sebastian competition feature ‘Ex-Husbands’ stars Griffin Dunne and James Norton

Luxbox has picked up international sales rights to Noah Pritzker’s San Sebastian competition feature Ex-Husbands and has sold the film to Avalon in Spain and September Films in Benelux.

UTA is handling North American rights for Pritzker’s second feature about three generations of men in the same family simultaneously experiencing marital disappointment.

Griffin Dunne stars as a man floundering after his father (Richard Benjamin) leaves his mother after 65 years of marriage and his own wife (Rosanna Arquette) leaves him after thirty-five. With the wedding...

“Roma” producer Nicolas Celis’ of Pimienta Films is coming on board as lead producer of “Freeland,” the first English-language pic by “Emily in Paris” director Katina Medina Mora, Variety learned at Madrid forum Iberseries & Platino Industria.

To be co-written with Chilean scribe Julio Rojas, creator of podcast sensation “Caso 63” and a co-writer on Pablo Fendrik’s “El Refugio,” the project was put together by producer Nestor Hernández, a former Sony and HBO development exec for Latin America, who attended the San Sebastian Film Festival in September to present the project.

MadAvenue PR director Eva Herrero serves as an executive producer on the film.

“We have long been following Katina Medina Mora’s remarkable career and her impressive accomplishments over such a short time span,” remarked Celis who has been attending Iberseries to take part in a panel and to meet with contacts.

“I am also more than thrilled to...

Noah Pritzker’s bittersweet father and sons tale Ex-Husbands (aka Men Of Divorce) world premieres in Competition at the San Sebastian Film Festival on Sunday as one of the few U.S. productions to be accompanied by its cast this year thanks to its SAG-AFTRA interim agreement.

Griffin Dunne co-stars as a New York dentist who is reeling from his wife’s demand for a divorce after 35 years of marriage, opposite James Norton and Miles Heizer as his sons.

In search of some respite, he unwittingly travels to the Mexican resort of Tulum the same weekend as his oldest son’s bachelor party, where it emerges that he is not the only one suffering a life crisis.

The mainly Spanish press gave the warm-hearted picture – exploring family bonds and questions about love, life and death – an enthusiastic reception at a packed 8.30 am screening on Sunday morning ahead of a gala screening this evening.

Annecy — In major news for Mexican animation as it comes under the spotlight at Annecy, director Sofia Carrillo is teaming with “Roma” producer Nicolas Celis and ‘Dance of the 41’ writer Monika Revilla to make “Insectario,” which bids fair to become one of the first stop motion features from Mexico.

Targeting family audiences, and written by Revilla, “Insectario” is set up at Celis’ Pimienta Films.

Carrillo, who worked on the Mexican second unit on “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio,” based out of Guadalajara’s El Taller del Chucho, told Variety that “Insectario” will build on the same aesthetic universe of “Cerulia” using the same puppets and sometimes the same sets.

“To a certain extent, ‘Insectario’ is a prolongation of the world of ‘Cerulia,’ but with an independent story which stands by itself,” she said.

In “Cerulia,” Carrillo’s crowning triumph which made her one of the most sought-after directors in Mexico,...

Amat Escalante’s title debuted in the Cannes Premiere section.

Mexican auteur Amat Escalante’s Lost In The Night is to be released in the UK and Ireland by Sovereign, following its debut in the Cannes Premiere section.

Sovereign is aiming for a late 2023, early 2024 theatrical release, with The Match Factory handling international sales.

The social thriller tells the story of a Mexican activist who disappears without a trace following her protests against the local mining industry. Five years later, her son attempts to find the culprit.

It was written by Escalante in collaboration with his brother Martín Escalante and Paulina Mendoza.

Sorcery: "On the remote island of Chiloé in the late 19th century, an Indigenous girl named Rosa lives and works with her father on a farm. When the foreman brutally turns on Rosa’s father, she sets out for justice, seeking help from the king of a powerful organization of sorcerers."

Directed by: Christopher Murray Screenwriters: Christopher Murray, Pablo Paredes Produced by: Juan De Dios Larraín, Pablo Larraín, Rocío Jadue, Nicolás Celis Co-Producers: Viola Fügen, Michael Weber Executive Producer: Sergio Karmy Director of Photography: María Secco Cast: Valentina Véliz, Daniel Antivilo, Sebastian Hulk, Daniel Muñoz, Rosa Raín

World Premiering at the Sundance Film Festival January 22, 2023

---

The Unsettling: "Abena and Kwame, a Ghanaian couple, are struggling to recover from a devastating tragedy. They travel to Los Angeles for a vacation that they hope will help them find their way back to one another. Instead, during an awkward dinner with estranged friends,...

Filmmaker Amat Escalante, who won best director at Cannes for 2013 film “Heli,” has signed with CAA.

“Heli,” where the protagonist tries to protect his family from a drug cartel and corrupt police, competed for the Palme d’Or at Cannes and won several more awards, including at Camerimage, Palm Springs, Stockholm and Munich and represented Mexico at the 86th Academy Awards in the then Best Foreign Language Film category.

Escalante’s follow-up feature “The Untamed,” where the lives of a couple in a troubled marriage are turned upside down by the discovery of a mysterious creature, competed for the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival in 2016, and won the Silver Lion for his direction. Like with “Heli,” Escalante won best director at Mexico’s Ariel Awards for “The Untamed.”

The filmmaker is currently in post-production on his next feature, “Lost in the Night,” about a man in search...

Buenos Aires — Rodrigo Sorogoyen’s “The Beasts,” Manuela Martelli’s “The Meltdown” and Demián Rugna’s Shudder co-pro “When Evil Lurks” were three highlights at 2022’s Ventana Sur. Wrapping Dec. 2, it offered a dazzling myriad of projects, bold initiatives in genre and from Spain and confirmation that the sector has still to emerge from the pandemic when it comes to independent distributors’ appetite for new titles.

Following a brace of takeaways with more to follow:

Ventana Sur Growth

From an art film base, few markets have so cannily addressed potential international film market growth, whether genre/fantasy fare; animation, drama series, video games or established IP exploitation. Each now has its own distinct Vs forum, often supported by some of the world’s most powerful players: France’s Cine+Club for arthouse Primer Corte/Corte Final and its Annecy Festival for Animation!, for instance. Various sections grew this year, genre...

28 projects selected from over 150 submissions.

New features from Mexican director Amat Escalante and Mexican-San Salvadoran filmmaker Tatiana Huezo are among the 28 feature projects selected for the fifth edition of European Work in Progress Cologne (Ewip), the industry pitching event held from October 17-19 in the run-up to Film Festival Cologne.

Escalante will pitch Lost In The Night, about a man searching for those responsible for his mother’s disappearance, who encounters an incompetent justice system.

The Mexico-Germany-Netherlands-Denmark co-production is produced by Nicolas Celis and Fernanda de la Peza for Tres Tunas Cine. Escalante has previously directed four features including Venice and Toronto 2016 horror The Untamed.

#QueMéxicoSeVea designed to showcase work of local industry.

Netflix has announced the latest film from Fernando Frias and the feature directorial debut of cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto as it launches an initiative to raise the profile of local filmmakers in the run-up to Mexico’s national cinema day on Monday (August 15).

Under #QueMéxicoSeVea, which translates as Let Mexico Be Seen, Netflix will present the latest from Frias – I Don’t Expect Anyone To Believe Me (No Voy A Pedirle A Nadie Que Me Crea) – whose I’m No Longer Here was acquired by the streamer and represented Mexico in the international feature...

Netflix has reaffirmed its 300 million commitment to Mexican cinema and series, announcing a slew of new movie projects to celebrate the country’s National Day of Cinema on Aug. 15 and as part of its #QueMéxicoSeVea initiative.

The year-old initiative, which can be roughly translated to “Let Mexico Be Seen” has the mission “to make visible the work of Mexican creators, screenwriters, writers, directors, actors and people who make national cinema possible,” as well as its wealth of original stories.

Leading the pack is the widely anticipated directorial debut of Oscar-nominated cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto who is helming an adaptation of Juan Rulfo’s seminal novel, “Pedro Paramo.” Produced by Redrum, the film’s crew includes Oscar-nominated production designer Eugenio Caballero and costume designer Anna Terrazas, whose notable credits include “Roma,” “Spectre” and “Bardo.”

“Our commitment to Mexican culture also includes adapting great Mexican works to the cinema, and ‘Pedro Páramo’ will...

Exclusive: Griffin Dunne (This Is Us), Rosanna Arquette (Pulp Fiction), Richard Benjamin (Michael Crichton’s Westworld), Miles Heizer (13 Reasons Why) and James Norton (Little Women) will lead the cast of an as-yet-untitled comedy from writer-director Noah Pritzker (Quitters).

Others joining the ensemble include Eisa Davis (Mare of Easttown), Marcia Jean Kurtz (If Beale Street Could Talk), John Ventimiglia (The Sopranos), Lou Taylor Pucci (You), Echo Kellum (Grand Crew), Ian Owens (Shrill), Pedro Fontaine (Spider), Simon Van Buyten (Chaussée d’Amour), Nate Mann (Licorice Pizza), Zora Casebere (On the Rocks) and Rachel Zeiger-Haag (Monsterland).

The film from Play Book Productions and Pimienta Films—marking Pritzker’s follow-up to the 2015 dramedy, Quitters—will center on Dunne’s character, Peter Pearce. Overwhelmed by his pending divorce from Maria (Arquette) and the declining health of his father (Benjamin), Peter plans a getaway to Tulum, insistent he knows nothing of his sons’ (Heizer and...

A host of global independent producers attending the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival have voiced their concerns on the issue of IP retention when it comes to working with the streamers in their local territories and are urging more agreeable terms in partnerships.

“You cannot run a company out of a producing fee, you have to run it based on exploiting the IP,” said Czech producer Filip Bobiñski, co-founder of Dramedy Productions and a board member of the European Association of Independent Producers.

In a panel hosted by Deadline and Ace Producers at Kviff’s Industry Days program, Bobiñski was joined by Birdman producer John Lesher from the U.S., Roma producer Nicolás Celis from Mexico and Polish producer Joanna Szymańska to discuss the opportunities and challenges of producing with the streamers in the post-pandemic ecosystem.

While the last few years have gradually seen streamers ramp up investments in international projects,...

As the year winds down, November brings a packed slate of new releases––including festival favorites we can already recommend and others that hold a great deal of promise. From some of the greatest auteurs working today to breakthrough voices, there’s much to check out. See our picks below.

16. The Humans (Stephen Karam; Nov. 14 in theaters and on Showtime)

One of the notable premieres at the Toronto International Film Festival was writer-director Stephen Karam’s debut feature The Humans, adapted from his Tony Award-winning play. Coming from A24, the film follows Richard Jenkins, Jayne Houdyshell, Amy Schumer, Beanie Feldstein, Steven Yeun, and June Squibb in a story of a family who gathers in Manhattan for a Thanksgiving meal as their fears are laid bare. As C.J. Prince said in his TIFF review, “Everything is wrong in The Humans, Stephen Karam’s adaptation of his Tony-winning play. Set entirely...

The trailer for Prayers for the Stolen has just been released. The film is Mexico’s official submission for International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards. You can check out the film’s new trailer above and the poster for the film below.

In a solitary town nestled in the Mexican mountains, the girls wear boyish haircuts and have hiding places underground. Ana and her two best friends take over the houses of those who have fled and dress up as women when no one is watching. In their own impenetrable universe, magic and joy abound; meanwhile, their mothers train them to flee from those who turn them into slaves or ghosts. But one day, one of the girls doesn’t make it to her hideout in time. Liberally adapted from Jennifer Clement’s eponymous 2014 novel.

About The Film Genre: Drama Running Time: 110 minutes MPAA Rating: R (for some...

After winning the Best International Feature Film Oscar a few years ago with Alfonso Cuarón’s Roma, Mexico has another notable contender this year. Tatiana Huezo’s Prayers for the Stolen, which premiered at Cannes Film Festival this summer and recently played at NYFF and BFI London, was picked up by Netflix and will now arrive next month. Ahead of the release, the new trailer has arrived.

Backed by Roma producer Nicolás Celis along with Jim Stark, the film is set in a mountain town in Mexico where three young girls take over the houses of those who have fled. Led by Ana Cristina Ordóñez González, Marya Membreño, Mayra Batalla, Norma Pablo, Eileen Yáñez, and Memo Villegas, see the trailer below.

Prayers for the Stolen comes to theaters in November and hits Netflix on November 17.

The post U.S. Trailer for Mexico's Oscar Entry Prayers for the Stolen first appeared on The Film Stage.

Mexico has become the latest country to make its submission to this year’s International Oscar race, selecting Tatiana Huezo’s Prayers For The Stolen.

The pic debuted at Cannes this year, receiving a special mention in the Un Certain Regard program. The film was also a multi-award-winner at the San Sebastian and Athens film festivals. Netflix picked up rights and will release in select theaters and online in November.

Vaguely based on Jennifer Clement’s 2014 novel, the film is set In a solitary town nestled in the Mexican mountains, where the girls wear boyish haircuts and have hiding places underground. Ana and her two best friends take over the houses of those who have fled and dress up as women when no one is watching. In their own impenetrable universe, magic and joy abound; meanwhile, their mothers train them to flee from those who turn them into slaves or ghosts.

The Guadalajara Film Festival (Ficg) will close this October’s rescheduled in-person festival with the first two episodes of Netflix’s animated event series “Maya and the Three” from daytime Emmy-winning director Jorge Gutierrez.

“Having ‘Maya’ premier at my beloved Ficg, in the capital of Mexican animation, is a dream come true!” Gutierrez told Variety after the announcement was made.

Ficg released details outlining the full program for this year’s 36th edition, which also includes a special screening of Dennis Villeneuve’s “Dune” at the festival’s opening ceremony. Other major takeaways include the awarding of this year’s El Mayahuel de Plata to Mexican Cinema, the highest award given out by the festival, to the illustrious Mexican actor Elsa Aguirre, a figurehead of the country’s golden age of cinema.

Other announced honors include the Golden Mayahuel for contribution Ibero-American cinema to Spanish director Julio Medem, who will...

Exclusive: Indie distributor and SVOD service Mubi is continuing its remarkable buying spree at Cannes 2021. The growing player has now taken rights from The Match Factory to Apichatpong Weerasethakul’s Cannes Competition drama Memoria for Germany, Italy, Latin America and India.

Palme d’Or winner Weerasethakul is debuting his latest drama on the Croisette today. Tilda Swinton stars in the movie as Jessica a woman who travels from Scotland to Bogotá to visit her sister. Ever since being startled by a loud ‘bang’ at daybreak, she is unable to sleep. However, during her journey she befriends Agnes (Jeanne Balibar), an archaeologist studying human remains discovered within a tunnel under construction, and a fish scaler, Hernan (Elkin Diaz). As the day comes to a close, she is awakened to a sense of clarity.

Weerasethakul’s ninth feature is his first shoot outside his native Thailand.

El estado del imperio

Produced by Nicolás Celis, Fernanda de la Peza.

Directed by Amat Escalante

Written by Amat Escalante, Martín Escalante, Paulina Mendoza

Starring: To be announced.

Release Date/Prediction: Seeing that casting commenced late in 2020, we can imagine a late premiere in the year and his second time competing in the Venice Film Festival.

…...

Chile’s Oscar-winning Fabula Films (“A Fantastic Woman”), the company co-founded by producer Juan de Dios Larraín and director-producer Pablo Larraín, is producing “The Sorcerers,” which will be presented this week during the Rome-set film and TV market Mercato Internazionale Audiovisivo (Mia). Variety spoke to director Christopher Murray about the film, which is co-produced by Mexico’s Pimienta Films and Germany’s The Match Factory Productions, with The Match Factory handling world sales.

“The Sorcerers” is set on the remote island of Chiloé in the late 19th century, as the newly founded Chilean state has begun wielding its might to subjugate local communities. It centers on Rosa Raín, an 11-year-old indigenous girl who lives and works with her father on a farm of German settlers. When a mysterious plague sweeps through the farm’s cattle, the German foreman brutally kills Rosa’s father in retaliation. With nowhere to turn, the...

NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (Nfmla) and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have teamed once again for the annual Nfmla Film Festival InFocus: Latinx & Hispanic Cinema Festival — but this time it’s virtual. The fest is set for September 25-26 which aligns with Hispanic Heritage Month which kicks off September 15 and continues through October 15.

With Seed&Spark as the platform, this year’s program includes two shorts programs and a presentation of Varda Bar-Kar’s documentary Fandango at the Wall which is executive produced by Quincy Jones and Carlos Santana. The docu was recently acquired by HBO.

The fest will also feature emerging filmmakers from the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Spain, Chile, and the Dominican Republic including the world premieres of Alberto Belli’s After Life Vacation, Kate Romero’s Chronology, and Alyssa Toledo’s Lift Off.

“This year’s slate contains a lot of powerful common...

Argentina and Mexico-based Jaque Content, originator of suspense drama series “La Chica Que Limpia” (“The Cleaning Lady”), now the subject of a Fox U.S. pilot remake, has unveiled plans to produce a horror movie, “Fátima,” as well as “The Hate Farm” (“La Granja del Odio”), an allegorical cyber war thriller.

“The Hate Farm” is one of 12 drama series projects selected for this week’s CoPro pitching sessions, the main industry showcase at Spain’s Conecta Fiction, Europe’s biggest Latin America TV co-production forum.

Produced by Jaque Content and Mexico City-based Kuter Casa Productora, “Fátima” joins a rapidly building lineup of projects that Jaque Content has been developing out of Mexico, such as 10-part series “Zafiros en la Piel,” an adaptation of the eponymous Argentine novel, co-produced with “Instructions Not Included” producer Mónica Lozano.

Jaque Content has also boarded Tatiana Huezo’s feature “Noche de Fuego,” from “Roma” producer...