Cine Las Americas starts next week. Austin’s anual Latin American film festival opens on May 4th with the Peruvian Film Magallenes and closes on the 8th with Viaje, from Costa Rica. Pterodáctilo has long been a big supporter of this event, as can be seen in our reviews of the 2015 festival (see them here, here, here or here).
In order to get our readers ready for the 19th Cine Las Americas Film Festival, here are the five movies that I am most excited to see:
Dir. Gabriel Lichtmann
Thursday, May 5, 4pm, The Marchesa
In this Argentine comedy, Lucas uses his obsession with detective fiction to track down the woman who robbed him during a one night-stand. Just like his 2005 Judios en el espacio, Lichtmann looks to give some witty insight into the Argentine Jewish community. This film is preceded by the Cuban short Polski, about a man who attempts to restore both an old car and his relationship with his father.
Dir. Carlos M. Quintela
Friday, May 6, 10pm, The Marchesa
This Cuban feature film has garnered a lot of praise on the island, but has been incredibly difficult to get a hold of in the US. The construction of a nuclear power plant in Cuba was left unfinished after the fall of the Soviet Union. This film looks at the aftermath of that project and the people still being affected by it, interspersing documentary footage with the fictional story of a family living in its shadows. This film debuted in the International Film Festival of Rotterdam, where Quintela won the Hivos Tiger Award for young filmmakers.
Dir. Eugene Martin
Saturday, May 7, 2pm, The Marchesa
Marisol tells the story of a young woman from North Texas who is surprised to find out that she is undocumented while registering for college classes. From the trailer, this looks to be a beautifully shot movie that tells an important story. Martin’s work returns to Cine Las Americas after the director won the Hecho in Tejas Award two years ago.
Dir. Natalia Cabral and Oriol Estrada
Saturday, May 7, 2pm, Vanguard Theater
This documentary from the Dominican Republic takes a closer look at the relationship between an older widow and her younger maid. The highs and lows of their interactions should highlight and illuminate the racial and class divides in Dominican society. Cabral and Estrada both co-wrote and co-directed this film; Cabral produced the film and worked on sound design, while Estrada also served as editor and cinematographer.
Dir. Trisha Ziff
Saturday, May 7, 8pm, MACC
Director Trisha Ziff’s work returns to Cine Las Americas after two years, when the festival screened La maleta mexicana. This time around, her documentary El hombre que vio demasiado follows a man obsessed with photographing accidents, making us question our own fascination with destruction. This film is free and open to the public.
There are many, many more films worth seeing at this year’s Cine Las Americas Film Festival. Check out their website for more information.
