28th August, 2008
This year’s edition of the Discovering Latin America Film Festival brings to light a range of feature films, which comprehend both mainstream and auteur works. With the variety of public that the past editions of the DLA Film Festival have attracted, the 6th edition was designed to entertain London cinephiles, people interested in Latin American culture, and also Latin Americans missing the comfort of they home countries.
Our programme offers a handful of treasures coming from across the Atlantic. We have the honour to bring Mexican actor and director Diego Luna and producer Pablo Cruz for a Q&A session of the film Night buffalo (El buffalo de la noche). Diego will also be here to exhibit his documentary J.C Chávez.
Another remarkable presence will be that of director Paulo Caldas, whose film Perfumed ball (O baile perfumado) was a mark in the production of Brazilian films in the 1990s. This time, his third film, the award-winning Happy desert (Deserto feliz), comes as a UK premiere and will be followed by a Q&A with the director.
Peruvian director Augusto Tamayo and the producer of his new film, Nathalie Hendrickx, will present their new feature Crossing a shadow (Una sombra al frente). The film was chosen to represent Peru in next year’s Oscar ceremony. This epic feature was the biggest production recently made in Peru and presents a well-known cast from that country.
There are many other exciting and outstanding films in the programme. Countries not usually represented, such as Bolivia, Peru and Colombia have been given more space and attention in this edition, with a number of films comparable to the number of Argentinian and Brazilian ones.
This year we are also delighted to announce the screening of the most successful productions in recent years in Brazil and Venezuela, within the CONTEMPORARY HITS section. These features hold a crucial place in contemporary Latin American cinema, having being awarded several international prizes. They also condense tendencies that will be seen in future productions, while sustaining a unique dialogue with international cinema. The advent of such films, represent an unparalleled phenomenon in the history of Brazilian and Venezuelan cinema and they could not be dismissed in our program.
We hope the 6th DLA Film Festival will please our diverse audience.
Mariana Bietti for Mexican, Central American and Caribbean Feature Films
Anamaria Boschi for Brazilian, Mexican, Central American and Caribbean Feature Films
Mariana Cunha for Brazilian Feature Films
Erika Tambke for South American Feature Films