OPERA PRIMA

First-time feature filmmakers Shine at upcoming 2010 San Diego Latino Film Festival (March 11-21)

* Tickets Now Available for Purchase Online. Click on film titles below to purchase tickets today!

2033 
Dir. Francisco Laresgoiti
(2009, 100 min., Mexico, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
In this ambitious sci-fi film, Villaparaiso (formely Mexico) is ruled by a totalitarian regime led by General Jamaro. Jamaro is also the president of Phaarmax, a company that produces an addictive beverage that can control the minds of the working class. Their fate rests on the shoulders of Pablo, a young man born into privilege, who awakens to the truth and joins the revolutionary movement. Partly inspired by the Cristero War, "2033" is boldly allegorical and richly designed, heralding the arrival of a visionary filmmaker. Featuring SDLFF 2008 special guest Raúl Méndez.  *U.S. Premiere  

A Mi Me Gusta 
Dir. Ralph Kinnard
(2008, 87 min., Venezuela, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Margarita Garcia dreams of becoming a great chef, but not in her home country. She leaves everything behind to start a new life in London, but a cruel twist of fate forces her to return to Venezuela. Life back home proves painful until Paul Welsare, an admired British chef, arrives in Caracas for work. She sets out to impress him and earn herself a ticket back to England but this time love gets in the way of Margarita's plans. This irresistible cross-cultural romantic comedy proves that food is the way to a woman's heart.  *U.S. Premiere

Amar a Morir

Dir. Fernando Lebrija
(2009, 119 min., Mexico/Colombia, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Alejandro Vizcaino is the sole heir to his father's banking conglomerate, but he sees his wealth as a burden rather than a blessing. Dealing with his controlling father and his corrupt cronies has made him deeply unhappy. In an act of rebellion, he goes drag racing on a Mexico City street, during which a horrible accident occurs, leaving him badly shaken. Realizing that he needs to make a drastic change, he flees his family and ends up in an impoverished, seaside community where he falls in love with Rosa, a local girl. But Rosa has problems of her own. She lives under the oppressive thumb of a gangster. Now Alejandro must finally find the courage to fight for the life he wants. With Raúl Méndez and Silverio Palacios.

Cinco Dias Sin Nora 
Dir. Mariana Chenillo
(2008, 92 min., Mexico, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Director Mariana Chenillo’s impressive directorial debut is a wonderfully dark comedy about a man who is confronted with questions of faith, family, and love. The film opens with José discovering Nora, his ex-wife, dead in her apartment. She has committed suicide. Before her death, however, Nora devised a plan to bring her family together and José back in touch with his faith. As the plan is set into motion, José becomes increasingly convinced that his wife is intent on controlling him, even in death. But just as she devised, he soon begins to face issues he has long avoided - his uneasy relationship with his son, the absence of community in his life, and his true feelings for Nora. Starring Enrique Arreola and Cecilia Suárez (2008 SDLFF guest).

Cosas Insignificantes 
Dir. Andrea Martinez
(2009, 98 min., Mexico, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Esmeralda is a teenager who works in a Mexico City restaurant and has an unusual obsession. She collects items either discarded or forgotten by strangers and keeps them in a box under her bed. Fed up with the world, she finds solace in her treasure box and makes up elaborate stories about the people to whom they belong. One day, Dr. Gabrieli, a neighbor, leaves behind a piece of paper containing an important phone number. Through a series of events, Esmeralda befriends the old man and begins to learn that true human connections can only exist in reality. Starring Bárbara Mori (2009 SDLFF guest).

Don’t Let Me Drown 

Dir. Cruz Angeles
(2009, 105 min., USA, English)
Cruz Angeles' first feature is a moving testament to the power of love and friendship in the face of tragedy. Lalo and Stephanie are two Brooklyn kids, both of whom have been personally affected by the 9/11 tragedy. She lost her sister in the terrorist attack and his father works day and night clearing debris from Ground Zero. After meeting at a mutual friend's party at a local park, Lalo begins to pursue a still-grieving, hesitant Stephanie. With patience, humor and authentic emotion, Cruz shows the slow evolution of their relationship, which provides them solace from the pain and struggle of everyday life. Premiered at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival. With Gina Torres, Damian Alcazar and Ricardo Chavira ("Desperate Housewives").

Libertador Morales - El Justiciero 
Dir. Efterpi Charalambidis
(2009, 102 min., Venezuela, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Taxi driver by day and cloaked crusader at night, Libertador Morales is an eccentric motorcycle hero intent on stopping a street gang suspected of robbing a church. Venezuela's official submission to the 2010 Academy Awards, "Libertador Morales" is a film grounded in the real-life problems of crime in Caracas. Accused of a heinous crime he did not commit, Libertador is driven by a desire for vindication and an innate sense of justice. Through the course of his adventure, he adopts a zany cohort and finds something else to fight for: love. With Rafael Gil and Alba Vallvé. 

Morenita, El Escandalo
Dir. Alan Jonsson Gavica
(2008, 92 min., Mexico, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
This first film from director Alan Jonsson Gavica, "Morenita" tells the story of Mateo, a humble young man who is forced to engage in illicit activities in order to save his grandfather from an illness. He agrees to smuggle drugs from Tijuana to San Diego, using a method as ingenious as it is preposterous: he employs racing pigeons as drug couriers. When his plan goes awry, and facing death threats from a notorious Mexican drug dealer, he hijacks the image of the venerated Virgin De Guadalupe, causing pandemonium throughout Mexico. Starring Dagoberto Gama and Maya Zapata, previous SDLFF guests. 

Musica en Espera
Dir. Hernan A. Golfrid
(2009, 106 min., Argentina, Spanish w/ English subtitles)
Eziekiel is a composer with writer's block who must come up with a tune for a job soon, or his mortgage will go unpaid. While on hold with the bank he is inspired by the fleeting sounds of a "muzak" tune. Desperate to hear it again he goes to the bank and meets Paola, a very pregnant and very single bank employee. Paola agrees to help Ezekiel find the "music on hold" he is searching for, as long as he is willing to pose as her boyfriend for the duration of a visit from her rather conservative mother. This Argentine box office smash is a well-acted and intelligent must for all lovers of the romantic comedy genre. Starring veteran actors Norma Aleandro and Diego Peretti. 

Nevando Voy 
Dir. Candela Figueira and Maitena Muruzabal
(2008, 99 min., Spain, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
It's winter in a snow-chain factory and the orders are piling up. When Javier, the supervisor, asks management for reinforcements, three more employees arrive. At first the atmosphere at the factory is as dreary as the frigid weather outside. But things change when one of the employees, to combat her absolute boredom, begins to break the rules little by little. The others catch on but rather than report her, they join in and transform their workplace into a festive playground. This impressive first film by Candela Figueira and Maitena Muruzabal captures factory life in a way rarely seen: personal, flirtatious, introspective.

Norteado

Dir. Rigoberto Pérezcano
(2009, 93 min., Mexico/Spain, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Andres, a farmer from the Mexican state of Oaxaca is determined to gain entry into the United States in search of a better life. When he reaches the border, he befriends Cata and Ela, two women who run a convenience store in Tijuana, who themselves have been abandoned by their husbands for the lure of El Norte. After repeated failed attempts to get to "the other side," he turns to his new friends for support and they become his de-facto family. Roberto Pérezcano directed this warm and compelling immigration drama about the blurred lines that exist between nations and people.

El Regalo de la Pachamama 
Dir. Toshifumi Matsushita
(2009, 102 min., Bolivia/Japan, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
Director Toshifumi Matsushita’s debut feature film is a spiritual tale set in Bolivia about a 13-year-old colchani who embarks on his first caravan with his father. Leaving the arresting scenery of the salt lake where they live, they travel on the backs of llamas for months in order to trade the precious mineral for other Andean products. Along the way, the boy falls in love, learns about other indigenous cultures, sees the ugly side of civilization and understands how deeply connected he is to the land.

La Virgen Negra
Dir. Ignacio Castillo Cottin
(2008, 120 min., Venezuela, Spanish w/ English Subtitles)
When a traditional sculpture of the Virgin Mary is replaced by a "Black Virgin" at the church of a small Venezuelan fishing village, strange things begin to happen. The sun stopps setting, crime becomes non-existent, the ill are miraculously cured, and life is magically transformed for the town's citizens. A few months later, another change occurs, but this time magic would not be on their side. Starring Carmen Maura and Angelica Aragón.