How the Oscars Welcomed the Rising Colombian Cinema
This 2016 seems to be an exciting time for Colombian cinema. As a matter of fact, a Colombian director has recently made the Oscars' list of nominees this year.
Despite several renowned Hollywood directors in the list, Colombian director Ciro Guerra stood out as one of a few Latin American directors to have been nominated this year. According to Latin Correspondent, Guerra's Oscar nomination for his film, "El Abrazo de la Serpiente" ("Embrace of the Serpent"), is the first for the Colombian cinema.
Colombian films have been competing on some of the movie industry's most respected award-giving bodies such as Cannes, Sundance and the Oscars. Unfortunately, Hollywood films generally dominated the international market.
In addition, Latin America's fierce local competitors such as Mexico and Argentina have also left the Colombian cinema at the curb. Luckily, the Colombian films appeared to be more promising, attracting more accolades and recognition from the industry's most prestigious platforms.
Even though Guerra took the country's first Oscar nomination, he is not the only Colombian director who has been recognized by film platforms. El Tiempo reported that Manolo Cruz and his movie, "La Cienaga: Entre el Mar y la Tierra" ("Between Sea and Land), won both the Audience's Choice Award and the Special Jury Award for Acting at this year's Sundance Film Festival.
The film, which marked Cruz's directorial debut, was also nominated in the World Cinema category. And aside from being at the helm, Cruz also acted in the film and wrote the script.
Aside from Cruz and Guerra, Felipe Guerrero is also another notable Colombian director who recently proved the nation's film industry is on the rise. In fact, his first feature-length film titled, "Oscuro Animal," was nominated in The Hivos Tiger Awards Competition at the International Film Festival of Rotterdam.
The film depicted the tale of three women who fled the depths of the jungle to explore the outskirts of Bogotá searching of a new life.
Cesar Acevedo's "La Tierra y la Sombra" ("Land and Shade"), on the other hand, gained the well-regarded Camera d'Or award at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival. And actress Marleyda Soto was recognized at the Viña del Mar Film Festival in Chile for her portrayal in the film.
With all these accolades, Guerra emphasized that the most vital part of the nomination is to be able to reach the foreign audience even if the movies are spoken in indigenous languages, El Espectador noted.
In spite of the early challenges faced by the Colombian cinema, its resilience, strong symbolic and thematic importance as well as the remarkable portrayals of the region's indigenous culture and history paved the way for great citations and recognitions from various internationally renowned film awards.
Subscribe to Latin Post!
Sign up for our free newsletter for the Latest coverage!