News

Jodorowsky actor directorial debut to be presented at new co-production event; Reygadas curates for Filmfest Hamburg.

Argentinian actor Leandro Taub’s directorial debut The Dream of the Guest and Slovenian filmmaker Jan Cvitkovic’s new feature film Mercedes Fire Horse are among the projects to be presented at a new co-production event, the Matchbox Coproduction Lounge, during this year’s Oldenburg International Film Festival (Sept 14-18).

Matchbox’s inaugural edition will also present Buddy Giovinazzo’s Potsdamer Platz which had been the last project, which the late Tony Scott had optioned to direct.

Taub, who was a lead actor in veteran Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky’s Cannes competition film Endless Poetry this year, wrote the screenplay for the comedy drama which centres on how a family’s life changes dramatically when a special guest, claiming to be building a space ship, moves into their home to “confront them” with his strong belief in the possibility of the...

Mexican filmmaker to deliver career interview and take part in post-screening Q&As.

The 22nd Sarajevo Film Festival (Aug 12-20) has invited Mexican director, writer and producer Amat Escalante to be the subject of its Tribute programme.

Escalante, the director of Cannes 2013 award-winner Heli as well as Sangre and The Bastards, will present his films in Sarajevo that often present despairing portraits of violence, in Mexico and the Us.

Escalante, who has previously visited the festival twice, will meet the audience during a career interview and will take part in regular Q&A sessions following the screenings.

Escalante has spent the majority of his life in Guanajuato, Mexico, though he was born in Barcelona, Spain (1979). He returned to Barcelona to study editing and sound at the Centre of Cinematographic Studies in Catalunya. Later on he studied at the International School of Film and Television in Cuba.

His films were produced by Mantarraya Producciones, a Mexican...

Films in Progress, a joint initiative between Cinélatino, Rencontres de Toulouse and the San Sebastian Festival, serves to facilitate the completion of rigorously selected independent Latin American films that might be facing difficulties in funding their way into the post-production stage.

Since 2002, this double event presents an annual selection of 12 works-in-progress in two sessions: 6 films in Toulouse in march and 6 films in September in San Sebastián.

Films in Progress allows for these films to be finished, it gives them an international visibility among professionals and promotes their circulation and exhibition.

Films in Progress encourages the meeting and cooperation between the producers of the selected works-in-progress and European partners to help the films reach more screens and audiences. <ore than 300 professionals, among the most influential on the European and international industries take part each year in these two sessions. Films in Progress is the unmissable and strategic meeting point for Latin American films and the rest of the world.

In the last few years, Films in Progress has contributed efficiently to the completion, exposition and commercialization of the most remarkable Latin American films: "Tony Manero" by Pablo Larraín, "Gloria" by Sebastián Lelio, "Sangre" by Amat Escalante, "Infancia Clandestina" by Benjamín Ávila, "La Sirga" by William Vega, "La Playa" by Juan Andrés Arango, "Bad Hair" by Mariana Rondón, "Historia del Miedo" by Benjamin Naishtat, "To Kill a Man" by Alejandro Fernández Almendras, "Ixcanul" by Jayro Bustamente, "From Afar" by Lorenzo Vigas among others.

By involving film professionals capable of contributing to the film's post-production, and by encouraging distributors and promoters to diversify their offer, San Sebastian and Toulouse hope to develop and strengthen, with as much pragmatism and efficiency as possible, respect for and the promotion of cultural diversity based on a spirit of solidarity and cooperation.

Three Awards

-Toulouse's Films in Progress Award consists of 58.850 € in post-production services in France offered by prestigious organizations: a grant from the Cnc, a residence in Paris by the Ccas, audio post-production from Mactari, technical help from Titra Tvs, color correction program by Firelfly, an auditorium and other materials for the film's calibration from Commune Image and the coordination of the post-production from Eaux vives.

-Ciné + Award consists in the guaranteed purchase of the film by a French distributor for the amount of 15.000 euros by Ciné +

-European Distributors and Exhibitors Award consists in the promotion of the winning film in the network of 130 distributors part of Europa Distribution and in the 2.000 exhibitors part of Cicae.

Submission

The feature films presented must be a minority or major Latin American productionThe length of the feature film in its final version must be over 60 minutesThe film must be at the post-production stage (first cut at minimum)The cut submitted for evaluation must be subtitled in English or in Spanish if it is not in Spanish.

There is no charge of fees for the registrationDeadline : January 20th, 2016

In case the film is selected:The director and the producer have to be in Toulouse on March 16th, 17th and 18th, 2016The film must be subtitled in EnglishThe screening format is Blu Ray (" copies for back up)Selection will be announced in early March 2016

Online Submission Form...

The Untamed

Director: Amat Escalante

Writer: Amat Escalante and Gibran Portela

Amat Escalante, protégé of Carlos Reygadas, snagged the Best Director award at Cannes 2013 for his unpleasant but striking third feature, Heli (previously, he’d won the Fipresci prize for his debut Sangre in 2005, while his 2008 sophomore film Los Bastardos playing in Un Certain Regard). He’s back with a very ambitious project, The Untamed, described as a “social/sci-fi movie about machismo, homophobia, and the repression of women,” catalyzed by the crash of a meteorite into a mountain. Based on his heavy-hitting past works, we can only image what’s in store for us with this mixture of ‘horror’ and ‘realism.’

Cast: Tba.

Production Co./Producer(s): Mantarraya Film’s Jaime Romandia, SnowGlobe Films’s Katrin Pors

U.S. Distributor: Rights Available. Tbd (domestic) Tbd (international).

Release Date: The film’s producers have stated the project will be ready for May,...

Amat Escalante's Los bastardos is playing on Mubi in the Us through December 9.Having directed three Mexican feature films, Spanish-born director Amat Escalante, grows more and more ambitious with each film as he refines his sobering and rigorous long-take aesthetic. At the same time, these features form a cohesive unit in which narratives center on, in, and around houses. If Roman Polanski has his apartment trilogy, Amat Escalante has his house trilogy. For now.In the spare opening of Sangre (2005), a man lies flat on his back. Blood trickles down his forehead. As he slowly sits up, a woman briskly walks through the frame, from the upper right to the bottom left-hand corner. She ignores the man completely. What is this abstract image of? Ignorance? Humiliation? Defeat? Sangre unfolds the image like an accordion. The supine position mutates and varies all throughout the film, evoking resting, sex, defeat, and death.

Films in Progress 27 will take place on March 26 and 27 within the framework of the 27th edition of the festival Cinélatino, Rencontres de Toulouse.

Since 2002, this double event jointly organized by the festivals of Toulouse and San Sebastián, presents an annual selection of 12 works-in-progress within two sessions: 6 films in Toulouse in march and 6 films in San Sebastián in September.

Films in progress promotes the meeting and cooperation between the producers of the selected works-in-progress and European partners to make the films reach screens and audiences. With more than 400 professionals, among the most influential on the European and international level, taking part each year to these two sessions, Films in Progress is the unmissable and strategic meeting point with Latin American films and professionals connected to Latin America.

In recent years, Films in Progress have contributed efficiently to the completion, diffusion and commercialization of some the most remarkable Latin American films: "Tony Manero" by Pablo Larraín, "Gloria" by Sebastián Lelio, "Sangre" by Amat Escalante, "Clandestine Childhood" by Benjamín Ávila, "La Sirga" by William Vega, "La Playa D.C." by Juan Andrés Arango, "Bad Hair" by Mariana Rondón, "History of Fear" by Benjamin Naishtat, "To Kill a Man" by Alejandro Fernández Almendras.

Film in Progress is a label that generates trust between the community of professionals from both side of Atlantic Ocean.

Awards

Three prizes will be awarded in Film in Progress 27

Toulouse Films in Progress Award consists of 58.850 € in post-production services in France, offered by prestigious organizations: a grant from the Cnc, a residence in Paris by the Ccas, sound post-production by Mactari, technical works from Titra Tvs, color correction program by Firefly, auditorium and material for calibration from Commune Imageand the coordination of the post-production by Eaux vives.

Ciné + Award consists of the guarantee to the French distributor of the purchase of the winning film for the amount of 15.000 euros by Cine + Broadcast.

European Distributors and Exhibitors Award consists in the promotion of the winning film in the networks of the 130 distributors of Europa Distribution and the 2.000 members of the Cicae.

Submission of a work in progress

The feature films presented must be a Latin American production The length of the feature film in its final version must be over 60 minutes The film must be at the post-production stage (minimum first cut) The cut that is presented for evaluation must last a minimum of 45 minutes The cut presented for evaluation must be subtitled in English if it is not Spanish-speaking There is no charge of fees for the registration The application must be done online: here Deadline : January 30, 2015 In the case that the film is selected:

The director and the producer have to be in Toulouse on March 25, 26 and 27 of 2015 The film must be subtitled in English The screening format is Blu-ray (2 copies for back up) The selection will be announced in early March 2015.

Films in Progress 27 will take place on the 26th and 27th of March within the framework of the 27th edition of the festival Cinélatino, Rencontres de Toulouse.

Since 2002, this double event jointly organized by the festivals of Toulouse and San Sebastián, presents an annual selection of 12 works-in-progress in two sessions: 6 films in Toulouse in march and 6 films in San Sebastián in September.

Films in progress promotes the cooperation between the producers of the selected works-in-progress and European partners to make the films reach screens and audiences across the world. With more than 400 professionals, among the most influential on the European and international level, taking part each year to these two sessions, Films in Progress is the unmissable and strategic meeting point with Latin American films and professionals connected to Latin America.

In the last years, Films in Progress have contributed efficiently to the finalization, difusion and commercialization of the most remarkable Latin American films: "Tony Manero" by Pablo Larraín, "Gloria" by Sebastián Lelio, "Sangre" by Amat Escalante, "Clandestine Childhood" by Benjamín Ávila, "La Sirga" by William Vega, "La Playa" by Juan Andrés Arango, "Bad Hair" by Mariana Rondón, "Historia del Miedo" by Benjamin Naishtat, "To Kill a Man" by Alejandro Fernández Almendras...

Film in Progress is a label that generates trust between the community of professionals from both sides of Atlantic Ocean.

Awards

Three prizes will be awarded in Film in Progress 27

Toulouse Films in Progress Award consists of 58.850 € of post-production services to be done in France, offered by prestigious organizations: a grant from the Cnc, a residence in Paris by the Ccas, sound post-production by Mactari, technical works from Titra Tvs, color correction program by Firefly, auditorium and material for calibration from Commune Image and the coordination of the post-production by Eaux vives.Ciné + Award consists in the guarantee that Cine + Broadcast will be the French distributor of the winning film. It will be purchased for 15.000 euros.European Distributors and Exhibitors Award consists in the promotion of the winning film in the networks of the 130 distributors of Europa Distribution and the 2.000 members of the Cicae.

Submission of a work-in-progress

The feature films presented must be a minority or major Latin American productionThe length of the feature film in its final version must be over 60 minutesThe film must be at the post-production stage (minimum first cut)The cut that is presented for evaluation must last a minimum of 45 minutesThe cut presented for evaluation must be subtitled in English if it is not Spanish-speakingThere is no charge of fees for the registrationThe application must be done online: hereDead line : January the 30th 2015

In the case that the film is selected:

the director and the producer have to be in Toulouse on March 25, 26 and 27 of 2015the film must be subtitled in Englishthe screening format is Blu Ray (2 copies for back up)The selection will be announced in early March 2015.

★★★☆☆The third film from Mexican director Amat Escalante (Los Bastardos, Sangre), Heli (2013) could perhaps be accused of following the shoulder-shrug school of social commentary. An at times almost-unspeakably brutal portrayal of one young family caught up in a cocaine deal gone wrong, Escalante's Cannes prize-winner offers little respite for its titular factory worker, who finds himself horrifically tortured for his unwitting role in the theft of several parcels of prime marching powder. Neither does the filmmaker offer any fresh optimism for his country's future, torn apart as it is by corruption, gang violence and narcotics. And yet, Escalante still manages to evoke beauty through some exemplary visuals.

Fast, Cheap and Out of Control: Escalante’s Mexico Still Suffering

Amat Escalante doesn’t fall far from his own tree with Heli, graphic violence once again contours what is necessarily difficult to fathom, swallow and watch. Employing crisp, unflinching, arresting visuals and a genial temporal and spatial mapping, the more alluring portions in this fractured timeline narrative are the protagonist’s gradual transformation into machismo and rarely addressed forms of psychological pathos. Tantalized with extreme, shock-value friendly, albeit necessary violent depictions that simply underline desensitized conditioning on a much smaller scale, here the filmmaker can be faulted not for his prowess in framing or filling his composition, but for trying to package several footnotes that might have contributed to the hemorrhaging nation.

Sangre (2005), his brilliant debut film was a sardonic, nihilistic take on an already fragile nation, while Los basterdos (2008) was hell-bent on symbolically addressing the humiliation brought about...

So far onscreen, Mexican narcoculture has generated mostly grim documentaries, but given the carnage and the proximity, you can easily imagine the movies coming from both sides of the border: the mezzobrow hand-wringers, the trigger-joy gangster trips, the based-on-true-story crusades. What we might not have seen coming is something like Heli, a dead-eyed, lyrical art film that kicks you in the throat.

With his two previous films, Sangre (2005) and Los Bastardos (2008), Amat Escalante has been finding his way between self-conscious minimalism and ball-busting shock, and with Heli he strides ever closer to a war-zone balance, a style that dovetails poetic resonance and unblinking horror. In the meantime, he and his mentor, Carlos Reygadas, have red...

★★★★☆ Heli (Armando Espitia), the protagonist of Amat Escalante's 2013 Palme d'Or nominee of the same name, is a young Mexican who lives with his father, his son, his young wife (Linda Gonzalez) and 12-year-old sister, Estella (Andrea Vergara). He's prone to bad luck, keen on his naps and, when a census taker comes to the house, hesitates about how many people live there with him. However, when 17-year-old army cadet Beto (Juan Eduardo Palacios) falls in love with Estella and makes plans for the two of them to run away together, Heli's cataclysmic knee-jerk reaction will plunge the family into pitiless and brutal violence.

Narrative films concerned with roving drug gangs, political corruption and barbaric acts of extreme and horrendous violence are depressingly common nowadays and have formed the backdrop for several high profile Hollywood movies in recent years, including Oliver Stone's Savages (2012) and Mexico's own Miss Bala (2011). However,...

By the fest’s end in about nine days from now, we might pointing to the first film that showed during the ’13 edition as the “L’enfant terrible” selection of the fest. Amat Escalante’s Heli set the competition aflame for the film’s disturbing violent elements (a much talked about torture scene) which simply confirm that not unlike his peers, this Mexican helmer’s shock-filled social commentary on the cycle of violence (in all shapes and forms) is also a discourse on Mexico’s trickle down corruption. Following his equally jarring Sangre and Los bastardos (both premiered on the Croisette) Escalante’s simple modus operandi equation is to employ mostly non-actors, impale his audience with the more grotesque aspects found in human nature and favor hopelessness and miserablism over hope. The film was received with a below average type grade. Click on the chart below for the latest grades.

A depressing insight into a poor family in Mexico makes for uneasy if occasionally powerful viewing in Heli, Amat Escalante’s third feature following Sangre in 2005 and Los bastardos in 2008.

Heli is named after its central character, a poor young man who works at a local Japanese Automobile factory and lives with his partner, their daughter, his sister and his father in a small and rundown house. His sister Estela is only twelve but is in a relationship with the 17 year-old Beto, a police cadet who is currently going through some very gruelling training – the sole American voice in the film is an instructor ordering that he must roll over his own vomit – in order to join the Mexican drug war.

In an effort to impress Estela and to fund their running away together, Beto steals a large amount of cocaine and the effects of this choice are felt not...

Barcelona-born, Mexico City-raised Amat Escalante is three for three with Cannes. His first two films, Sangre (2005) and Los Bastardos (2008) both played in the Un Certain Regard category and this year...

Amat Escalante is the youngest director by a considerable margin to have a film In Competition at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, though he’s no stranger to having his films shown there – his debut Sangre and follow-up The Bastards have both showed up in Un Certain Regard in previous years. His third feature, Heli, sees the director graduate to the big(ger) leagues, joining the likes of Soderbergh, Ozon, Miike and the Coen Brothers this year in the festival’s most esteemed banner, competing for the prized Palme d’Or. It’s a grim start for Escalante’s latest, which opens with a man being thrown and hanged from a bridge, the motivation behind which we do not realize for quite some time. Like many – arguably too many – entries into the so-called New Mexican Wave of recent years, the narrative focal point to Heli is a combination of neo-realism (early glimpses of the titular character...

Heli – Amat Escalante

Section: Main Competition

Buzz: Steadily guided by Cannes’ fest head honcho Thierry Fremieux, Amat Escalante receives a major big stage showing for his long-awaited third film (worth noting it was among the four hand-picked winners for the 2010 Sundance/Nhk International Filmmakers Awards along with Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Elena” and Zeitlin’s “Beasts of the Southern Wild“). Sangre (Un Certain Regard – 2005), his debut feature announced the helmer as an up-and-comer in Mexican cinema, while his home-invasion follow-up Los Bastardos divided up the critical mass when it showed once again in Cannes in 2008 (Un Certain Regard).

The Gist: In a small Mexican town, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared.

Police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation and love – all included in Amat Escalante‘s upcoming Heli movie, which has been selected to compete for the Palme d’Or at the upcoming Cannes Film Festival. Today, we’re here to give you an official poster and the first clip from this Mexican drama. Definitely worth your attention, check it out… Escalante, who stands behind 2005′s “Sangre” and 2008′s “Los Bastardos”, brings us this quite intense story which revolves around a 12-year-old girl named Estela, who falls in love with a young police cadet. The pair plans to run away and get married, but the violence in the region...

Today, the Cannes Film Festival revealed the official screening schedule, and this year finds the line-up unusually backloaded, with many of the splashy big titles unspooling in the final days of the fest. And while some may be disappointed (particularly those who weren't planning to stay for the whole fest), it does give the smaller films a better chance to shine and get some attention. One such film that will benefit from a bit more space to spread its wings is Mexican entry "Heli." The film comes from Amat Escalante, a rising filmmaker who first came to Cannes with "Sangre" in 2005, which landed a slot in the Un Certain Regard section, and won the Fipresci Prize from the International Critics. In 2008 he returned to Un Certain Regard with "Los Bastardos," and this year he's in the main Competition with "Heli."  Starring Armando Espitia, Andrea Vergara, Linda Gonzalez and Juan Eduardo Palacios,...

#21. Amat Escalante’s Heli

Gist: Less encompassing than the Un Certain Regard selected Miss Bala, shot in various locations outside the city of Guanajuato, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared.

Prediction: Should it be finally ready (we damn hope it is), the film which Escalante calls a cross between Sangre (2005) and Los bastardos (2008) should follow in the same footsteps as his previous pair: three films all selected for the Un Certain Regard section.

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Heli

Director: Amat Escalante

Writers: Escalante and Gabriel Reyes

Producer(s): Mantarraya

U.S. Distributor: Rights Available

Cast: Tba

Information is so scarce on the production, yet I’ve been keeping tabs on Amat Escalante’s third film since it won the 2010 Sundance Institute and Nhk award (same year as Andrey Zvyagintsev’s “Elena” and Benh Zeitlin’s “Beasts of the Southern Wild“). Escalante calls the film a cross between Sangre and Los bastardos.

Gist: Shot in various locations outside the city of Guanajuato, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared.

Release Date: Third times a charm – this should be at the Cannes Film Festival once again. Followed by North American debuts at Nyff and/or AFI Film Fest.

[Editor's note: I've asked our team of world film correspondents to dish out their top 5 films of the year from their respective countries. Here's Christine Davila's take on the Best in Mexican Cinema in 2010.] To be clear, this is a list of Mexican films which either: traveled far in the 2010 film festival front, were critically acclaimed, received a healthy theatrical run, and which I consider the strongest celluloid among the Mexican narrative feature film trenches from where I culled and screened deep. Okay maybe not that deep, considering there are only about 100 feature narrative films produced in Mexico a year. But given that figure, this small percentage illustrates a strong dose of diversity and range of genre, budget, but more importantly original strong stories and voices. Before I begin....one special mention goes out to REVOLUCIÓN by Carlos Reygadas, Amat Escalante, Fernando Eimbcke, Mariana Chenillo, Patricia Riggen, Diego Luna, Gael Garcia Bernal, Gerardo Naranjo, Rodrigo Garcia, and Rodrigo Plá. The first time I ever heard use of the word Portmanteau was when this movie starting popping up at festivals beginning with the world premiere...

If the Main Competition suffered because of the lack of film output from last year (Venice and Tiff have already seen the benefits), next year's edition of the Cannes film festival is already shaping up to be a fantastic year with names like Pedro, Von Trier, Dardennes, Cronenberg, PTA and Salles in the possible line-up. For those who made a case about there not being much female representation -- they'll be pleased to see that the latest works from Andrea Arnold and Lynne Ramsay should be in the line-up --- and although I didn't add him to the list below, we could also see Steve McQueen's latest project in the fest. Here are a list of 20 projects I think will be in the fest next year. - If the Main Competition suffered because of the lack of film output from last year (Venice and Tiff have already seen the...

If the Main Competition suffered because of the lack of film output from last year (Venice and Tiff have already seen the benefits), next year's edition of the Cannes film festival is already shaping up to be a fantastic year with names like Pedro, Von Trier, Dardennes, Cronenberg, PTA and Salles in the possible line-up. For those who made a case about there not being much female representation -- they'll be pleased to see that the latest works from Andrea Arnold and Lynne Ramsay should be in the line-up --- and although I didn't add him to the list below, we could also see Steve McQueen's latest project in the fest. Here are a list of 20 projects I think will be in the fest next year. A Dangerous Method - David Cronenberg Many of you might still know it as A Talking Cure - the screenplay received lots of...

Like his mentor Reygadas, Escalante favors a brute force aesthetic realism that goes a long way in describing the realities of modern day Mexico. - #23. Heli Director/Writer: Amat EscalanteProducers:&nbsp;Jaime Romandia (producer for Carlos Reygadas' films)Distributor: Rights Available. Photo Exclusive: Featuring filmmaker Amat Escalante. The Gist: In a small Mexican town, where most citizens work for an automobile assembly plant or the local drug cartel, Heli is confronted with police corruption, drug trafficking, sexual exploitation, love, guilt and revenge in the search for his father who has mysteriously disappeared. Cast: None mentioned so far, but I imagine he'll use non-actors who might have experienced some of the realities proposed in the screenplay. &nbsp; &nbsp; Why is it on the list?:&nbsp;Like his mentor Reygadas, Escalante favors a brute force aesthetic realism that goes a long way in describing the realities of modern day Mexico.

Wedged between Sundance and Berlin is the extremely important Rotterdam film festival. Rotterdam functions as Europe's first major film fest of the year, but it seconds as a premiere destination for filmmakers such as Andrei Zvyagintsev (The Return), Amat Escalante (Sangre) and Juraj Lehotsky (Blind Loves) who make the kind of films that need a "helping hand". This list is of obvious interest because we'll be talking about this projects-turned-into-films down the road - we only need to look at Venice/Tiff for recent examples such as Samuel Maoz's Lebanon and Shirin Neshat's Women without Men to see the quality of films that got their start here. - Wedged between Sundance and Berlin is the extremely important Rotterdam film festival. Rotterdam functions as Europe's first major film fest of the year, but it seconds as a premiere destination for filmmakers such as Andrei Zvyagintsev (The Return), Amat Escalante...

• I'm a huge fan of Amat Escalante's debut film Sangre, but I was baffled and unimpressed by the Un Certain Regard screening I caught last May of his sophomore piece Los Bastardos. In many ways the story-line of a pair of young migrant Mexican workers who commit a brutal crime reminded me of certain facets from Haneke's Funny Games. I expect the auteur filmmaker to bring much of the same provocation and similar visual treatment to his next work, Heli. Scripted by Escalante, this will be set in the world of Mexican drug dealers and I wonder how far the filmmaker who favors "realism" is willing to go to achieve an aesthetic truth. One thing is for sure, it may be an ideal companion piece to another film I recently saw about gangs and border towns in Sin Nombre. Variety reports that the pic will produced by Jaime Romandia’s Mantarraya Produciones,

...

• Day seven's following screening was a film that I had wanted to see even before they announced the selections for the Un Certain Regard - while I'm a huge fan of his first feature Sangre (which also played in the section), unfortunately Amat Escalante's second film didn't do much for me as it is easily comparable to re-doing Haneke's Funny Games for a different setting. Filmed in a style that aesthetically resembles many Mexican productions that have populated Cannes over the years, from the intro title card and accompanying crazed music, to the fact that this is heightened sense of violence and to the fact that this is a home invasion, Los Bastardos comes across as an empty vessel instead of an enlarged window on the difficulties of the immigrant experience. Escalante was on hand for the first 11:00 a.m. screening. ...

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• I’m guessing that with one third of the films representing first time efforts, this year’s Un Certain Regard section will be a crapshoot for buyers and critics alike. Those that stick out among the pack come from promising directors with sophomore features such as…: Milh Hadha Al-Bahr (Salt of this Sea) (Annemarie Jacir)We often see stories about the immigrant struggle in a country that is not theirs…this is the flipside Pov a former Palestinian finding it difficult to find her footing in her native land. Jacir’s debut looks like a sure bet for a healthy film festival circuit. Los Bastardos (Amat Esclante)Crossing the line for a pair of Mexican immigrants appears to take on a whole new meaning with Amat Esclante’s 2nd feature. His debut, Sangre belongs to the contemporary, art-house bunch of films that portrays a dismal life. Los Bastardos

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• Apart from film examples such as The Band's Visit, Munyurangabo (Liberation Day) and Terror's Advocate, last year’s Un Certain Regard Section had its share of misfires – films that took the experimental route but felt more like - old bath tub water. This year’s batch of twenty titles includes another mix of veteran and first time filmmakers with perhaps the James Toback's bio-docu on friend (Iron Mike) Tyson, Abel Ferrara’s latest work Chelsea On The Rocks and finally Bong Joon Ho, Leos Carax and Michel Gondry collab Tokyo! to garner the most attention from buyers and critic crowds. The five films I’m most looking forward to are Germany’s Wolke 9 by Andreas Dresen, Los Bastardos by Amat Escalante (he is the was the Dop for Carlos Reygadas’ first two films and a couple of years back he released another dismal portrait of Mexico with Sangre.

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• South American cinema comes in like a lion at the 61st Festival de Cannes, with three films competing for the Palme D’or. That’s not even counting Steven Soderbergh’s Che films (The Argentine and Guerilla) which also heavily represent the region. Walter Salles, who’s The Motorcycle Diaries competed for the Palme in 2004 (winning two awards), returns to the fest with Linha de Passe, a Brazilian production set in Sao Paolo’s urban projects. The film follows four soccer-obsessed brothers as they fight to escape poverty and realize their dreams. Argentina has two films in competition, both by Cannes neophytes. La Mujer Sin Cabeza by female director Lucrecia Martel, considered one of the pioneers of New Argentina Cinema, is a politically charged women’s drama. The highly buzzed Leonara by Pablo Trapero tells the story of a young mother trying to raise her son from prison. The

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MEXICO CITY -- Romania's The Death of Mr. Lazarescu, a drama about medical ineptness, won best picture at the third edition of the Mexico City International Contemporary Film Festival. The FICCO, as the festival is called, gave best director honors to Chinese helmer Liu Jiayin for drama Oxhide and to Lech Kowalsky for documentary East of Paradise, a U.S.-Poland co-production. The FICCO, one of Mexico's top movie showcases, closed Saturday. Amat Escalante's Sangre, a Mexico-France co-production, took best first work. Sangre was one of only two Mexican pictures in competition this year.

MEXICO CITY -- The third edition of the Mexico City International Contemporary Film Festival, one of the top movie showcases here, will open with Terrence Malick's The New World and unspool 262 pictures over a two-week period, organizers said Thursday. Patron Cinemex will screen 151 features and 111 shorts in its theaters from Feb. 21 to March 5. This year's lineup came up short on local fare: Amat Escalante's Sangre and documentary 1973 are the only two Mexican productions in competition. In all, 20 features and 18 documentaries will vie for $5,000 prizes in their respective categories. As for international titles, some of the most notable films are out of competition. These include Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain, Lars Von Trier's Manderlay, Neil Jordan's Breakfast on Pluto, Woody Allen's Match Point and Bennett Miller's Capote.

CANNES -- There is little music in Amat Escalante's resolutely grim Sangre and none at all in the lives of its central characters, Diego (Cirilo Recio) and Blanca (Laura Saldana). Their married life is one of stultifying monotony enlivened only by long periods spent on the couch watching soap operas and an occasional episode of joyless sex.

Escalante's snail-paced depiction of how Mexican "telenovelas" might cause an essentially decent, if spineless and unimaginative, man to react to a family disaster with an act of reckless melodrama fails to convince, however, and is unlikely to gain a wide audience.

Diego's complaint is that life is clumsy, a fair observation that can also be said of Escalante's film. Sangre is both kitchen-sink and bathroom-sink drama, with long, drawn-out sequences in which a fixed camera observes Diego eating a messy breakfast or washing his genitals before sex or sitting quietly with an expression of permanent bewilderment.

The pot-bellied, balding Diego is dominated by his wife, who is alternately scolding and effusively affectionate. He has no clue what to do when his daughter Katrina (Claudia Orozco), from a previous marriage, seeks his help to escape a drug-addict boyfriend and Blanca refuses to let her live with them.

Events conspire to lead Diego along an unexpectedly desperate path, and he soon loses his way. Unfortunately, the film does, too.

SANGRE

Mantarraya Prods., Tres Tunas, No Dream Cinema, Funny Balloons and Ad Vitam

Credits:

Director-writer-editor: Amat Escalante

Producers: Jaime Romandia, Amat Escalante, Carlos Reygadas

Cinematographer: Alex T. Fenton

Art director: Daniela Schneider

Cast:

Diego: Cirilo Recio

Blanca: Laura Saldana

Karina: Claudia Orozco

No MPAA rating

Running time -- 90 minutes...

CANNES -- There is little music in Amat Escalante's resolutely grim Sangre and none at all in the lives of its central characters, Diego (Cirilo Recio) and Blanca (Laura Saldana). Their married life is one of stultifying monotony enlivened only by long periods spent on the couch watching soap operas and an occasional episode of joyless sex.

Escalante's snail-paced depiction of how Mexican "telenovelas" might cause an essentially decent, if spineless and unimaginative, man to react to a family disaster with an act of reckless melodrama fails to convince, however, and is unlikely to gain a wide audience.

Diego's complaint is that life is clumsy, a fair observation that can also be said of Escalante's film. Sangre is both kitchen-sink and bathroom-sink drama, with long, drawn-out sequences in which a fixed camera observes Diego eating a messy breakfast or washing his genitals before sex or sitting quietly with an expression of permanent bewilderment.

The pot-bellied, balding Diego is dominated by his wife, who is alternately scolding and effusively affectionate. He has no clue what to do when his daughter Katrina (Claudia Orozco), from a previous marriage, seeks his help to escape a drug-addict boyfriend and Blanca refuses to let her live with them.

Events conspire to lead Diego along an unexpectedly desperate path, and he soon loses his way. Unfortunately, the film does, too.

SANGRE

Mantarraya Prods., Tres Tunas, No Dream Cinema, Funny Balloons and Ad Vitam

Credits:

Director-writer-editor: Amat Escalante

Producers: Jaime Romandia, Amat Escalante, Carlos Reygadas

Cinematographer: Alex T. Fenton

Art director: Daniela Schneider

Cast:

Diego: Cirilo Recio

Blanca: Laura Saldana

Karina: Claudia Orozco

No MPAA rating

Running time -- 90 minutes...