We’d like to invite you to our annual Hispanic Film Series which showcases recent award-winning films from Latin America and Spain. It runs every Wednesday evening from 9/18 to 10/9 at the Goldsmith Family Cinema and is free. This year we have extraordinary films from Mexico, Colombia, Spain, and Argentina that explore issues marginality and voice.
Sept 18, 8:00 pm – The Chambermaid Dir. Lila Avilés, 2018 (Mexico)
In her feature debut, theater director Lila Avilés turns the monotonous work day of Eve, a chambermaid at a high-end Mexico City hotel, into a beautifully observed film of rich detail. Set entirely in this alienating environment, with extended scenes taking place in the guest rooms, hallways, and cleaning facilities, this minimalist yet sumptuous movie brings to the fore Eve’s hopes, dreams, and desires. The Chambermaid salutes the invisible women caretakers who are the hard-working backbone of society. “Sublime. Feels almost miraculous,” A.O. Scott – The New York Times.
Sept 25, 8:00 pm – Alanis Dir. Anahí Berneri, 2017 (Argentina)
The fifth feature by Argentinian filmmaker Berneri is a poignant and compelling drama that portrays three days in the life of a young Buenos Aires mother and sex worker struggling to survive. Featuring a potent performance by Sofía Gala Castiglione in the title role (alongside her real-life son Dante), the film offers an unsentimental and non-moralizing take on a self-determined woman trying to live her unapologetic life while facing contradictory prostitution laws that are intended to protect her but often do the opposite. It also offers an extraordinary exploration of female solidarity on the margins.
Oct 2, 8:00 pm – Gurumbe: Afro-Andalusian Memories Dir. Miguel A.Rosales, 2016 (Spain)
Flamenco is synonymous with Spanish culture. Yet theorists have sidelined the fundamental contribution of Afro-Andalusians to this art form. Commercial exploitation of the American colonies brought hundreds of Africans to Spain as slaves, forming a population which, over time, gained space in a society wrought with racial prejudices. Music and dance were a fundamental part of their expression. As the black population began to disappear from Spain in the late 19th century, so too did the memory of their contribution to this art form. In this exceptional documentary, their story is finally told.
Oct 9, 8:00 pm – Los silencios Dir. Beatriz Seigner, 2018 (Colombia, Brazil)
Nuria, 12, Fabio, 9, and their mother Amparo arrive in a small island in the middle of Amazonia, at the border of Brazil, Colombia and Peru. They ran away from the Colombian armed conflict in which their father disappeared. One day, he reappears in their new house. The family is haunted by this strange secret and discovers that the island is peopled with ghosts.
This event is sponsored by the Thomas and Catharine McMahon Fund, the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, Latin American Studies Program, Fries Center for Global Studies, and The College of Film and the Moving Image.