Chile ‘76 by Manuela Martelli
Two Chilean films were awarded at the 34th edition of the Palm Springs Film Festival: Chile ‘76 by Manuela Martelli was the winner of the Ibero-American Award, while Blanquita by Fernando Guzzoni received a Special Mention in the same category.
The jury composed of film critic and writer Manuel Betancourt; Rebecca Sun, Senior Editor of Diversity and Inclusion, The Hollywood Reporter; and Trey Shields, Senior Programmer at the Philadelphia Film Festival/Society decided to give the award to Chile ‘76 “for capturing the revolution against Pinochet not at the front lines but instead inside the unlikely gilded cage of a privileged woman’s awakening, for showing how the personal is political, with clever cinematic imagery,” said the jury in a written statement.
The directorial debut of Chilean actress Martelli (Machuca, Il Futuro), is set during the early days of Augusto Pinochet's brutal dictatorship and builds from quiet character study to gripping suspense thriller as it explores one woman's precarious flirtation with political engagement.
Carmen (Aline Kuppenheim), who leads a sheltered upper middle class existence, heads to her summer house to supervise its renovation, while also performing local charitable works through her church. When the family priest asks her to take care of an injured young man he has been sheltering in secret, Carmen is inadvertently drawn into the world of the Chilean political opposition and must face real-world threats she is unprepared to handle, leading to disastrous consequences.
Blanquita, inspired by the real-life early 2000s Spiniak Case involving a child prostitution ring which provided services to a number of high-placed politicians and businessmen in Chile, tells the story of an 18-year-old resident of a foster home, who is a key witness in a trial against powerful politicians and businessmen implicated in a child sex scandal. As questions are asked, her role in the scandal becomes unclear.
The 34th edition of the Palm Springs Film Festival took place January, 5-16 in California.
