The SXSW Film Festival has announced today the lineup for its 2015 edition, which includes some of Latino films. Having its world premiere in the Documentary Spotlight is Kingdom of Shadows (pictured left), the newest film by director Bernardo Ruiz (Reportero). The film follows three people grappling with the hard choices and destructive consequences of the U.S.-Mexico "drug war."
A nun in Monterrey, Mexico fights for the rights of families whose loved ones have been "disappeared," a Texan rancher reflects on his days as a drug smuggler at the height of Reagan's “Just Say No” era, and a Homeland Security Investigator on the border bears witness to the rise of a violent and deadly strain of organized crime, while questioning his effectiveness as a law enforcement official.
Also in the Documentary Spotlight, Sara Hirsh Bordo’s A Brave Heart: The Lizzie Velasquez Story is having its world premiere. The documentary films follows the inspiring journey of 25-year-old, 58-pound Lizzie from cyber-bullying victim to anti-bullying activist.
The 24 Beats per Second section of the festival will feature three Latino titles: the Brazilian film Dominguinhos (pictured right) and the Mexican film Gloria in their U.S. premiere, and the world premiere of the Latino film We Like It Like That.
Directed by Joaquim Castro, Eduardo Nazarian, Dominguinhos reveals this genius of Brazilian music, creator of a deeply authentic, universal and contemporary work. The film values the sensory cinematic experience, a journey driven by Dominguinhos himself.
Christian Keller’s long-awaited biopic Gloria is a bold and compelling tale of ambition, betrayal and redemption. Based on a true story,the film chronicles the life of international pop star Gloria Trevi, the “Mexican Madonna,” featuring an outstanding performance by Sofía Espinosa in the leading role.
We Like It Like That by Mathew Ramirez Warren tells the story of Latin boogaloo, a colorful expression of 1960s New York City Latino soul. From its origins to its recent resurgence, it’s the story of a sound that redefined a generation and was too funky to keep down.
The SXGlobal section will feature the Panamanian documentary film Invasion (pictured left) by Abner Benaim, which documents the US military siege of Panama that ousted dictator Noriega 25 years ago while wreaking untold collateral damage. It sets out to shatter the willful amnesia of a country all too eager to bury its troubled past.
The Colombian film Monte Adentro by Nicolás Macario Alonso will see its North American premiere in the same section. The film explores the universe of one of the last muleteer families in Colombia and follows the lives and mule train of two brothers as they get together for an epic mule driving journey to the highest peaks of the Andes.
And the Festival Favorites section will screen the film Western by Bill Ross and Turner Ross, which recently premiered at Sundance and is a portrait of a cowboy and a lawman from the border towns of Eagle Pass, Texas, and Piedras Negras, Mexico; as well as the acclaimed Salt of the Earth about Brazilian photographer Sebastião Salgado.
The 2015 edition of the SXSW Film Festival will take place March 13-21 in Austin, Texas.
