Mexico produced a whopping 216 films in 2019, thirty more than in the previous year, which also broke the record. The year 2019 therefore marks an all-time high. Not even during the so-called Golden Era of Mexican cinema of the 40s and 50s did the country produce so prolifically. The statistics were made public yesterday by the Mexican Film Institute (IMCINE) as it published online its statistic yearbook with detailed data on national cinema.
Out of the 216 films produced in the country last year, 49 percent had some kind of public support, 20 percent were directed by women, and 34 percent were documentaries. The country produced 618 short films —65 more than in the previous year.
Additionally, 42 feature films were made in coproduction with 23 countries, led by the United States, with nine, followed by Spain and Argentina, with six titles each. Mexican films received a total of 168 awards in festivals from 31 countries.
The report also noted that 101 Mexican films were released by local screens and were seen by 35.2 million spectators. In total, there are 7,493 film screens throughout the nation, and 168 film festivals across the country. The most popular films at the box office were Nacho Garcia Velilla’s No manches Frida 2 with 6.6 million spectators, and Chava Cartas’ Mirreyes contra Godínez with 4.5 million spectators.
Yet for all of the impressive numbers, there is a deep sense of worry in the Mexican film community that the structure that has been built around Mexican cinema is under severe threat— not only by the effects of the global pandemic — but by the current federal government, which under the banner of austerity, has made sweeping cuts to the arts, education, and health.
Just this week, members of Mexico’s ruling party presented an initiative to dismantle the Fidecine film fund, one of the country’s public film production programs that has been key in the re-flourishing of Mexican cinema. Within hours, the Mexican film community organized to protest the intended cut and with the support of renowned global auteurs Alfonso Cuarón, Guillermo del Toro, and Alejandro González Iñárritu, the initiative was discarded, at least for now.
