The Chilean Film Academy has announced that In Her Place / El lugar de la otra, the debut fiction film by acclaimed documentarian Maite Alberdi, will represent Chile in the Best International Feature competition at the 97th Academy Awards.
Alberdi became the first woman from Chile to be nominated for an Oscar in 2021 for The Mole Agent / El agente topo and was nominated again this year for The Eternal Memory / La memoria infinita, both in the Best Documentary Feature category. This marks the second time the Chilean Film Academy has selected a film directed by Alberdi to represent the country in the Best International Feature competition, following The Mole Agent, which was shortlisted.
The Netflix production is a gripping drama based on a true story. Set in Chile in 1955, the film follows a popular writer who murders her lover, captivating a shy secretary and sparking an unexpected connection between the two women. Despite their different backgrounds and professions, both women confront the complexities of being a woman in a society that renders them invisible.
Starring Elisa Zulueta and Francisca Lewin, In Her Place will have a limited theatrical run in Chile this September before arriving worldwide on Netflix on October 11. The film will also be featured in the official Golden Shell competition at the San Sebastián International Film Festival next month.
Chile won the Oscar for Best International Feature in 2018 with Sebastián Lelio’s A Fantastic Woman / Una mujer fantástica, and the country earned a nomination in 2013 for Pablo Larraín’s No.
