The Panamanian coming of age drama Sister & Sister / Las hijas by Kattia G. Zúñiga was the winner of the Golden Biznaga for Best Latin American picture at the 26th edition of the Malaga Film Festival. Other Latin American winners at the Spanish Film Festival include Chilean filmmaker Matías Bize for Best Director for his drama-thriller El castigo / The Punishment; the Argentine performers Alberto Ammann and Jorge Marralde for Best Actor for Upon Entry / La llegada and for Best Supporting Actor for Empieza el baile, respectively.
Additionally, Mexican composer Pablo Mondragón won the Award for Best Music for the Colombian film Rebelión, and Serguei Saldívar Tanaka, also from Mexico, won the award for Best Cinematography for Red Shoes / Zapatos Rojos. Haroldo Borges y Juliano Castro won the award for Best Editing for the Brazilian film Saudade fez morada aqui dentro.
Sister & Sister, the debut feature by Panamanian-Costa Rican writer-director Zúñiga is an intimate and tender semi-autobiographical tale of sisterhood in the urban tropics, telling the story of Marina (17) and Luna (14), who travel from Costa Rica to Panama during summer vacation to look for their absent father. As the pair deal with frictions that arise between them, they also find space to explore their desires, new friendships, lovers, and skateboarding, on a journey toward emancipation where they discover the joy in the simple act of hanging out.
The 26th edition of the Malaga Film Festival took place March 10-19.
