A Loose End (Un cabo suelto), the third feature film from acclaimed Uruguayan director and actor Daniel Hendler (The Candidate, Norberto's Deadline), has been selected as Uruguay's Official Submission for Best International Feature at the 99th Academy Awards®. The film had its world premiere in the Venice Spotlight section at the Venice International Film Festival, following industry recognition at San Sebastián, where it won the prestigious WIP LATAM Industry Award and received a Special Jury Mention.
A co-production between Cordón Films, Wanka Cine, and Nephilim Producciones—led by producers Micaela Solé, Ezequiel Borovinsky, Jorge Moreno, and Luis Collar—A Loose End showcases Hendler’s signature blend of subtle humor and quiet suspense. The film is anchored by a magnetic lead performance from Sergio Prina (The Snatch Thief) as the fugitive cop, alongside celebrated Argentine actress Pilar Gamboa (La Flor).
The film follows Santiago (Prina), an Argentine cop on the run who crosses into Uruguay to escape his own colleagues. There, he navigates a series of unpredictable obstacles, relying on his quick wit and the unexpected kindness of strangers. As he begins to build a life he never imagined, he discovers a fragile sense of belonging and meets a woman, Rocío (Gamboa), who might be the love of his life. What starts as a desperate flight evolves into an offbeat journey of reinvention, chance, and quiet resilience.
Blending dark comedy, western, road movie, and police thriller elements, A Loose End explores the fragile illusion of starting over and the fluid boundaries of identity and territory. Through Hendler’s precise direction and Prina's charismatic lead, the film delivers an inventive, deeply human, and delightfully unpredictable portrait of a life in transit.
