Now in its 21st year, the AFI Latin American Film Festival showcases the best filmmaking from Latin America and, with the inclusion of films from Spain and Portugal, celebrates Ibero-American cultural connections. This year's selection of over forty films includes multiple award-winners, international festival favorites, local box-office hits and debut works by promising new talents.
Highlights of this year's festival include: REVOLUTION, [Revolución] an omnibus of ten short films from Mexico's top directors on the occasion of the country's 100th anniversary; LINHA DE PASSE, the latest feature film directed by director/producer Walter Salles (CENTRAL STATION); 2009 Berlin Golden Bear winner THE MILK OF SORROW [La teta asustada], from Peruvian writer/director Claudia Llosa (MADEINUSA); HIROSHIMA, a kind of "silent musical" from Uruguay's most original filmmaker, Pablo Stoll (WHISKY); SOUTHERN DISTRICT [Zona sur], awarded Best Director and Best Screenplay at this year's Sundance Film Festival, from Bolivia's Juan Carlos Valdivia; and the smash hit Panamanian comedy CHANCE from first-time director Abner Benaim.
Opening Night
REVOLUTION [Revolución]
Ten directors at the forefront of contemporary Mexican cinema join forces to create this outstanding omnibus of short films, each exploring the themes and legacy of the Mexican Revolution on its 100th anniversary. Commissioned by Gael Garcia Bernal, Diego Luna and Pablo Cruz, the founders of Canana, Mexico's leading independent production and distribution company, this collection features new works by Fernando Eimbcke (DUCK SEASON, LAKE TAHOE), Patricia Riggen (UNDER THE SAME MOON), Amat Escalante (THE BASTARDS), Carlos Reygadas (SILENT LIGHT), Mariana Chenillo (NORA'S WILL), Gerardo Naranjo (I'M GONNA EXPLODE, DRAMA/MEX), Rodrigo Plá (THE ZONE, THE DESERT WITHIN), Rodrigo Garcia (MOTHER AND CHILD), plus Bernal and Luna themselves.
DIR Mariana Chenillo, Fernando Eimbcke, Amat Escalante, Gael Garcia Bernal, Rodrigo García, Diego Luna, Gerardo Naranjo, Rodrigo Plá, Carlos Reygadas, Patricia Riggen; SCR Laura Santullo, Amat Escalante, Carlos Reygadas, Mariana Chenillo, Patricia Riggen, Jorge Riggen, Diego Luna, Gabriel Nuncio, Mauricio Katz, Fernando Eimbcke; PROD Pablo Cruz. Mexico, 2010, color, 105 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. NOT RATED
Opening Night Screening: Tue, Sep 21, 8:00
Also showing: Sat, Sep 25, 5:15
Centerpiece Screening
LINHA DE PASSE
Four brothers from the São Paulo slum navigate life in the 20 million-strong megacity and their own progress toward adulthood in this engrossing family drama. Dario has his heart set on making a top club soccer team, and knows at 18 it's his last chance to break in. Dingo holds down a job at a gas station, but finds more fulfillment attending his evangelical church. Dênis, the oldest, has a child he rarely sees and can't support with what little he earns as a motorcycle courier. Reginaldo, the youngest, dreams of finding his long-absent father, a bus driver, and plays detective exploring the city's public transportation. For her portrayal of Cleuza, the boys' harried, hard-working mother, desperate to conceal her latest pregnancy from her employers for fear of losing her housecleaning job, Sandra Corveloni deservedly won the Best Actress Prize at Cannes.
DIR/PROD Walter Salles, Daniela Thomas; SCR George Moura, Daniela Thomas, Barolo Mantovani; PROD Mauricio Andrade Ramos, Rebecca Yeldham, Francois Ivernel. Brazil, 2008, color, 108 min. In Portuguese with English subtitles. NOT RATED 
Centerpiece Screening: Fri, Sep 24, 8:00
Also showing: Sat, Sep 25, 7:30
Closing Night
OCTOBER [October]
The debut feature from brothers Daniel and Diego Vega Vidal won the Jury Prize from the 2010 Cannes Film Festival's Un Certain Regard section. Lone wolf moneylender Clemente returns home one night to discover that someone has paid him back--with interest--by breaking in and leaving behind a baby girl in a basket. While the hapless Clemente searches for the baby's mother among the prostitutes he frequents, he employs his neighbor Sofia to care for the baby and look after his home and office. With the coming of the October celebration of Our Lord of the Miracles, Clemente and Sofia's mutual dependence on one other takes on humorous and heartwarming qualities.
DIR/SCR/PROD Daniel Vega Vidal, Diego Vega Vidal. Peru, 2010, color, 93 min. In Spanish with English subtitles. NOT RATED 
Closing Night Screening: Sat, Oct 9, 7:00*
Also showing: Sun, Oct 10, 1:00
*Post-screening Pisco Sour tasting in the lobby, hosted by the Embassy of Peru.