Argentina

Based on a true story that occurred in 1974, The Quispe Girls is the tale of three Coya sisters, Justa, Lucía and Luciana Quispe, who live on the rugged, isolated slopes of the Chilean Altiplano. They live an intimate and solitary existence as goatherders, with minimal contact with the outside world. The recent death of a fourth sister and hushed whisperings from the south of a brutal new political regime, force the sisters into an existential quest that will threaten their entire way of life. An exquisite and haunting meditation on the profundity of loss.

Uruguay 2002. Amidst nationwide strikes, Ariel, a student activist in Montevideo is informed of his father’s death. He returns to his hometown of Salto to attend the funeral. His father’s notary soon informs Ariel of his inheritance: an old dog, a house taken over by his father’s lover and a cattle ranch where the workers haven’t been paid in six months. Ariel is thrust into an unwelcome adulthood, and to escape becomes involved with the local student activist group. One of the great strengths of the film is the mesmerizing performance by Felipe Dieste.

Icaros explores the spiritual universe of the Shipibo, an Indigenous people who live by the Ucayali river, one of the main tributaries of the Peruvian Amazon. Mokan Rono, a young Shipibo man, sets out on a journey to discover the ancestral knowledge of ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic tonic made from plants that is known for its cathartic and life-changing powers. He is mentored by an elder shaman who instructs him how to prepare for the experience, and his mother, a master healer.

The immediate impact and dramatic photos from natural disasters dominate the media. But what about the period afterwards? This quietly powerful documentary captures the devastation and heroism of a community in those months and years after such a crisis. Filmed during four years in Chaitén in the south of Chile, it tells the story of a group of people who re-occupy their town, which was partly buried by a volcanic eruption and flood, in order to stop the authorities from forcing them to abandon it.

Analía is a 20-year-old girl from a small town in Argentina who travels to Buenos Aires to deliver some handicrafts for her mother. By chance, an address mix-up leads her to a Muslim neighbourhood where she finds herself taking part in a ritual completely unknown to her. She is given several objects that seem to harbour a mysterious message: these include a tunic, a map and a recipe in Farsi. Enthralled by the new world she has entered, Analía decides to change her identity, and she begins to dress, speak and act like a young Muslim woman.

Based on a true story that occurred in 1974, The Quispe Girls is the tale of three Coya sisters, Justa, Lucía and Luciana Quispe, who live on the rugged, isolated slopes of the Chilean Altiplano. They live an intimate and solitary existence as goatherders, with minimal contact with the outside world. The recent death of a fourth sister and hushed whisperings from the south of a brutal new political regime, force the sisters into an existential quest that will threaten their entire way of life. An exquisite and haunting meditation on the profundity of loss.

Living Stars is the most recent film by the directors of The Man Next Door (El hombre de al lado), which was the highly popular Opening Night Film at VLAFF 2012.

Ivana Cornejo, divorced three years ago, is just getting used to being single again. After an exasperating call from her ex-husband, she loses her cell phone. Fortunately, the man who finds it calls her to return it, and to her excitement they have an instant rapport. He is León Godoy, a renowned architect with a charming voice and a charismatic personality. They schedule a date so that he can return the cell phone. When León arrives, Ivana is surprised: he is everything she had imagined, except for one unexpected and startling detail...he is only 4'6" tall.

In the remote village of Greytown, Nicaragua, surrounded by the jungle and the ocean, Maicol and Bryan are nearing adolescence. Soon, instead of swimming in the river and making slingshots to kill birds, they will be shark hunting in the sea with the older men of the village. The Shark’s Eye captures their daily lives and quietly leads the viewer into the local reality, partly masked by the humour and innocence of late childhood.

Juan’s passion is bodybuilding, but he earns his living working in a garment factory where he is constantly bullied by his boss and co-workers for his muscular physique. He keeps to himself and quietly dreams of quitting to set up his own gym. But first, he needs to come up with the money. One night, Juan witnesses a crime. Stunned and confused, he must contemplate what to do with the information now in his possession.