
Wooden Town
Spanish with English subtitles.
RETROSPECTIVE: Juan Antonio de la Riva
In this film festival favourite, every day is magical in the tiny logging town of San Miguel de Cruces, Mexico, thanks to director Juan Antonio de la Riva, who captures the rhythms of small-town life through the stories of its inhabitants. From a young couple facing separation as the husband prepares to seek work in the United States to a pair of teens on the cusp of adulthood to the local movie theatre operator struggling to stay open after the introduction of satellite dishes, Pueblo de madera portrays a town—and a people—in transition.
Wooden Town won the award for Best Film and Best Screenplay at the Havana Film Festival, and Best Production Design at the Mexican Academy Awards.
Un pequeño pueblo es el escenario donde dos adolescentes, con responsabilidades de adultos, buscan escapar de la vida citadina y rutinaria. Así, se ven, duras jornadas de trabajo, diversiones en el viejo cine ambulante, bailes, sueños y desilusiones, amores y desamores de sus pobladores. Juan Antonio de la Riva y Francisco Sánchez dibujan un retrato simbólico y pintoresco acerca de la provincia mexicana y sus habitantes.
Director: Juan Antonio de la Riva
Writers: Juan Antonio de la Riva, Francisco Sánchez
Producers: Juan Antonio de la Riva, Héctor López
Cinematographer: Leoncio Villarías
Editor: Óscar Figueroa
Cast: Alonso Echánove, Gabriela Roel, Ignacio Guadalupe, Jahír de Rubín, Ernesto Jesús, Angélica Aragón, Mario Almada