Discoveries from Chile World Cinema

The increasing price of avocados leads to a study on the socioeconomic impact of monocultures and the monopolization of water in Chile.

In the seas of southern Chile, where the known world ends, in dangerous waters and ghost ports, a space where everything is possible, a group of sailors dare still to dream in mysteries and enchantments...

Anonymous short documentary released immediately after the Chilean military coup of 1973. It recapitulates the presidency of Salvador Allende which was terminated by the military coup that assassinated him and installed a dictatorship. The documentary captures the aftermath of the event and the efforts of international protesters and diplomats in their claim for justice.

Juan Pablo Garcia woke up a December morning to deliver his application to Harvard. He came home to rest before a night of legendary party and a great summer ahead of him. When he woke up, the entire city was empty.

Basement Games tells the story of Laura, a young traveling photographer who, while traveling in southern Chile, is kidnapped by some brothers who live in a rural town, unleashing a horrible ordeal at the hands of her captors.

After a long absence, Negro Torres returns to his hometown, in Cunco, to attend his mother's funeral. There, his old cronies propose him to set up a business to buy seafood and then sell them. After improvising the preparations and returning to the town with the seafood, they face a big surprise

From an ambitious album - performed using a horse skeleton - The Horse sees Herbert team up with long-time collaborator and Academy Award-winning director, Sebastian Lelio, for The Rider video, which features the Doma India technique for bonding with a horse.

An anthology film that features four segments. Contagium: The beginning of a global pandemic originated by the macabre experiment of a military scientist. Gully: The calvary of a young man who, as a result of his ambition, is the victim of a painful metamorphosis. The Body: The martyrdom suffered by a woman obsessed with beauty and who resorts to a home cosmetic surgery in order to save money. The Cabin: A post-apocalyptic era in which money becomes the only means that can allow the infected to stay alive.

Animation short based on a story by Horacio Quiroga.

During a carnival, near the border between Argentina and Bolivia, a young Malambo dancer prepares for the most important competition of his life. When his ex-felon father returns, he jeopardizes everything by dragging his son into the criminal world.

The action begins in 1847 with the arrival of the first German settlers in southern Chile. Don Vicente Perez Rosales is in charge of welcoming the immigrants who arrive by boat to the remote areas of Villarica. After the customary speeches promising loyalty to their new homeland, the settlers begin to work the land. Years pass. Frustrated Daniel, his noble brother Simón, and sweet Dora are three of those pioneers whom history revisits in their youth to explore a triangle of love and desire.

In a dystopian world, a creature attends a banquet organized by a magical refrigerator. Thus begins his unbridled descent into a spiral of consumption. Corrupted and turned into a beast, he faces a macabre end.

The presence of trauma that doesn't disappear. Something that remains, sitting on the edge of the bed, silent, insistent.

To pay his gambling debts, Juan Carlos Bodoque promises Mr. Monster the greatest Romeo and Juliet ever made. Five years later, he hasn’t written a single line. With disaster looming, he drags the “31 Minutos” crew into an improvised, off-the-rails version of Shakespeare’s tragedy. Complete with songs, confusion, and total nonsense.

In 1985, exiled director Miguel Littín secretly reentered Chile to film this sweeping documentary portrait of the country under the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet. Shot clandestinely and later released as a four-part television series, the film combines interviews, historical reflection, and on-the-ground footage to examine Chile’s political climate more than a decade after the 1973 coup.

Valuable documentary about the life conditions of female sex workers in Santiago de Chile in 1986

A female capybara and her cubs are fleeing from a hunter who has settled in the lagoon where they live. Their search for shelter takes them to a nearby chicken coop, but the chickens, seeing their routine threatened, reject the capybaras and react by setting boundaries to keep them at a distance. The curiosity of the youngest, a puppy and a chick, will make them transgress the boundaries and take some risks in order to get to know each other. The situation will lead to an unexpected end that will change the lives of both species and, perhaps, that of some other animals.

A documentary that follows the life of Luis Pinto, a model that became famous in Chile in the early 2000s because of a TV Show that ridiculized him.

Los Jaivas are the most important rock band in the history of Chile. 55 years of music and friendship. Memories emerge note by note, song after song, tour after tour. An intimate portrait of their musical life where for the first time they share their archives that have been accumulated for years on the shelves of a small apartment in Santiago.

More than sixty years after leaving high school, former classmates Alicia, Gema, Angelica, Ximena and Maria Teresa are still devoted to their regular catch-ups in which they exchange gossip and reminiscences over elaborately presented afternoon teas. Impeccably turned out, the ladies’ free-wheeling tea-time chats run the gamut from mortality and marital infidelity to soccer and twerking.

Stories from the intimacy of a private space launched to the screen. How we are as mothers, as fathers or as children. Stories of pain, of hope, of love, or of facing that which was never faced. Disturbing testimonies, but also full of humanity. Crises make us reflect and leave a record of who we are, in case we cease to exist. Visual notes that make up a film about our being and what we say when all certainties collapse.

Nahuel lives with his father in a fishing town, yet he has a deep fear of the sea. One day, he finds a magical book that seems to be the solution to this problem, but a dark sorcerer is after it and captures Nahuel's father. This is where his journey to rescue his father and overcome his fears begins.

Daniela is the new mother at Saint Michael School. Trini feels that there is something wrong with Daniela, she will discover her big secret, showing the true nature of Daniela.

Five stories that tell how a handful of football stars took the risk of losing everything and put their fate in the balance to make a difference by becoming the symbol of a fight.

Amidst the problems in their childless marriage, Matías and Eva try their hand at matchmaking, setting up their friend Barbara with the man who seems perfect, Julián. Once they realize that Julian is not what he seems, they try to warn Barbara away, but she may already be too infatuated.

The devastating Chilean earthquake of 2010 damaged over 370,000 homes. The city of Talca was near its epicentre, leaving many historic neighbourhoods in ruins. CASA ANTÚNEZ is an intimate portrait of one beloved home in Talca, and how its destruction reveals a divided family. When the mother sells the adobe ruins to her architect son José Luis, his brothers and cousins are sceptical about his intentions. Over three years, we witness their psychological process of losing a childhood home as they confront the future of its land. CASA ANTÚNEZ is a poetic homage to the very notion of ‘home’ after a disaster.

An observational journey through downtown Santiago during the post-lockdown period, where thousands of workers flood the city each day, exposing the fragile line between survival, exhaustion, and collective abandonment in the midst of the pandemic.

The story of a writer who, after having great success with his first book, has a disastrous creative block. So much so, that not even pencils want to write for him. In his anguish, a delivery girl arrives at his door and gives him a mysterious box. After inviting her in to have a coffee, they share a pleasant conversation about fame and success. What’s in the box? Nobody knows what inspiration can be wrapped in.

In rural Linderos lives a young man named Jaky—a Chinese martial arts fanatic, and his two siblings Mary and Pancho. Their peaceful life in the countryside is interrupted when a vicious rumour involving Pancho reaches Jaky's ears.

María Luisa Bombal is an underground writer in the early twenties trying to reconcile her passionate and very sexual lifestyle with her life as a socialite among Santiago's very conservative elite.

Francesca is a transsexual who has just come out of a relationship. At that moment Paula reappears and she takes her into her home because of her deplorable state in the street and her advanced pregnancy. In this way, Francesca is presented with the possibility of forming the family she could never have.

Over 46 minutes, the film takes the viewer on a journey to discover different initiatives and cases where Chileans are contributing to mitigate the effects of climate change, from large-scale projects and scientific innovations to day-to-day citizen actions, all of which are collectively necessary. The focus of this documentary is to show how Chile is contributing to an issue that affects all of humanity, such as climate change, in five thematic areas: sustainable agriculture; forest and biodiversity conservation; renewable energy; the water crisis; and astronomy.

Adela has a cold relationship with her father, Pedro. When a swallow threatens to harm the only tree still standing, she sets out to chase it away. Along the way, the bird reveals the sorrowful past surrounding her blue father. Understanding the truth, Adela returns to Pedro and brings an end to the winter.

Trash is an experimental short film about a man walking alone, suffering from the garbage he encounters along his path, offering a discomforting visual experience that mirrors the overwhelming information overload of the contemporary world.

Diego is a twenty-year-old Chilean boy who spends every day taking pictures of anything he sees. After many years he meets Sebastian, his childhood friend, and they spend a whole summer together drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana and walking around in the blazing sun of Santiago. They both come from dysfunctional families (Diego's mother is an alcoholic and Sebastian feels abandoned by his father and his stepmother), but the need to discover the world around them and explore their inner feelings brings them closer to each other, making their friendship very, very intense. The desire that ties them to each other is palpable, and soon barriers and fears fall, leading them to wonder what they really want.

Documentary filmed in Neruda's homes with interviews with Los Jaivas, in which they recount how their work "Las Alturas de Macchu Picchu" was conceived and created and how they came to perform it in Macchu Picchu.

In 2006 Santiago, 16-year-old Antonia defies her single mother in search of her absentee father, hoping to secure permission for a school trip to Argentina. Along the way, she reconnects with a half-sister she never knew and ultimately learns that her mother’s love may be the only anchor she needs.

Life in the isolated town of Charrúa is dominated by the presence of a large power plant that distributes energy to most of Chile. A little boy hunts rabbits, residents demand better electrical coverage at a town meeting, a woman waters the plants outside her house and a local radio station relays the day's happenings. At night, wildlife is captured on camera, along with strange bursts of light that momentarily illuminate a countryside criss-crossed with pylons and cables. And ever present is the insidious hum of electricity.

The mysterious disappearance of a young man shatters the calm in a quiet town in southern Chile. Rojas will have to solve the case against a powerful institution that will respond with death and violence. Inspired by true events.

A doctor and expert in ethics, Sergio Graf has to fight the Chilean health system as a patient when he gets Guillain-Barré syndrome. It is a journey toward physical deterioration, a loss of safety, and returning to something that he has until now taken for granted: his family.

In 1995, the Chilean state made a grave mistake when it detained Marcelina (68), an Indigenous spiritual authority, a machi of the Mapuche people. The police stripped her of her jewelry and traditional clothing and sent her to a men’s prison despite her identifying as a woman. She was unjustly accused of murdering a patient through witchcraft, triggering feelings that led her to leave her community, even after her innocence was proven. Thirty years later, Cons (34) delves into her story—into a world foreign to her—confronting lessons and prejudices she had never known.

Juan Carlos Bodoque plays Miguel de Cervantes; Tulio Triviño plays Don Quixote, Juanin Juan Harry plays Sancho and Patana plays Pantonia, the hidalgo's niece. Thus, the universe of the acclaimed children's program 31 Minutos is transferred to the work of Cervantes in a theatrical parody for children and adults that recreates essential elements of the story, maintaining some of its most innovative aspects: the author as a character in the work, the existence of the book within the same novel, etc. The puppet version of the literary classic is quite faithful to the original text, since it preserves entire dialogues from the novel as a way of valuing its validity. It also rescues themes such as fantasy, the necessary madness or eccentricity that takes us out of everyday life and inspires us to fulfill our dreams despite the difficulties; friendship and love as values ​​worth defending tooth and nail, and humor as a trench against pedantry.

A film director is attacked in his home by two subjects who have usurped the physical resemblance and the name of an actor in his films, long dead. A hypnotic journey, creepy revelations, sorcerers and vegan zombies.

Tulio is forced by Sr. Manguera to put on a Christmas show, so he and the rest of the team put one together in record time. While Tulio discovers the true wrerwriwro of Christmas, Bodoque is in charge of going to look for the gifts, avoiding being tempted by Tío Pelado to bet on horse races.

A Chilean talent show in the mold of "American Idol," "Rojo" became a huge hit the moment it hit the airwaves. This comic series puts a fictional spin on all the backstage drama: the backstabbing, the ruthless competition and the passionate abandon. Further blurring the line between fantasy and reality, several of the show's big stars -- including Monserrat Bustamante, Mario Guerrero and Yamna Lobos -- appear as pseudo versions of themselves.

A young working class girl falls in love with an upper class boy who is part of the plot to assassinate General Schneider, head of the Chilean Army. The film was shot in 1973 over six weeks with a budget of $170,000. As a result of the 1973 Chilean coup d'état and military dictatorship (1973–1990), the film was presumed lost for many years and not released until 1992.

The documentary narrates the events that took place during the first year of the Unidad Popular government, in chronological order.

A cellar. A forgotten amphora. The ashes of a woman. Her granddaughter, daughter-in-law and son characterise her, entwining their memories and experiences. They reflect about filial love, gender and isolation through her overbearing nature.

It is about two ghosts, a mother and son, search for the boy’s missing father on a journey, both physical and spiritual, through a world ravaged by war. Only through great sacrifice will they mend the fragile bonds that bind them and perhaps find redemption.

Film that includes three short films by different authors about love: "O pacto" by Eduardo Coutinho, "Terrible Night" by Rodolfo Kuhn, and "Magic World" by Helvio Soto.

Martin goes on vacation to the beach with his girlfriend. Everything seems normal, until his mother arrives. Lightning strikes and there is a car to disappear.

A determined teenager must rely on her own wits when her fractured family abandons her.

Since he was born, Rai has defied all medical prognoses, today he turns one year old and her mom treasures his imperfectly perfect normality.

Concerned about the future of her three children, a widow takes them to the city with the purpose of getting them married.

Ema and Borja live on the shores of remote Lake Pirihueico in southern Chile, a place as fascinating as it is dangerous. Since their son drowned, they have been living separate lives: while Ema seeks comfort in Daniel, Borja takes refuge in alcohol, violence, and firearms.

Hugo is a young man who has been left at the altar, in what was to be a three-day celebration arranged by his manipulative mother-in-law. In addition to keeping up with his overprotective father demands and crossing paths with an ex-girlfriend, he soon realizes that it is better to be alone.

Using human corpses and invoking the spirits of two damned Secretaries of State, a girl performs a ritual to free the kingdom of Chile from its feudal heritage.

Daniela (24) is a ghost in pain. Her life ended suddenly and painfully, leaving her friend and roommate, Mónica (22) alone in their shared apartment in Santiago, Chile. Daniela feels her frustration grow within her, as she fears that her time in limbo will never end.

Celeste is a carefree 15-year-old coming of age after the fall of Pinochet when her life changes drastically and unexpectedly. Now, the desert and oceanside she once embraced feels alien. In an uncertain nation going through a transition of its own, Celeste is thrust into an adult world where she must grow up faster than she could have ever imagined.