"REEL Women" - La Mujer en el cine - Film Festival, December 11-15, 2013

WASHINGTON - Dec. 3, 2013 - PRLog -- GALA Hispanic Theatre presents REEL Women – La mujer en el cine, a festival of Mexican and Spanish films, December 11-15, 2013. The festival features five contemporary films (four are Washington, D.C. premieres) by women filmmakers, discussions with directors Natalia Beristain and Paula Ortiz and a screening of the iconic 1940s Mexican film María Candelaria.

The festival has been curated by Carlos Gutiérrez of Cinema Tropical, the leading presenter of Latin American cinema in the U.S., and Marta Sánchez of PRAGDA, a film distribution company created to promote, disseminate and maintain the legacy of Spanish and Latin American cinema through unique cultural initiatives.

“In the past few years,” says Gutiérrez, “more and more women directors from both sides of the ocean have been able to establish a solid film career. REEL Women celebrates and honors the work of these talented female directors by presenting five recent feature films that showcase a rich diversity of narratives, aesthetics and themes. The sixth film is a special screening of María Candelaria, one of the most significant films of the Golden Age of Mexican Cinema that featured the great Dolores del Río and was the first Latin American film to win the Grand Prix at Cannes.”

SCHEDULE:

WED., DECEMBER 11

7:00 p.m. — SHE DOESN’T WANT TO SLEEP ALONE/NO QUIERO DORMIR SOLA (D.C. Premiere!)
Directed by Natalia Beristain, Mexico, 2012, 82 min. In Spanish with English subtitles
Amanda is 33 years old and suffers from a condition: she cannot sleep alone. Her dull life is suddenly altered when she is forced to take care of her alcoholic grandmother, Dolores, a retired actress who lives on her past glories. Largely based on the filmmaker’s relationship with her own grandmother, Beristain’s film had its world premiere at the Venice Film Festival and won the prize for Best Film at the 2012 Morelia Film Festival.

8:30 p.m. — Q&A with director Natalia Beristain

Reception follows hosted by the Mexican Cultural Institute.

FRI., DECEMBER 13

7:00 p.m. — CHRYSALIS/DE TU VENTANA A LA MÍA (D.C. Premiere!)
Directed by Paula Ortiz, Spain, 2011, 95 min. In Spanish with English subtitles
Ortiz chronicles three generations of Spanish women, each trying to control her own destiny against the background of a rapidly changing Spain. In 1923, Violeta’s passions are aroused when a young university student spends time in her house. In 1941, Inés hides her lover, an anti-Franco activist, knowing he could be arrested at any moment. In 1975, Luisa is so wrapped up in her petty concerns she doesn’t see the possibility of happiness right before her eyes.

8:45 p.m. — Discussion with directors Paula Ortiz & Natalia Beristain

Reception follows hosted by the Embassy of Spain in Washington.

SAT., DECEMBER 14

2:00 p.m. — SPECIAL SCREENING: MARÍA CANDELARIA
Directed by Emilio Fernández, starring Delores del Rio, Mexico, 1944, 102 min. In Spanish with English subtitles
“Mexican cinema was introduced to Europe in 1946 at Cannes with María Candelaria, which has since come to be considered the classic and most memorable of all Mexican films.” (B. Rayes Nevares, The Mexican Cinema). Director Emilio Fernández contributed much to the creative period Mexico saw in the forties with films like Flor Silvestre, Perla and Enamorada—“a series of major national portraits,” writes historian Georges Sadoul, “like the murals of Diego Rivera and Siqueiros, reflecting both the Spanish and Indian traditions and a certain popular taste for melodrama.... Dolores del Río began a renewed career.” —Pacific Film Archive

7:00 p.m. — LOST IN TIME/PERDIDA (D.C. Premiere!)
Directed by Viviana García Besné, Mexico, 2010, 93 min. In Spanish with English subtitles
“This film traces the unbelievable true story of the Calderón family, which built grand movie palaces in Mexico and the U.S. and employed thousands to produce incomparable, hugely successful, often reprehensible populist-genre films utterly and uniquely Mexican. Told by Viviana García Besné—whose grand-uncle was mogul José Luis Calderón—this personal tale from inside an alternate universe offers glimpses of unknown zaftig saturnine actresses, masked wrestlers, human robots and Aztec mummies… all driven by a shameless but keen commercial impulse. The cinematic fantasies are mirrored by an even stranger labyrinth of internal sibling strife, film business clashes, Hollywood affairs, bankruptcies and anti-intellectual tirades. It’s a Grey Gardens enquiry into a cinematic dynasty.” —Telluride Film Festival

9:00 p.m. — NORA’S WILL/CINCO DÍAS SIN NORA
Directed by Mariana Chenillo, Mexico, 2010, 90 min. In Spanish with English subtitles
A unique comedy about lost faith and eternal love from one of Mexico’s most talented new filmmakers, Nora's Will was named Mexico’s Best Picture of the Year, taking home seven Ariel Awards. Chenillo is the first female director to win Mexico’s Best Picture award. When his ex-wife Nora dies right before Passover, José is forced to stay with her body until she can be properly put to rest. He soon realizes he is part of Nora's plan to bring her family back together for one last Passover feast, leading him to reexamine their relationship and rediscover their undying love. “Quiet, original, irreverent, ironic: these are some of the adjectives that describe Mariana Chenillo’s bittersweet comedy—it’s so well realized that it left me with a smile of satisfaction—a reward too few films offer nowadays.” —Leonard Maltin

SUN., DECEMBER 15

2:00 p.m. — THE PLAGUE/LA PLAGA (D.C. Premiere!)
Directed by Neus Ballús, Spain, 2013, 85 min. In Spanish and Catalán with English subtitles
This docudrama set in the distant suburbs of Barcelona follows five interconnected people: Raül, a farmer who tries to grow organic food; Iurie, a Moldavian wrestler who has to work at whatever comes his way; Maria, a senior who has to leave her country house to join a retirement home; Rose, a nurse from the Philippines who just arrived in the country; and Maribel, a prostitute who has less and less clients. The destinies of these characters become entwined as the summer goes on. The film had its world premiere at the Berlin Film Festival to great acclaim and it has been featured at numerous film festivals, earning awards worldwide.

TICKETS: General admission, suggested donation of $10 to support GALA’s community programs. Tickets at door or Eventbrite: http://bit.ly/1bYTW0W.

MORE INFORMATION: http://www.galatheatre.org/english.php or 202-234-7174

GALA Theatre is located at 3333 14th Street NW in Columbia Heights, one block from the Columbia Heights metro.

SUPPORTERS/SPONSORS: Anonymous Donor, the Embassy of Mexico and the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS: AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center, DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, DC Independent Film Festival, Latin é, Smithsonian Latino Center and Women in Film & Video.