Pablo Larraín, Sebastián Lelio, Maite Alberdi Grace Guadalajara Fest

Chilean star energy is in full power at the 41^st Guadalajara Film Festival (FICG) the place Pablo Larrain, Sebastián Lelio and Maite Alberdi lead a large contingent from Chile as the competition’s visitor nation of honor.

“They are our golden generation of filmmakers – many of whom reached international recognition, including Oscar nominations and wins, while still in their forties—that helped set us on this path,” CinemaChile director and co-founder Alexandra Galvis told Variety. “The selection of these three is no coincidence: beyond their achievements, they share a common ground in navigating the industry at a global level, collaborating with platforms like Netflix and yet maintaining a distinct, uncompromised artistic voice.”

All three are among the 10 honorees in this version which also features a retrospective on Alejandro Jodorowsky, a cult filmmaker and key determine in surrealist cinema, whose work has left an enduring imprint across Latin America and the global stage.

Among the competition business highlights is a masterclass by Larraín and his producer brother Juan de Dios Larraín with Francisco Ramos, Netflix’s VP of Latin American Content, moderating the speak.

Larraín, whose movies has been Oscar-nominated a number of instances, has grow to be a number one voice in modern cinema, identified for his sharp critiques of energy, reminiscence and political historical past. His key works embrace “No,” “The Club,” “Neruda,” “Tony Manero” and his trilogy “Jackie,” “Spencer” and “Maria.”

Lelio is understood for intimate and human explorations of identification, incomes worldwide acclaim with “Gloria” and his Oscar-winning “A Fantastic Woman,” in addition to “Disobedience” and “The Wave,” which premiered at Cannes.

Alberdi stands out for her tender, exact commentary of on a regular basis life. Her Oscar-nominated docs “The Mole Agent“ and “The Eternal Memory” introduced her global recognition. She lately directed her first fiction feature “In Her Place” and premiered docu-drama “A Child of My Own” at the Berlinale.

“Gloria,” “The Club” and 4 of Alberdi’s docus, including the Mexico-set “A Child of My Own” will likely be screened alongside a choice of Chilean shorts, options and sequence playing across the competition, some in competitors.

FICG will also display two episodes of Prime Video’s bold sequence “The House of the Sprits,” led by Chilean showrunners Francisca Alegría, Fernanda Urrejola and Andres Wood. The restricted sequence adaptation of Isabel Allende’s iconic debut novel is ready to premiere worldwide April 29 on the big streamer.

“Raza Brava,” worldwide Emmy winner Hernán Caffiero’s soccer-themed sequence produced by DeCulto, Atómica and Erik Barmack’s Wild Sheep Content, will also have a sneak peek.

Chilean sequence have grown in spades since Chile was the competition’s nation visitor of honor in 2019, Galvis pointed out. “’Raza Brava’ could not be timelier, given the upcoming FIFA World Cup this summer,” she said.

“We are a delegation of more than 100 people, and I find it very meaningful that two countries with such a strong cultural dialogue are able to connect,” said Daniel Laguna, government secretary of Chile’s Audiovisual Development Fund. “We are very similar, and that similarity becomes a real strength in collaboration. It generates a kind of creative virtuosity when we work together – something that benefits both countries.”

Atop the agenda is a Mexican-Chilean co-production assembly with Caffiero, Mexican producers Edher Campos (Machete) and Nicolás Celis (Pimienta Films), Chilean actress Paulina Garcia and Mexican director Iria Gómez collaborating in a panel.

 “This is essentially an effort to reactivate that interest in a co-production agreement which was first proposed in 2019,” said Gabriela Sandoval, Storyboard producer and director of producers affiliation, APCT.

“The idea is for the co-production agreement to be similar to the newer ones that have been signed with Spain or the one that will be signed with Uruguay. The agreement with Spain is already in force and includes not only feature films but also series,” Sandoval famous.

Chile’s presence also extends to the competition juries, with distinguished figures from the business, among them García (Premio Mezcal); producer Beatriz Rosselot (Ibero-American Documentary); filmmaker Hugo Covarrubias (Animation); administrators Patricio Valladares and Jorge Olguín (Genre Cinema) and Agustín Olivera Sepúlveda, from the University of Valparaíso, on the youth jury.