Cine Magnifico! The Albuquerque Latinx Film Festival has given visibility over the years to films and artists from all Spanish-speaking countries.
This year – the ninth edition – is no different.
There are 23 films and shorts that are premieres in New Mexico and in some cases premieres in the United States, which will be screened as part of the festival which takes place in Albuquerque from Friday October 22 through Sunday October 24. .
According to Silvia Rodríguez Grijalba, executive director of the Instituto Cervantes de Albuquerque, all films are made by Latin filmmakers, because the mission of the Cervantes Institute and its Latino Film Festival is to raise awareness of culture.
Organizing the film festival took some time.
“It was particularly complicated, because we weren’t sure we could do it in person, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, if the European guests we had thought of inviting could come, Rodríguez said Grijalba. “In the end, we made a great selection of films, and the opening will be with the presence of the director of ‘Amores Modernos’, Matías Meyer. The closing film, ‘Karen’, cannot count on the physical presence of its director and star, Christina Rosenvinge, but we’ll have a Zoom reunion with them.
Rodríguez Grijalba says this year’s festival wants to focus, in addition to the artistic, on everything related to the film industry, as Albuquerque and New Mexico are becoming major players in the industry.
“To this end, we will organize several round tables with experts and professionals from the world of cinema, as well as meetings with local and international filmmakers and actors,” she explains. “Our festival is more than a festival; it is a showcase.
Rodríguez Grijalba and his team worked to ensure that many films had a New Mexico premiere or a US premiere.
She says filmmakers from New Mexico will be represented with films by Alejandro Montoya Marín, who will present his feature film “Millennium Bugs.”
Albuquerque Film Bureau Liaison Cyndy McCrossen will lead a Zoom meeting to explain why Albuquerque is the new Hollywood and how it aims to attract Latin and European filming to the city.
The Spanish and Portuguese Department of the University of New Mexico, Santiago Vaquera-Vásquez, will host the conference “Albuquerque: El Dorado of the Film Industry”, accompanied by directors Steven Burhoe, De’Angelo Bethea and Colin A Borden.
“We’ve invited guests like Elvi Cano who comes from Los Angeles to get to know our city, and she’s a great ambassador when it comes to filming for Latin production companies,” she says.
Rodríguez Grijalba is proud of the diverse programming of the festival.
“The selection is made with great care,” she says. “Everyone has something special or something that might interest a particular audience. One of my efforts is to include a lot of films made by women and also discussions with them. The round tables are 90% women, which seems interesting to me.
To view or download a full program, visit cinemagnifico.com.
