You’re invited to explore “Women and Cinema” (“Mujeres y Cine”) during a virtual Hispanic Film Festival featuring five international award-winning films followed by live discussions with guest artists.
This year’s festival, co-organized by Ohio Wesleyan University, will debut with two screenings of “The Silence of Others” (“El Silencio de Otros”). Filmed over six years, the film reveals “the epic struggle of victims of Spain’s 40-year dictatorship under General Franco, as they organize a groundbreaking international lawsuit and fight a ‘pact of forgetting’ around the crimes they suffered.”
Following online showings at 7 p.m. Sept. 24 and 2:30 p.m. Sept. 25, director Almudena Carracedo will discuss “The Silence of Others” at 4:30 p.m. Sept. 25. All films are in Spanish with English subtitles, and the live discussions will be in both English and Spanish.
Additional movies in this year’s Hispanic Film Festival and their screening and discussion times are:
“The Chambermaid” (“La Camarista”)
According to New Directors/New Films, director Lila Avilés “turns the monotonous workday of Eve, a chambermaid at a high-end Mexico City hotel, into a beautifully observed film of rich detail. … [T]his minimalist yet sumptuous movie brings to the fore Eve’s hopes, dreams, and desires.”
Screening: 7 p.m. Oct. 2.
Discussion: Lead actress Gabriela Cartol discusses the film at 9 p.m. Oct. 2.
“Carmen and Lola” (“Carmen y Lola”)
A gypsy teenager, Carmen is destined to live a life repeated generation after generation: getting married and raising lots of children. But one day she meets Lola … and discovers a world that, inevitably, leads them to be rejected by their families.
Screening: 7 p.m. Oct. 9.
Discussion: 9 p.m. Oct. 9.
“Yuli”
Yuli becomes captivated by the world of the dance, and from childhood begins to forge his own legend, becoming the first black dancer to interpret some of the most famous roles in ballet.
Screening: 7 p.m. Oct. 16.
Discussion: 9 p.m. Oct. 16.
“Miriam Lies” (“Miriam Miente”
A quiet middle-class world of good intentions begins to crumble when 14-year-old Miriam meets her internet boyfriend and doesn’t know how to explain that he is black.
Screening: 7 p.m. Oct. 23.
Discussion: Director Natalia Cabral discusses her film at 9 p.m. Oct. 23.
This year’s festival is organized by faculty members from Ohio Wesleyan and Denison universities with support from the Ohio Five Consortium, Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, OWU Honors Program, and OWU Film Studies Program.
For more information or to access any of the free screenings or discussions, visit https://mujeresdecine20207.wixsite.com/mysite. Questions may be submitted via Zoom chat during the event or in advance at mujeresdecine2020@gmail.com.
Learn more about Ohio Wesleyan’s Department of Modern Foreign Languages at owu.edu/mfl and Film Studies Program at owu.edu/filmstudies.
