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The GuadaLAjara Film Festival announced its full lineup for the annual event running from Nov. 5-7 at venues across Los Angeles.
The festival will open with Watermelon Pictures’ “Ashes” directed by Diego Luna at the
United Theater. The film follows Lucila who moves to Spain with her brother to reunite with the mother who left eight years earlier. Confronted with discrimination and family obligations, she struggles to claim her independence while facing the wounds of her past.
To close the festival, there will be a 35mm screening of “Mexicanamerican” directed by Eddie Sánchez at the Linwood Dunn Theater. “Mexicanamerican” tells the story of Lalo and Beby, a Mexican couple who achieved the American Dream and slowly lost the culture, language and traditions they once shared with their children.
The Centerpiece Gala will present Netflix’s “14th” from Ava DuVernay. The film looks closely at the constitutional crises dominating headlines today and the pattern that emerges, which is hard-wired into history. “14th” exposes an unfinished battle to define America, now taking on drastic new dimensions. The film will screen at Vidiots.
“We are proud to bring these films to Los Angeles,” Ximena Urrutia, GLAFF executive director, said. “They tell our stories, honor our cultures and present some of the finest work of the year from Mexico, Latin America, the United States and beyond.”
The festival lineup includes U.S., West Coast, and international premieres, showcasing work from emerging and established filmmakers who are reshaping the cinematic landscape:
- “Adam’s Apple,” directed by Amy Jenkins. A transgender teen and his mother chronicle their lives in an intimate portrait of a family in transition. Two decades of footage follow a boy’s path to manhood and his parents’ reckoning with change.
- “Chicas Tristes (Sad Girlz),” directed by Fernanda Tovar. A striking coming-of-age drama seen through the eyes of two best friends whose bond is put to the test when they have drastically differing reactions to a traumatic experience at a party.
- “City of the Dead (Ciudad de Muertos),” directed by J.M. Cravioto. When a body is found inside a suitcase, forensic photographer Enrique is drawn into a secret agent’s hunt for a serial killer.
- “Dear Fátima (Querida Fátima),” directed by Lorena Gutiérrez, Jesús “Don Chucho” Quintana, Rodrigo Reyes, Dawn Valadez and Su Kim. A decade after the feminicide of her 12-year-old daughter Fátima, Lorena Gutiérrez camps outside Mexico’s National Palace and demands an audience with the country’s first female president.
- “Shooting Stars,” directed by director Daniel Poler, follows Adrián Solano, a 22-year-old Venezuelan in search of meaning who inadvertently enters the 2017 Nordic World Ski Championships despite having never seen snow in his life. The film is executive produced by John Leguizamo, produced by ESPN, ESPN Deportes and TriBeCa Studios.
Short Films Spotlight Emerging Talent
- “Para Los Contrincantes,” directed by Federico Luis
- “He’s Out There,” directed by Kurt Andrew Schneider and Sam Davis
- “Busy Bodies” by Kate Renshaw-Lewis
- “The Long Con” by Aitch Alberto, starring Nava Mau
- “La Mar” by Jean Chapiro Uziel
- “Lucretia y Las Brujas” by Eduardo Lecuona
- “Marga en el DF” by Gabriela Ortega
- “Miriam” by Karla Condado
- “Stalin Boys” by Ora DeKornfeld and Bianca Giaever
- “Still Standing” by Victor Tadashi Suarez and Livia Albeck-Ripka
- “The Motive” by Jorge Molina
- “Vyann/Carne” by Adolfo Margulis
The festival will also include red-carpet premieres, panel conversations, master classes, industry and community events and special screenings throughout Los Angeles. Additional events and participating talent will be announced later.
