SAN ANTONIO – CineFestival is celebrating its 43rd year at the historic Guadalupe Theater.
The festival will feature 85 films, including 22 films from San Antonio and an additional 24 films from the rest of Texas.
“The amazing response that CineFestival San Antonio got this year to our call for entries, receiving a record number of submissions from filmmakers from across the State and the US, local and international, is a testament to the privileged position San Antonio has as a cultural hub, bridging the cultures of South Texas and the state’s borderlands with the rest of Texas and beyond,” said CineFestival Programmer Eugenio del Bosque.
CineFestival will take place from July 6-10. Advance tickets can be purchased online or at the Guadalupe Theater box office.
A full film schedule for the festival can be found here, along with a film guide.
“This response means focusing the film festival in local and regional works while reflecting artistic excellence in Latinx and indigenous filmmaking is the right path for a festival with such an amazing history to continue in a relevant trajectory that is meaningful to both audiences and participating artists,” Bosque said.
Some of the films at the festival include “AINBO: Spirit of the Amazon,” “Carlitos Chupacabra,” “Dilemma / Dilema,” “The Garcia Family,” and “Hijo” among others.
Other feature films, with descriptions provided by festival leaders, include:
- World premiere of the comedy “An Awesome Action Movie,” directed by Luis Antonio Rodriguez and shot in McAllen, Texas, and starring veteran Mexican actor Hector Soberón
- Sundance acclaimed documentary “Mija” by Isabel Castro
- Mexico’s powerful documentary “Comala” by Gian Cassini, which has strong ties to San Antonio
- “A Run for More” by Ray Whitehouse, which follows Frankie Gonzales-Wolfe as the first trans woman to run for city council in her hometown of San Antonio, Texas
- SXSW laureate Iliana Sosa’s “What We Leave Behind,” a love letter to the El Paso native director’s grandfather and an intimate and insightful exploration of her own relationship with him and his homeland
- The social justice horror film “Madres” by Ryan Zaragoza, co-written by San Antonio native Marcella Ochoa who will be in attendance and will also offer a master class for registered filmmakers
- “Jockey” by Clint Bentley, featuring an award-winning performance by Mexican-American thespian Clifton Collin’s Jr., grandson of Aguilares, Texas native character actor Pedro Gonzalez Gonzalez, most famous for his humorous sidekick roles in 1950s and 1960s John Wayne westerns
- “Earth Mother,” directed by Austin’s Brandon Polanco and starring San Antonio’s Annette Mia Flores
- “Capitol Barbie” by New Mexico native Riley Del Rey is a TV pilot, and a new programming line for CineFestival. A Politcal show about a translatina on Capitol Hill, “Capitol Barbie” deals with delicate and socially pertinent themes, raising questions and opening conversations around racism, homophobia and transphobia in the work place. The screenplay is written by trans and indigenous filmmakers Riley Del Rey and Violet Martinez
The closing night film will be the world premiere of “Cuerpo,” directed by San Antonio native Mark Zuñiga. The horror film is set in 18th-century San Antonio and explores the “culture and clashes between the Spanish colonists and the indigenous people they are trying to convert,” according to a press release.
43 CineFestival San Antonio will offer ten free screenings, including Family Day with the Texas premiere of “Ainbo, Spirit of the Amazon” by Richard Claus and Jose Zelada, a US-Peruvian animated feature in the spirit of “Moana” and “Frozen”; and Senior Cinema, featuring an exclusive reprise screening of the documentary “Pepe Serna: Life is Art” dedicated to San Antonio’s elderly film lovers.
For more information visit guadalupeculturalarts.org.