The 15th edition of the Zurich Film Festival (ZFF) which runs September 26 through October 6, will shine a light on Colombian cinema. The program will highlight a new generation of filmmakers whose work reflects on the country’s recent history.

In its program “New World View“ the Zurich Film Festival has, since 2007, focused on a country that has provided some of the most innovative filmmaking in recent years. Co-Directors Nadja Schildknecht and Karl Spoerri, say “Since its beginning the festival has championed Latin American cinema. After Argentina, Brazil and Mexico in previous years we will now introduce our audience to Colombian cinema, and its new generation of filmmakers that have garnered prestigious festival awards over recent years.”

Many of the filmmakers of the new generation are alumni of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia in Bogotá, the Universidad del Valle in Cali or the Universidad de Antioquia in Medellín. These institutions are dramatically underfunded but have nevertheless shaped new directors such as Ciro Guerra (*1981) whose EL ABRAZO DE LA SERPIENTE earned an Oscar nomination for best Foreign Language Film – the first for a Colombian film. His following film PAJAROS DE VERANO (BIRDS OF PASSAGE) won 17 festival awards.

Several films by the new generation have been shown at the Zurich Film Festival. Such as MANOS SUCIAS by Josef Kubota Wladyka, A RIVER BELOW by Mark Grieco (Audience Award 2017) and the youth drama MATAR A JESÚS (KILLING JESUS) by Laura Mora Ortega.