The crime thriller The Lake Vampire (El vampiro del lago) is based on the novel “A Vampire in Maracaibo” by Venezuelan author Norberto José Olivar – in turn inspired by the real-life case of Zacarías Ortega, one of Venezuela’s most notorious serial killers known for drinking the blood of his victims. The Lake Vampire is the debut feature by Carl Zitelmann and will open in theaters on Friday, September 27 at the Laemmle Glendale in Los Angeles, followed by a VOD release later this fall.
Big World Pictures will release the documentary film A GERMAN YOUTH (Une Jeunesse Allemande) by Jean-Gabriel Périot in Los Angeles, with the film opening at the Laemmle Music Hall in Los Angeles on October 11th; other cities will follow.
Monos, directed by Alejandro Landes, which won the World Cinema Dramatic Special Jury Award at the 2019 Sundance Film Festival, has been selected by La Academia Colombiana de Artes y Ciencias Cinematográficas (ACACC) to represent Colombia in the international feature film category for the 2020 Oscars and Goya awards.
The Invisible Life of Eurídice Gusmão, by Brazilian director Karim Aïnouz, was selected by the Brazilian Film Academy over 11 other films to represent Brazil in the international feature film category for the 2020 Oscars.
The International Federation of Film Critics, FIPRESCI picked ROMA as best film of 2019. The organization considers all films released after 1 July 2018. The other finalists were Dolor y Gloria (Pain and Glory), by Pedro Almodóvar, for which Antonio Banderas won the best actor award at Cannes, Gisaenchung / Parasite, by Bong Joon-ho, Golden Palm at the Cannes Festival, which will participate in Perlak, and The Favourite, by Yorgos Lanthimos, winner of an award at Venice 2018 and for which Olivia Colman won the Academy Award for Best Actress.
The 2019 AFI Latin American Film Festival will take place September 12–October 2 at the historic AFI Silver Theatre and Cultural Center in Silver Spring, MD. Celebrating its 30th edition this year, the festival honors Ibero-American cultural connections during National Hispanic Heritage Month. This year’s festival will showcase 53 films, nearly 40% of the films are directed by women.
The Whistlers (La Gomera) directed by Corneliu Porumboiu, that premiered at 2019 Cannes Film Festival is Romania’s pick for submission in the Best International Feature Film category of the 2020 Oscars.
The animated film Weathering With You (Tenki no ko) directed by Makoto Shinkai has been selected by Japan Motion Picture Producers Association (Eiren) to represent Japan in the Best International Feature Film category at the 2020 Oscars.
The European Film Academy announced the EFA Documentary Selection, a list of 12 European documentaries recommended for a nomination for this year’s European Film Awards. There are 12 European countries represented in this year’s EFA Documentary Selection.
Arturo Montenegro’s family drama Everybody Changes (Todos cambiamos), starring Gaby Gnazzo, Andrea Pérez Meana, Susan Elizabeth Castillo, Mónica Lola Díaz and José Manuel Arispe was selected by the Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences of Panama to represent Panama at the 2020 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature category.
