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THE PRIZE (El Premio)

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THE PRIZE (El Premio)

Director: Paula Markovitch
Argentina   |   2011   |   99 minutes
Spanish, with subtitles in English
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Availability: Now Playing

FILM INFORMATION

Synopsis Under the cloud of a military dictatorship, a young mother and her daughter flee Buenos Aires for the seclusion of a ramshackle cottage along the windy dunes of an Argentine beach. As her mother listens for news from the radio with sad stoicism, restlessly curious seven-year-old Cecilia joins a nearby school overseen by a kindly teacher. A childhood idyll, however, soon becomes contaminated by the general political crisis, as the teacher recruits the class for a patriotic essay contest sponsored by the army—the very people that may have already disappeared Cecilia’s father—in this superbly acted and engrossingly atmospheric drama about innocence in illicit times.


About the Director Paula Markovitch was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1968. She has taught screenwriting at the Center of Cinematographic Capacitation (CCC) and is writer and director of the short films Perriférico and Ambulance Music. She has also served as an adviser for the Fundación Toscano-Sundance Lab, the Mexican Institute of Cinematography (IMCINE) and the National Fund for the Arts and Culture (FONCA). The Prize is her first feature film.


Available Screening Formats 35mm, DVD. Digibeta available upon request.


Click here for Non-Theatrical & Exhibition screening information


NOW PLAYING: Check the film calendar for current screenings.


Featured in the Global Lens 2012 film series.



CAST

Ceci - Paula Galinelli Hertzog
Silvia - Sharon Herrera
Lucia - Laura Agorreca
Maestra Rosita - Viviana Suraniti
Walter - Uriel Iasillo

CREW

Director - Paula Markovitch
Writer - Paula Markovitch
Executive Producers - Pablo Boneu, Paula Markovitch, Izrael Moreno
Producer - Izrael Moreno
Co-producers - Fares Ladjimi, Malgorzata Staron, Nicole Gerhards
Director of Photography - Wojciech Staron
Editor - Lorena Moriconi
Sound - Isabel Muñoz, Alexis Stravropulos, Sergio Díaz
Music - Sergio Gurrola



REVIEWS

“Dominated by extreme closeups, the lensing and color-desaturated production design emphasize an oppressive feeling of entrapment. Expressive sound design also underlines the sense of being at the mercy of forces outside oneself.” – Variety

“Wonderfully natural acting and evocative imagery mark a melancholy drama about surviving in a police state.” – The Hollywood Reporter

“The cold, bleak seashore of Argentina in winter matches the powerfully lurking threat of fascism in Paula Markowitch’s autobiographical Competition film The Prize, about a young mother and her infant daughter in hiding from nameless dread. Slow-paced and somber, the film boasts remarkable performances by first-time actress Paula Galinelli Hertzog.” – The Hollywood Reporter

FESTIVALS & AWARDS

2011
Silver Bear for an Outstanding Artistic Contribution in Camerawork and Production Design, BERLINALE
Best Film, GUADALAJARA FILM FESTIVAL
FESTIVAL INTERNACIONAL DE CINE DE HUESCA
Student Award, PARIS CINEMA
"In the Spirit of Freedom" Award, JERUSALEM INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Special Jury Prize; Special Prize of the Armenian Film Academy for Unique Artistic View, GOLDEN APRICOT INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FESTIVAL DE CINEMA LATINO-AMERICANO DE SAO PAULO
LATINO FILM FESTIVAL
Best Fiction Film, LIMA FILM FESTIVAL
ESPOO CINEN FESTIVAL
MILANO FILM FESTIVAL
FILM BY THE SEA
VLADIVOSTOCK FILM FESTIVAL
NORTH CAPE FILM FESTIVAL
AFI'S LATIN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL
ARGENTINISCHE FILMTAGE
KAUNAS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
BRASIL CINEMUNDI
NUREMBERG INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL
INTERNATIONAL CRIME AND PUNISHMENT FILM FESTIVAL
MILL VALLEY FILM FESTIVAL
MUMBAI FILM FESTIVAL
BERGEN FILM FESTIVAL
FILMAR EN AMERICA LATINA
"FREE ZONE" BELGRADE HUMAN RIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL
LEEDS FILM FESTIVAL
CINERAMABC FESTIVAL
Official Selection, L'ALTERNATIVA BARCELONA INDEPENDENT FILM FESTIVAL
EXGROUND FILMFEST
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC GLOBAL FILM FESTIVAL
LENS POLITICA FILM FESTIVAL
TALLINN BLACK NIGHTS FILM FESTIVAL
CUENCA FILM FESTIVAL
FESTIVAL ON WHEELS
CASA DA AMERICA LATINA
KERALA FILM FESTIVAL
CHENNAI INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
FESTIVALISSIMO
LATIN AMERICAN FILM FESTIVAL AT CORNERHOUSE IN MANCHESTER, UK
Audience Award, NEW HORIZONS INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
Best Mexican Feature Film, MORELIA INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL
World Cinema Fund, BERLINALE
Imcine; Conaculta; Fonca; Films Sud Cinema; World Cinema Fund, POLISH FILM INSTITUTE


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