Chilean film and TV shows scored 309 awards around the world in 2023, CinemaChile announced in January. One month later, CinemaChile, the national promotion board, is turning 15 at Berlin. The consequence of longterm uninterrupted promotion of an industry must not be underestimated.
Over the last 15 years, film and TV have seen two seismic revolutions: Streamers’ DTC distribution; the explosive rise of production levels across the globe.
The latter has left huge hostages to fortune, suddenly underscoring the significance of national support orgs such as CinemaChile. Below, 10 points on CinemaChile by way of introduction to the often ignored missing link in the latest evolution of the international independent industry: National film agencies.
Why National Film Agencies Are So Useful These Days
In 2005, Argentina released 74 features, Brazil 73, Mexico 33 and Chile 11. Cut to 2022, and those figures had skyrocketed respectively to 230, 173, 88 and 38, a 176% increase in collective levels from 191 films to 529. As slews of films challenge for sales and theatrical release abroad, producers face the same challenge as their TV counterparts: How to cut through the crowd? There is no more powerful marketing for films of artistic ambition than their positioning at festivals. And the unsung link between countries’ film industries and festivals is very often their national promotion agencies.
CinemaChile: A Missing link
Very good agencies “know festivals very well, their deadlines, programming; they can come up with ideas, give producer contacts, help festivals screen films, provide information,” José Luis Rebordinos said when CinemaChile turned 10. “Having an entity like CinemaChile gives you access to the ecosystem and the diversity of Chilean films,” said last week Estrella Araiza, director of Mexico’s Guadalajara Film Festival, which began its relationship with the promotional agency the year it launched. Promotion can never guarantee a festival will select a title. “National institutes can play a role to get films on the radar of festivals, but in the end festivals are looking for those distinctive cinematic voices that fit into their curatorial vision,” says Isabel Arrate, manager of the IDFA Bertha Fund. That said, “Cinemachile has established bonds with international festivals and institutions, facilitating access and guaranteeing a prominent presence at the most important festivals in the world,” agrees Violeta Bava, a Latin American consultant at the Venice Film Festival. “There isn’t a festival or market worldwide that doesn’t feature Chilean films, series, or co-produced projects,” says Gabriela Sandoval, Storyboard Media producer, president of APCT (Association of Film and Television Producers), which backs CinemaChile.
Chile: Ahead of the Curve on Co-Production
As a film force, Chile, a country of 19.9 million inhabitants, has looked ever more beyond their country’s borders to get their projects off the ground. “Chile relies on the world for many of its productions, with co-productions increasing steadily,” says Sandoval. Co-productions cannot be negotiated totally by Zoom. Partners need to meet face to face. Here, CinemaChile aid – covering flight and accommodation of some six-to-seven delegates per event – can be vital. “These collaborations not only garner recognition at festivals or international markets but also see releases in various territories, exemplifying the global nature of our productions,” says Sandoval.
Something to Promote: Chile’s Film Industry
It also helps that, from the get go, CinemaChile had had something to promote. One year before Bruno Bettati opened an exhibition space at the Martin Gropius Bau, before passing on the baton to Constanza Arena and now Ximena Baeza as CinemaChile executive director, Pablo Larraín attended a Berlinale’s Latin American Works in Progress showcase with a rough cut of “Tony Manero.” “CinemaChile played a crucial role at its start in supporting Chilean filmmakers and films and helping them to get seen. Investing in forging relationships with festivals, creating visibility at markets are instruments that support an industry that is interested and has the talent to cross borders,” says Isabel Arrate, manager of the IDFA Bertha Fund. Last month Chile scored a double Oscar nomination for Maite Alberdi’s “The Eternal Memory” and Larrain’s “El Conde’ in the categories of documentary and cinematography, respectively, notes Alexandra Galvis, co-founder and vice-president of APCT (Association of Film and Television Producers), which backs CinemaChile.
Breaking Awards Records
From the Novíssimo Cine Chileno, which heralded the emergence of a clutch of young star auteurs –Andrés Wood, Alicia Scherson, Matías Bize, Sebastián Lelio – Chile’s cinema has grown to one of the most preeminent in Latin America. On Feb. 9, “The Eternal Memory” also scored a prestigious Goya for Best Ibero-American Film, adding to Chile’s six victories and securing its position as the second most-awarded country in this category.
In 2023, Chile scored an international prize haul of 309 awards, a 41.1% jump compared to the previous year when it collected 219, according to an annual CinemaChile‘s study. The U.S. (66), Spain (31), Argentina (28) and India (25) gave most recognitions. How many countries better that? It’s difficult to know. One of the things that’s so impressive about the figure is that an organization has thought to make the calculation and then publish it. Promotion can cut multiple ways.
Renewing Talent
What is so notable among the prizes is how they recognize not only now esteemed directors but far newer directors. Most awarded titles take in “The Eternal Memory” but also Wood – the series “News of a Kidnapping,” a Platino Awards best series winner, and Matías Bize’s “The Punishment.” They also take in first-time feature filmmaker Felipe’s Gálvez and “The Settlers,” an Un Certain Regard highlight, and shorts from two exciting young woman talents – Valeria Hofmann’s “Alien 089,” Katherina Harder’s “Desert Lights” – and “Somos Bullying,” the first short from theater troupe El Crimen. At Berlin, Hofmann, who won a Special Jury Directing Award at the 2023 Sundance fest for her short film “AliEN0089,” is participating in Berlinale Talents. Francisco Tarque takes his project in development, “Ayllu, encuentro de nuestras almas” to Berlinale’s Fiction Toolbox Programme 2024, an inclusion program launched in 2022. “CinemaChile has been key in identifying, promotion and international projection of Chilean cinema, not only for established auteurs but also for new generations,” says Bava. “It’s important to take marketing for what it is, a promotion tool and that investing in talent and creating opportunities for new upcoming voices is crucial for the sustainability of any film industry,” adds IDFA’s Arrate.
Invaluable Help for Novices
These days in film, veterans grow fast. A new generation needs help especially when attending markets or festivals for the first time. “Our experience with CinemaChile has been profoundly enriching both for the short film and for us. From the moment we informed them of the selection at Berlinale, they made themselves available for whatever we might need: from guiding us on how festivals of this magnitude operate, to promoting the selection and the film itself,” say Luciana Merino and Pascal Viveros, co-directors of the hybrid short vying for the best short film and Teddy Awards at Berlinale. “We believe that CinemaChile’s support is crucial, as this is our first experience at a festival outside of Chile,” they add. “I remember when we traveled as a delegation to the Clermont Ferrand Festival,” concurs Pablo Calisto. “I was just 25 or 26 and really didn’t know how to tackle a market, but CinemaChile prepared me for everything that was to come. Their support is always very concrete and specific, adapted to each market.”
Another Achievement: Longevity
“The films and prizes of a national cinema such as Chile’s are the product of a political culture sustained in time allowing cineastes – in this case, no doubt, of large talent – to develop and gain international reach,” says Bava. Just a few years ago, that sustained political culture was a given. Not any more. The threat to Argentina’s INCAA film agency after the election victory of Javier Milei is one case in point. CinemaChile’s launch by a producers’ association, APCT, gives it some protection at least from political interference. “That this initiative comes directly from producers is something that should be replicated in more countries in Latin America,” says Guadalajara’s Araiza.
