La Tigra, Chaco

Colour, 35 mm
Argentina, 2009, 75 min
EP – European premiere
Section: Forum of Independents

Synopsis

La Tigra, Chaco. A quiet, sleepy town only twenty blocks long. Esteban returns, after years spent living in Buenos Aires, to the place where he grew up. He has come to find his father, but the latter now has a new family, he’s a truck driver and is never at home. While Esteban waits for him, he spends time with Vero, a friend from his early days whom he now finds increasingly attractive. Each step together is filled with memories of a shared childhood, yet their excursion into the past unexpectedly becomes the promise of new possibilities for the future. This directing debut by Federico Godfrid and Juan Sasiaín, made on a minimal budget, succeeded in capturing the attention of the Argentine film critics. Reviews stated that the film had what the majority of contemporary Argentine production lacks: the ability to transfer life to the big screen. The film was applauded particularly for the authentic performances of both lead actors, together with the spontaneous acting skills of Ana Allende in the role of Esteban’s aunt, who appears in a delightful scene where she sings in Czech.

About the director

Federico Godfrid (b. 1977) studied sound and film photography at the University of Buenos Aires, he appeared in several short films and he also works as a stage director and lecturer. Juan Sasiaín (b. 1978) also graduated from the sound and photography departments, and went on to study acting and screenwriting. Like Federico Godfrid, he has a wealth of theatre experience behind him, and he also works in advertising. The filmmakers’ directorial debut, La Tigra, Chaco, despite facing tough opposition from other films in three competition sections, took away the FIPRESCI prize for Best Argentine Film at the festival in Mar del Plata.