Colombian Film Boom Fuels First NY Festival
From left to right, Juan Carlos Carvajal, director of the Colombian Film Festival NYC, film promoter Diana Vargas (standing), Consul Elsa Gladys Cifuentes, and actors Kika Child and Juan Fisher (Photo by Javier Castaño via Queens Latino).
“We are not bringing in old movies. This is a sample of the current cinema revival in Colombia,” said Juan Carlos Carvajal, director of the first Colombian Film Festival NYC (CFFNYC), which will take place from March 20 to 24 at Tribeca Cinemas.
The first CFFNYC is part of an effort by the Colombian government to promote the country abroad, coordinated by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Colombian Embassy in the U.S. and the Colombian Consulate in New York.
“The Colombian government made a great financial contribution without which this festival would not have been possible,” Carvajal said at a press conference alongside Consul Elsa Gladys Cifuentes, actress Kika Child and actor Juan Fisher.
“It all started when I got back to Colombia and I found this ‘boom’ of new stories in film,” said Carvajal. “I met with the directors, I put out a call for movies, and they believed in the project and thanks to all that we now have a permanent film festival, which for Colombia is a immense step.”
As Consul Cifuentes encouraged the whole Hispanic community to participate in the festival, the organizers said that in order to bring the audiences to Lower Manhattan they plan to promote it in Queens, Connecticut, Staten Island and Elizabeth, N.J. CFFNYC will include panels, the opportunity to meet the artists, and an homage to the Colombian actor Álvaro Rodríguez.
Carvajal said that making a movie in Colombia costs around $800,000, and the government contributes half the funds.
“There a are good storytellers in Colombia and they tell the Colombian reality as they see it, including violence,” he said. “But this festival also brings black comedy, documentary and other genres dealing with all kinds of issues, not only Colombian.”
For more information and a full list of the movies, visit: www.colfilmny.com
