At a special meeting at the Gaumont Cinema, The authorities of the Mar del Plata International Film Festival announced the films that will compete in its five categories, as well as the names of the official juries and several special guests who will join the event.

Likewise, in an emotional ceremony, the outstanding director Héctor Olivera presented the Silver Astor for Lifetime Achievement to the actress Ana María Picchio.

The jury of the International Competition will be made up of Angie Cepeda, Colombian actress; Israeli director Samuel Maoz; the artistic director of the Golden Apricot Festival, Karen Avetisyan, from Armenia; Argentine art director Mercedes Alfonsín; and the journalist from the Dominican Republic Rubén Peralta Rigaud. Among the featured films in this section are “Aïcha” by Tunisian Mehdi M. Barsaoui; “At the edge of the world” by Belgians Guérin van de Vorst and Sophie Muselle; “Cabaret Total” de Roy Assaf, who also stars in the film for Israel; and “Conclave” by Edward Berger, a production between the United Kingdom and the United States, starring Ralph Fiennes, Stanley Tucci y John Lithgow. “Saturday Night” by American Jason Reitman is also competing, with a cast that includes Willem Dafoe and J.K. Simmons; “The Most Precious of Cargoes” de Michel Hazanavicius, for France; and “A story of love and war” by Mexican Santiago Mohar Volkow.

Latin American Competition and Argentine Competition

The Latin American Feature Film Competition features productions such as “1978” by Nicolás and Luciano Onetti, for Argentina, and “A Procura de Martina” by the Brazilian Márcia Faria. “The Dog Thief” by Bolivian Vinko Tomičić Salinas and “La Cocina” by Mexican Alonso Ruizpalacios are also part of the list of candidates for the award.. In the Argentine Feature Film Competition, the jury composed of Soledad San Julián, Juan Pablo Russo and Alberto Ponce will evaluate films like “Adult” by Mariano González, “After the end” by Pablo César and “Vinchuca” by Luis Zorraquín. further, national short films will be shown, among which are “We dance to not be dead” by Lucía Benavente and “Compost” by Matías and Augusto Sinay.

Guests and programming

The festival will feature Jason Reitman, director nominated several times for the Oscar Award, who will present “Saturday Night”. Spanish actress Paz Vega will be present with her directorial debut, “Rita”. Their compatriots Adriana Ugarte and Emma Suárez will also attend, recognized for their performances in “Julieta” by Pedro Almodóvar, who will present films at the festival. The Mexican Fernanda Valadez, director of “Sujo”, Mexican candidate for the Oscar, will also be part of the featured guests.

The thirty-ninth edition of the Mar del Plata Festival will begin on 21 of November, opening with the screening of “Emilia Pérez”, France's proposal for the Oscar for Best International Film. As in previous editions, The public will be able to vote at the end of each performance to award the Audience Award, in addition to the recognitions that the juries will provide.