Shane Smith, Programming Director of Hot Docs 2022, highlights the artistic and narrative diversity of the seven Chilean films that are part of the Spotlight Made In Chile at the largest documentary festival in North America.
What is the main motivation for the realization of this Spotlight Made In Chile?
The programming team at Hot Docs has been so impressed in recent years with the rise of Chilean documentary talent- we’ve seen, and selected several docs from Chile over the years. One of the main factors in this rise has been the work and support of Chiledoc in developing the Chilean documentary industry. The passion and commitment of the Chiledoc team is impressive, and as we’ve gotten to know them, we’ve become more connected to the documentary filmmakers in the country. Events like Conecta have allowed Hot Docs to learn more about the filmmakers, the stories and history of Chile, and to look at films from the country in a more informed way.
So when it came time to select the country for our Made In spotlight this year, Chile was at the top of the list. We knew the talent was there, we knew the films were being made, and we knew that the stories being told deserved to be seen at the Festival.
What is the particularity of these seven Chilean films to be part of this Spotlight? Why did you choose them?
For the Made In Chile program, we were drawn to the variety of stories being told and the different perspectives they presented on life in Chile. Given the recent past and the social uprising in the country, it was important to include a film like PRIMERA; as we see in MEETING POINT the wounds of the Pinochet era continue to be felt today, and this film gives us a unique perspective on that dark time in Chile’s history. Then we were impressed with the stylistic choices made by filmmakers in DESERT SPACE, ALIS and the short film CORRUPTED- the films take very interesting and unexpected approaches to presenting their stories. With ON SUSPICION ZOKUNENTU, the Indigenous experience in Chile resonates in so many ways with Indigenous relations in Canada and it was important to be able to share that perspective. And of course, THE MOLE AGENT is such a unique, heartfelt and beautiful film that we really wanted to make sure Canadian audiences had another chance to see it.
Combined, these films give us a fascinating and diverse look at not only life in Chile but at the variety of stylistic and storytelling approaches filmmakers are taking. The Chilean documentary scene is having a “moment” and we wanted to celebrate that, and let Chilean filmmakers know that the world is interested in their work.
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