Miss María: Skirting the Mountain at IDFA and in Colombian cinemas
Pantalla Colombia No.: 072diciembre 01 - 31 / 2017
Rubén Mendoza's new film participated in the International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam (IDFA) that ended on November 26. Miss María: Skirting the Mountain (Señorita María: la falda de la montaña) premiered on November 23 in movie theaters across the country
Boavita is a farming town embedded in the Andes: conservative, Catholic, and frozen in time. Miss María Luisa lives on the slopes of its mountains. Forty-five years old, she was born a boy. What at first glance appears to be just one more life marked by conflicts of gender and identity actually hides a bitter and unimaginable family history, steeped in hatred from its deepest roots which has been scapegoated upon Miss María since before she was born. But her power feeds on those same forces, those of the animals and the mountain. No darkness has been able to knock her down or eclipse her.
The story of María Luisa Fuentes Burgos has been brought to Colombian cinemas starting November 23, after being screened at the International Documentary Filmfestival Amsterdam (IDFA), the most important documentary showcase in the world. Miss María: Skirting the Mountain participated in the Best of Fests section dedicated to films that have had a major impact on the international festival circuit over the last year.
In addition to IDFA, the film has participated in various international festivals including the Cartagena International Film Festival (FICCI), where Rubén Mendoza took the award for best director. He also won the Zonta Club Locarno Award, a top directorial nod at the Locarno Festival in Switzerland. The film also went to the twenty-fourth edition of the Valdivia International Film Festival in Chile and to the International Documentary Film Festival in Mexico City (DocsDF), where it was the opening film of Focus Colombia. The production also participated in the programming of the Cali International Film Festival.
The documentary was directed by Rubén Mendoza. Production was by Amanda Sarmiento and Rubén Mendoza; script, Rubén Mendoza; cinematography, Rubén Mendoza; editing, Gustavo Vasco, Juan David Soto, and Rubén Mendoza; sound design, Isabel Torres and Rubén Mendoza; sound mixing, José Valenzuela. The film stars María Luisa Fuentes Burgos.