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11/16/2023

A Male, Colombia's representative for the Oscars, premieres in the United States


The feature film 'A Male' was chosen by the Colombian Academy of Cinematography Arts and Sciences to represent the country in the next edition of the Oscars.

Fabián Hernández's film will reach the screens of American cinemas.

On December 8, this story about masculinities, set in the streets of the Colombian capital, will premiere in North American territory. 'A Male,' which had its world premiere in the parallel section of the Cannes Film Festival, La Quinzaine des cinéastes, follows Carlos, a young man living in a shelter, awaiting release to spend Christmas Eve with his mother and sister. His sole interest contrasts with the harshness of a street and an environment that demands he behave as they have defined him: a macho.

The director of this story that challenges stereotypes has said that his film is "a reunion with moments still raw that I experienced in my adolescence: my sources to make it were my experiences. Growing up in a patriarchal environment of machos, 'strong men,' where concepts like vulnerability, crying, and fear are associated with femininity, with a lack of virility, with a defect, I developed an aversion to the poetry I loved, to express my feelings, sensations, exploring my sexual desires."

From the film's distribution in the United States, they highlight that 'A Male' promises a story of resistance, devoid of fairy-tale endings. Hernández weaves a feature film that, in addition to discussing virility and the law of the jungle, offers a different perspective on the marginal and the violent. In one of our reviews of this notable endeavor, we pointed out that: "Hernández does not seem interested in the usual exploitation that Colombian cinema has made of these elements and, instead, stylizes his film to show this underworld with beauty in the frames, skillfully arranging the light to reveal, between lights and shadows, that other city that moves at night, using color saturation and wide shots in a great photograph (by Sofía Oggioni) that highlights the loneliness of his character. Through these details, he seeks to bring the viewer closer with a certain respect and kindness to a world and characters that are hostile, whose nature he does not intend to hide either. Muting the story through his aesthetic decisions and the clear desire not to deify Carlos elevate the value of this film, where, and as cliché as it may sound, reflection takes effect."

On December 8, the film will premiere at Cinema Village in New York, co-presented by The Colombian Film Festival NY, with the support of the Consulate General of Colombia in the city. Following this launch, 'A Male' will be available in Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Washington.



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