This Colombian-Canadian co-production, directed and produced by Pablo Álvarez Mesa, is the second of the director's three films about the Simón Bolívar campaign. It received the Sacem Award Sacem Award at the 46th edition of the competition.
Pablo Álvarez Mesa (Bicentenario/Bicentenary, 2020) embarked on a cinematic journey to recount moments and details of Simón Bolívar's liberation campaign, exploring different historical events. As director and producer of La Laguna del Soldado (The Soldier's Lagoon), he aims to further establish this film series.
Two centuries after Simón Bolívar's campaign to liberate Colombia, La laguna del soldado follows the liberator's trek through the highland marshlands, searching for traces of his lingering presence in this historically contested territory. Exploring the construction of historical narratives and their impact on the environment, the film traverses the paramo, a dynamic and enigmatic archive, navigating the dense fog that bridges Simón Bolívar's past and Colombia's present.
This collaboration between Canada and Colombia was presented as a project at the Cannes Docs program of the Marché du Film in May 2023. It was part of the Canada Showcase of Docs In Progress, where it received the Docs in Orbit Invitation Award. It later had its world premiere at the 46th edition of the International Documentary Film Festival Cinéma du Réel, where it received the Sacem Award for best original music composition for a feature film.
Bicentenario, the film that preceded La laguna del soldado, premiered at Berlinale 2021, MoMA Doc Fortnight, and Viennale, among others. It also received a Jury Mention at the Punto de Vista Festival in the Best Film category of the Official Competition.
Cinéma du Réel is a documentary film festival organized by the BPI-Bibliothèque publique d'information (Public Information Library) in Paris. Founded in 1978, the festival specializes in documentaries. Its 46th edition took place in Paris at the Centre Pompidou and other partner venues from March 22 to 31, 2024.
The 45th edition featured Colombian productions such as Ana Rosa by Catalina Villar, which had its world premiere and received the Louis Marcorelles French Institute Award. La bonga, directed by Canela Reyes and Sebastián Pinzón, received the 2023 Intangible Cultural Heritage Award and the Loridan-Ivens - CNAP Award. In addition, Adieu Sauvage (Farewell Savage), directed by Colombian filmmaker Sergio Guataquira Sarmiento, received the Library Award, financed by the General Directorate of Media and Cultural Industries of the French Ministry of Culture.
