The 49th edition of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), which runs from September 5 to 15, will feature the world premieres of several Colombian films, including Horizonte (Horizon) by César Augusto Acevedo, Pimpinero: Sangre y Gasolina (Pimpinero: Blood and Gasoline) by Andrés Baiz, and Querido Trópico (Dear Tropic) by Ana Endara. The short film 1 Hijo & 1 Padre (1 Son & 1 Father) by Andrés Ramírez Pulido will also be screened, while Colombian filmmaker Samir Oliveros will present his latest feature film, The Luckiest Man in America.
Horizonte, the second feature by previous Camera d'Or winner César Augusto Acevedo, will premiere in the Discovery section. The film is produced by Inercia Películas (Colombia) and Ciné-Sud Promotion (France), in co-production with Tarantula (Luxembourg), Quijote Films (Chile), In Vivo Films (France), and Unafilm (Germany). It tells the story of a mother and her missing son traveling through war-torn Colombia for redemption. Along the way, they realize that only through great sacrifice can they heal and repair their broken past. The film stars Chilean actress Paulina Garcia, winner of the Silver Bear for Best Actress at the 2013 Berlinale for Gloria, and Colombian actor Claudio Cataño (Moria), who will soon appear in the Netflix series Cien años de soledad (One Hundred Years of Solitude), a CINA beneficiary.
Also benefiting from Certificates of Audiovisual Investment (CINA) is the feature film Pimpinero: sangre y gasolina by Andrés Baiz, which will be screened in the Centrepiece section, celebrating global film achievements through contemporary cinema. Set in the early 2010s, this thriller takes place in the dangerous border desert between Colombia and Venezuela, where gasoline smugglers, known as pimpineros, risk their lives to transport illegal fuel. The film is a Dynamo production with Andrés Calderón and Andrés Baiz as producers. The cast includes David Noreña, Alberto Guerra, Alejandro Speitzer, and Colombian singer Juanes.
In the same section is Querido trópico, a Panama-Colombia co-production directed by Ana Endara and produced by Isabella Gálvez in collaboration with Joan Gómez. Set in Panama City, the story follows a Colombian immigrant working as a caregiver who hides a secret. She forms a touching and unexpected bond with a strong, wealthy businesswoman struggling with the onset of dementia. The production stars Paulina Garcia (Gloria), Jenny Navarrette, Juliette Roy, and Syddia Ospina.
In the short film program is the film 1 Son & 1 Father. Directed by Andrés Ramírez Pulido, the film was produced by Alta Rocca Films (France) and Valiente Gracia (Colombia). Ramírez Pulido also wrote the screenplay and was one of the producers, along with Jorge Forero and Johana Agudelo Susa, who also did the production design. The story centers on Kevin, a boy labeled a troublemaker who can't control his impulses when provoked. After making another mistake, he is ordered to attend youth therapy with his father, but Kevin refuses. His stepfather, Don Andrés - who seems more like a younger brother - will go with him instead.
Finally, Colombia is represented by director Samir Oliveros (El día de la cabra - The day of the goat), who will premiere his latest film, The luckiest man in america, in the Special Presentations program. Starring Paul Walter Hauser (Richard Jewell), Walton Goggins, and David Strathairn, this stranger-than-fiction drama revives a popular 1980s game show and the story of the "luckiest man in America" who famously broke the system.
