0
We are on the eve of the Goya Awards and with the nomination of El agente topo for Best Ibero-American Film, Maite could become the first Chilean director to obtain the distinction and her film, the first documentary worldwide to win the category.
Also on the agenda is the announcement of the Oscar nominations, where it is shortlisted in two categories (Best Documentary and Best International Film). Another historic double milestone for Chilean cinema.
Among so much excitement and movement, we wanted to take a second to put a magnifying glass (like Sergio’s!) on Maite’s career and pay tribute to her through 5 milestones that have marked her cinematography.
1.- A NEW VOICE IS BORN ON THE NATIONAL SCENE
From the beginning it was evident that Maite’s authorial style was something completely different and unprecedented, leaving its mark on the national scene.
With short films such as Carrete Down (2004), Los trapecistas (2005) and Las peluqueras (2007), we saw her interest in creating stories from the acute observation of the simplicity of everyday life.
El salvavidas (IDFA, 2011) his first feature film, continued to deepen this observant and perceptive gaze, full of laughter and touching details.
The portrait of a lifeguard working on a Chilean beach generated many conversations about national idiosyncrasies and documentary poetics.
Maite Alberdi is a director who from her beginnings generated debate, laughter, intrigue and unprecedented cinematographic worlds, without a doubt.
2.- INTERNATIONAL LEAP AND FIRST GOYA NOMINATION.
In 2016 we saw Maite take a big international leap with La once which, among many other recognitions, meant the first time a documentary was nominated for the Goya Awards in the Best Ibero-American Film category.
By portraying the rituals of friendship of a circle of elderly women who have known each other for more than 60 years, the film generates a masterful balance between the intimate and the universal.
From this point on, this became a characteristic present in all of Maite’s works.
This universality managed to captivate global audiences and La once received awards in Colombia (FICCI), Korea (EIDF), Mexico (FICG), the United States (MIAMI) and the Netherlands (IDFA), among many others.
He also positioned senior citizens as a focus within his cinematography, something that in the future we would see in the short film Yo no soy de aquí (2016) and El agente topo (2020).
3.- AUTHORIAL VISION THAT BREAKS THE LIMITS OF REALITY.
Known worldwide for her cinematic stamp, Maite has created a unique style, mixing drama and humor, the absurd and the touching, mise-en-scène and reality. By daring to push these limits, she has made it clear that no matter the world or the characters she chooses to portray, her authorial vision transcends and leaves no one indifferent.
4.-THE EXPLORATION OF THE INTIMATE AND THE SOCIAL CAPTIVATES WORLDWIDE AUDIENCES.
In The Children (2016), Maite focused her gaze on a group of friends with Down Syndrome who have been attending the same school for more than 40 years.
The film delves into a social phenomenon never before addressed, which is related to the increasingly longer life expectancy of people with Down Syndrome and the quality of life they access as they become adults.
With few possibilities of social growth due to lack of labor inclusion, the film also looks at their love relationships, their interpersonal dynamics, their hopes and achievements.
In this way, Maite manages to combine the dichotomy between the social and the intimate, the personal and the political.
The film became key in the discussion for the 2017 Labor Inclusion Law, which integrated people with intellectual disabilities. Once again, Maite demonstrated that the power of cinema transcends the screen.
5.- MAKES HISTORY IN THE OSCARS RACE WITH “EL AGENTE TOPO”.
With El agente topo, Maite is making history from many different trenches! With much pride and admiration, we want to highlight all the achievements that Maite and her film are accomplishing for the first time:
She is shortlisted in two categories at the Oscars: Best Documentary and Best International Feature Film.
The Chilean Film Academy selects its nominee to represent the country in the international awards.
A Chilean documentary film represents Chile in the international category of the Oscars.
That a Chilean director is on the shortlists of the Oscars and in a double category.
Maite Alberdi is making history for Chilean cinema!