Ventana Sur heads to Cannes, revealing its selection for the dynamic Goes To showcase, which ushers-in a curated works-in-progress lineup to team international talent with sales agents, distributors and further festival programming opportunities.

The five projects selected represent some of the best from Ventana Sur’s annual film market in Buenos Aires, Latin America’s premier audiovisual event.

Figuring among the titles is “A House with Two Dogs” from Argentina’s Matías Ferreyra, “My Father Is A Nihonjin” from Brazil’s Celia Catunda, “Lovers’ Farewell With A Glance” from Mexican helmer Rigoberto Perezcano, “The Virgin of the Quarry Lake” directed by Argentina’s Laura Casabé and “The Drownings” from Ecuador auteurs Juanse Jácome and Víctor Mares.

Love, lore, family, ritual and suspense play pivotal narrative roles in the films centered in South America, Mexico and Spain, with two – “The Virgin of the Quarry Lake” and “A House With Two Dogs” –  hyper-focused on Argentina’s 2001 upheaval through the lens of youth and coming-of-age narratives, merging the broader turbulence with highly personal, relatable plot lines.

Pulling from a couple of short stories by acclaimed Argentine author Mariana Enriquez, Casabé (“The Returned”), a Sitges award-winning Blood Window alum, deals in unrequited love in the sun-scorched countryside as her lead dabbles in the occult to win the affections of a teen crush in “The Virgin of the Quarry Lake.”

Written by Benjamin Naishtat, the acclaimed director behind cinematic hits “Puan” and “Rojo,” the project is produced by Argentina’s Ajimolido Films (“Charcoal”) and Mostra Cine (“A Night Alone”) alongside Spain’s Mr. Miyagi, which co-produced “The Platform,” and Mexico’s Caponeto (“Go Youth!”). 

Alejandro Israel at Ajimolido hails Casabé as “one of the most promising female genre directors in Latin America.” The work-in-progress previously won the main prize at Sitges Pitch Box and took advantage of support from Argentine film-TV agency INCAA and the Ibermedia program along with national and local rebates and initiatives from Argentina, Spain (ICAA, ICEC) and Mexico (Eficine) while being included in San Sebastian’s Co-production Forum.

“The Virgin of the Quarry Lake” (“La Virgen de la Tosquera”) Laura Casabé ( Argentina, Spain, Mexico)

On a hot summer’s eve in the desolate outskirts of Buenos Aires before Argentina’s fateful and violent economic unraveling, Natalia pines for her friend Diego who has just met Sylvia, a more experienced and intriguing paramour. Natalia calls on ancestral magic to coax Diego away from Sylvia with incantations that unexpectedly awaken something deep within her rather than imploding the new couple’s budding romance.

By Variety - See full article here

THE VIRGIN OF THE QUARRY LAKES