Cinema expands beyond La Plata through a province-wide network designed to connect culture, memory and industry.
LA PLATA, ARGENTINA
The International Film Festival of the Province of Buenos Aires will hold its fourth edition from September 2 to 9, presenting more than 250 films alongside tributes, professional meetings and educational activities. All screenings and events will be free, although some activities at the Teatro Argentino require advance reservations.
The opening ceremony at the Teatro Argentino’s Ginastera Hall will recognize Argentine performers and filmmakers Dolores Fonzi, Fernán Mirás, Lorena Vega, Alejandra Flechner, Virginia Innocenti, Benjamín Naishtat and Carmen Guarini. Charly García will receive a special tribute acknowledging his influence across Argentine music and audiovisual culture. The programme will conclude with film music performed by the theatre’s Academic Camerata and children’s choir.
Following the ceremony, the festival will screen Una energía invisible me devora sin descanso, a short film directed by Ludmila Fontana and created through the National University of La Plata. The production reached the semifinal stage of the Student Academy Awards, providing the opening night with a direct connection between regional film education and international recognition.
Cinema Paradiso will serve as the principal exhibition venue, while screenings and conversations will also take place at the Teatro Argentino, Cine Select, the provincial Chamber of Deputies annex and the Buenos Aires architects’ association. Beyond La Plata, more than 100 screens across over 60 municipalities will participate through the provincial cinema network, expanding access to communities usually excluded from major festivals.
Five official competitions will cover international fiction features, documentaries and short films, as well as feature-length and short productions from Buenos Aires province. The programme also includes the third International Audiovisual Industry Market, intended to encourage financing, coproduction and international circulation. Cuba will participate as guest of honour with a section dedicated to its cinematic history, including documentaries about Fidel Castro and singer-songwriter Pablo Milanés.
A separate retrospective examining the 50th anniversary of Argentina’s 1976 coup will feature works including Infancia clandestina, Raymundo and Tiempo de revancha. By combining new productions with political memory, regional distribution and recognition of figures such as García, FICPBA presents cinema not only as entertainment but as a public institution connecting artistic heritage with contemporary creation.
Lo visible y lo oculto, en contexto. / The visible and the hidden, in context.