Paraguay competes in SmartFilms grand finale for the first time

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Spanish director Fernando Trueba will be in charge of selecting the best short film of this SmartFilms edition, which Paraguay is holding this year for the second time, following in the footsteps of Colombia, in its 7th edition, and Mexico, in its 4th.

Last year’s finalists will be among the participants in this SmartFilms event, which in previous editions featured directors Oliver Stone and Robert Rodriguez as jurors.

Films will be announced in the coming days while the 2nd edition of SmartFilms Paraguay is being prepared, closing its call for applications in late September after opening in May, giving participants 4 months to prepare and present their productions.

As in last year’s edition, awards are maintained for the youth category, amateur, 18 years and older, and professional, for people with experience in the audiovisual sector, said SmartFilms Paraguay director Fausto Álvarez on Tuesday.

Also as in last year’s edition, forums, debates, seminars and audiovisual training lectures will be held, in what the festival calls an “academic agenda,” with the difference that some will be on-site, while in 2020 the pandemic forced the online format.

“It is an academic training agenda, in which we teach how to do storytelling, storyboarding, lighting and makeup. This year we have more time, a 4-month project,” Álvarez said.

Álvarez pointed out that 88 short films were presented last year, in an event with an “impact of 82 million images in terms of visibility frequency,” while the page was followed by over 300,000 people.

This is part of a creative formula that for Álvarez means the “democratization of cinema, cinema for everyone from everyone.”

“SmartFilms gives a voice to people who think that cinema is not for them, in other words, filmmaking is very expensive, but everyone has a cell phone. It is a very powerful filmmaking tool,” he said.

In the case of Paraguay, Álvarez highlighted the potential it offers for a sector of young people interested in audiovisuals and to whom the festival offers its creative projection.

“I think it will promote many talents and people who will give a lot to talk about in the coming generations,” the director of SmartFilms Paraguay said.