Eight Mexican films made since 2004 will be shown in Arizona for the first time as part of Tucson Cine Mexico.
Now in its fifth year, the festival runs tonight through Sunday at Harkins Spectrum on the south side.
And you know what? Admission to every film is free.
The comedies, dramas and documentaries are new to Arizona, but many have been seen at a variety of film festivals around the world.
Guests will include directors Natalia Almada, Marianna Chenillo and Ana Paola Rodríguez España.
Tucson Cine Mexico is presented by the Mexican Consulate in Tucson and the Hanson Film Institute at the University of Arizona.
Carlos A. Gutiérrez, co-director of Cinema Tropical, helped select the films once again. Cinema Tropical is a New York-based nonprofit that distributes, promotes and programs Latin-American films in the United States.
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He said there are about 40 filmmakers in Mexico who emerged with excellent movies in the last 10 years, but most have not received much recognition, even within Mexico.
"The problem is that the distribution and promotion channels are very archaic, inside and outside of Mexico," said Gutiérrez, speaking in Spanish during a recent phone interview from New York.
"In that sense, this festival is very important because it serves as a very much needed platform, where these filmmakers can show their work."
As a way to bring attention to worthy films, Cinema Tropical compiled a list of the decade's Top 100 Latin American films. The list is based on a survey of New York-area film critics, scholars and professionals.
Four of the Top 10 are Mexican films, Gutiérrez pointed out. And while all of the Top 10 are available on video, many of the others are not, he said.
Go online to www.cinematropical.com to see the full list.
Gutiérrez said that interest in Mexican films increased with the release about 10 years ago of "Amores Perros" and "Y Tu Mamá También," which came in at No. 2 and No. 6, respectively, on the Top 100 list. Both films found big audiences in the United States.
The movies in this year's Tucson Cine Mexico will be of that caliber, he said.
The schedule will include some of the strong documentaries produced in Mexico recently. The opening night film is Natalia Almada's "El General," about Almada's great-grandfather Plutarco Elías Calles, a revolutionary general who became president in 1924.
Other films in Tucson Cine Mexico are more experimental, including "Alamar (To The Sea)," which blurs the line between fiction and nonfiction, said Gutiérrez.
"Alamar," which is set in Chinchorro, home to the second-largest coral reef on the planet, was voted by the audience as a Top 10 film at the prestigious International Film Festival Rotterdam 2010, which wrapped last month.
If you go
• What: Tucson Cine Mexico, a four-day festival of contemporary Mexican films, presented by the Mexican Consulate in Tucson and the Hanson Film Institute at the University of Arizona.
• When: Tonight through Sunday.
• Where: Except where noted, all films will be shown at the Harkins Spectrum, on West Irvington Road near Interstate 10.
• Admission: Free.
• Online: Go to clas.arizona.edu/cinemexico for more information about the films.
Today
• 6 p.m.: "El General," (2008, 83 minutes), nominated for a 2010 Independent Spirit Award in the category of Truer Than Fiction.
• In person: Director Natalia Almada, winner of best direction of a documentary at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival.
• 8:30 p.m.: Opening night party at the Tucson Museum of Art, 140 N. Main Ave., with guest filmmakers, film, food and drinks.
• 9 p.m. Screening of "Trópico de Cáncer" (2004, 53 minutes) in the TMA lobby, followed by live music with Los Gallegos from 10 to midnight.
• In person: Carlos Gutiérrez, co-director of Cinema Tropical.
Friday
• 6 p.m: "Voy a Explotar" (I'm Gonna Explode), (2007, 105 minutes)
• 8:30: "Alamar" (To the Sea) (2009, 75 minutes).
• 10: "Los Bastardos," (2008, 90 minutes).
Saturday
• 6 p.m.: "Cinco Días sin Nora," (2008, 100 minutes).
• In person: Director Marianna Chenillo, named best director at the Moscow International Film Festival.
• 8:30 p.m.: "Arráncame la Vida" (Tear This Heart Out), (2008, 111 minutes).
Sunday
• 2 p.m.: "Tijuaneados Anónimos: Una Lágrima, una Sonrisa" (Tijuanans Anonymous: a Teardrop, a Smile), (2009, 82 minutes)
• In person: Co-directors Ana Paola Rodríguez España and Amanda Sucar, outreach coordinator for Ambulante Gira de Documentales, a traveling festival founded by Gael García Bernal and Diego Luna.
