Tony Manero in Hollywood
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Director Pablo Larrain's "Tony Manero" is the official Chilean nominee for the Oscar in the category of Best Foreign Film. The feature film has already been honored with the Best Picture and Best Lead Actor awards at the Havana Film Festival, the Best Film award at the Santiago Film Festival, the Best Lead Actor award at the Latin American Film Festival in Tokyo, Top Prize at the Turin Film Festival, the Official Selection at the London Film Festival, the Official Selection at the New York Film Festival, the Discovery Selection at the Toronto Film Festival, and the Director Recognition Award at Cannes, among others.
The film has captured the attention of international critics because of the way it vividly reflects the raw reality of Chile in the year 1978, and because of actor Alfredo Castro’s magnificent portrayal of a man mired in an unhealthy obsession with the character of John Travolta in "Saturday Night Fever".
"The nomination of the Chilean film as a candidate for the 2009 Oscars is the result of the outstanding team work of the group and the high quality of the film itself. It is quite an achievement to figure among the favorite films appearing in the Los Angeles Times, especially when competing with high budget European and Mexican mega-productions that have promotional campaigns and economic resources to appear in newspapers of this importance", commented Viviana Araneda, Director of ProChile in Los Angeles, who has continuously promoted and supported Chilean cinema in Hollywood.
ProChile has supported the film throughout the process of its Oscar nomination using various strategies, ranging from organizing promotional events to participation in film festivals. Thus, while waiting for the results of the January 22 announcement of the Oscar nominees, "Tony Manero" is part of the official selection of the upcoming 2009 Palm Springs International Film Festival, to be held from January 6th to 19th. During this event feature films nominated for the Oscar in the Best Foreign Film Category are screened in competition. "This year, Chile will host The Awards Buzz Party, which will be attended by over 200 guests, including members of the jury, media personalities, the film's director and representatives of major Hollywood film producers and distributors" commented Araneda.