CubaPLUS Magazine

Cuba has officially selected the drama Malecón, directed by Spaniard Carlos Larrazabal, as its official submission for the 99th Academy Awards (2027), joining a competitive slate of Latin American and Caribbean films vying for Best International Feature Film.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has kept the submission window open through October 1, with over 30 countries already formally entered.

Early contenders announced by The Hollywood Reporter include European entries such as Fjord (Romania), Everytime (Germany), Minotaur (France), Fatherland (Poland), and La bola negra (Spain).

Cuba’s selection centers on Elvis, an ex-convict separated from his childhood sweetheart, who navigates the complexities of love, migration, and the gritty underworld of prostitution on the island.

Co-written by Larrazabal and Cuban screenwriter Fabián Suárez, the film is a co-production with Spain and the United States, shot entirely in Cuba. Its cast showcases the talent of the Caribbean nation, featuring César Domínguez, Luis Alberto García, Yordanka Ariosa, Thalía Valdespino, and Camila Rhodes, among other prominent industry figures.

Meanwhile, Chile is submitting El deshielo by Manuela Martelli, a story following the search for a German skier who went missing in the Andes in 1992. Colombia has put forward Llueve sobre Babel by Gala del Sol, a dark fantasy set inside a bar named Babel.

Paraguay will compete with Narciso by Marcelo Martinessi, set in 1959 during the Stroessner dictatorship, while Bolivia presents La hija cóndor by Álvaro Olmos, which follows a Quechua midwife aspiring to be an artist whose mother attempts to steer her back home.

Ecuador is sending Hiedra by Ana Cristina Barragán—the first Ecuadorian filmmaker to win Best Screenplay in the Orizzonti section at the Venice International Film Festival. Peru enters with Vino la noche by Paolo Tizón, and Uruguay competes with Un cabo suelto by Daniel Hendler, as detailed by The Hollywood Reporter.

Further north, Mexico selected En el camino by David Pablos, which follows a young man who survives by seducing long-haul truck drivers before becoming entangled with a reserved trucker named Muñeco. Neighboring Panama submitted Chichero by Aarón Bromley and Arturo Montenegro, centered on a young Quechua man escaping the Peruvian armed conflict.

Representing Central America, El Salvador chose Arturo López's Vértices, a reflection on life and death during a funeral, while Costa Rica presents Si no ardemos, cómo iluminar la noche by Kim Torres, centered on a town secret.

Venezuela enters with La muerte no tiene dueño by Jorge Thielen Armand, which delves into a cocoa plantation occupied by former employees, and Guatemala has shortlisted Los imaginarios and Cordillera de fuego. In the Caribbean, the Dominican Republic proposes Andrés Farías’ Melodrama, the publication highlighted.

The shortlist of 15 finalists will be announced on December 15, followed by the announcement of the five official nominees on January 21, 2027. The 99th Academy Awards ceremony will take place on March 14, 2027.

Presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Oscars annually recognize excellence in global cinema, bestowing not only immense prestige but also vital visibility, worldwide distribution, and commercial momentum.

Taken from Prensa Latina