LIFFY announces winners of this year’s film festival

The Latino and Iberian Film Festival at Yale (LIFFY) has announced its selection for winning films for 2016.

LIFFY, sponsored by the Council for Latin American and Iberian Studies at the Whitney and Betty MacMillan Center for International and Area Studies, was created by Margherita Tortora, who has been teaching Spanish language at Yale since 1993 and also teaches a class titled “Spanish Through Film.” LIFFY began as a film series in the late 1990s, then collaborated with the New England Festival of Iberian Cinema for five years (2010- 2014). It was established as The Latino and Iberian Film Festival at Yale in 2015.

The films screened at LIFFY must have something to do with Latino, Iberian, or Latin American culture in general; have English subtitles; and have been made within the last three years.

The winning films, and the reason for its selection are:

Best feature film: “Espejuelos oscuros” (“Dark Glasses”), Jessica Rodríguez. Cuba, 2016 — “For the integrity of its script, the coherence of its mise-en-scène, and excellent character portrayals by the actors.”

Best documentary: “Dream Town.” Betty Bastidas. Ecuador/USA, 2016 — “For the relevant reality that it portrays and the efficiency of its narration and development of the subjects.”

Best short film: “Persona.”  Eliécer Jiménez Almeida. Cuba, 2012-2014 — “For its ability to delve deeply in a very short time into the capacity of human beings to preserve their dignity despite precarious conditions.”

Special mentions for best animated shorts: “Lila.” Carlos Lascano. Argentina/Spain, 2014; and “Extrema.” Ricardo Jabardo. USA/Venezuela, 2014.

Special recognition for its contribution to the study of the work of Luis Buñuel: “Tras Nazarín.” Javier Espada. Spain/Mexico, 2015.

“We would like to thank the excellent jury members for admirably performing the difficult task of choosing the winners from amongst many wonderful films,” said Tortora. “We are grateful to all of the talented filmmakers that shared their work with us, and to the many people of our diverse community for coming together to enjoy and discuss the very special films that were screened during LIFFY 2016. Without all of these elements coming together, as well as the generous support of our sponsors and numerous volunteers, The Latino and Iberian Film Festival at Yale would not be possible. Heartfelt thanks to all!”

Jurists were Monica Palmieri, Rosario Caicedo, Nils Longueira Borrego, and Juan Pablo Daranas Molina.