18 YEARS OF FILM

GIFF came of age. Now considered an adult, the Guanajuato International Film Festival concluded one more year of intensive film screenings, concerts, conferences and other events. Throughout the years, the Festival has expanded and the family has grown creating links between Mexico and several countries all over the world. Every year the organizers seek to improve the Festival and this year, Mexicomorphosis has not been the exception

During the GIFF Closing Ceremony, the Juárez Theater was filled with renowned figures of the Mexican artistic scene, including Joaquín Cosío, Harold Torres, Krystian Ferrer, Adriana Paz, Verónica Langer and Paulina Gaitán, all of whom walked the Red Carpet before entering the magnificent space that became the main location of GIFF during its stay in Guanajuato City. During the ceremony, the Festival awarded the selected titles from what was screened, from the Official Selection, to the University Rally, Identity and Belonging and the National Screenwriting Competition. Prizes included cash, film equipment and post-production programs to support the winner’s future projects.

The winners who were present ascended to the stage to pick up their award personally from the hands of famous artists, while those who were absent sent video acceptance speeches or a member of the crew came up to accept the award. To close the ceremony, Sarah Hoch, as tradition dictates, called her entire GIFF team to join her on stage, as well as the participating talent and the team of volunteers. She thanked during her closing speech the hospitality of the locations in both cities and all the authorities and people who make it possible for this festival to improve every year.

Official Selections

The heart of the Festival has always been and will always be the screening of over 200 films in competition. What began as a proposal to promote the creation of short films within the country now features the participation of feature films, documentaries and short films all over the world. If you’re interested, you can check the names of the winning films HERE.

Tributes

Like every year, the Festival honors the distinct artistic careers of filmmakers, actors and other characters who nowadays playa n important part within the film industry. We know they are an example to follow for future generations, which is why they deserve this recognition that throughout the years has been bestowed on national and international stars. In this edition of GIFF, Eric Del Castillo, Jacqueline Andere and Guadalupe Ferrer received the traditional Cruz de Plata (Silver Cross) with open arms.

We can’t forget the greatest annual recognition, the invitation of a foreign country to bring the best of their industry. This year, the Festival received more than 50 filmmakers and talents from Turkey who showed us the best of their cinema and their culture in general.

Creating a new generation of artists

Also within the Festival we bore witness to young entrepreneurs who, thanks to their unconditional support, showed us their first steps in what we hope will be successful careers. While the teams within Identity and Belonging presented their documentaries as part of the opening ceremony at Guanajuato City, the presentation of the University Rally short films marked the end of this film cycle.

Besides rising filmmakers, the Festival lent its stage to launch emerging bands within Latin American music. At the edge of the red carpets, feature presentations and tributes, bands like Rebel Cats, BaBa Zula, Le Big Sur, Apolo, Belafonte Sensacional and Sotomayor brought the cities of San Miguel de Allende and Guanajuato up to their feet.

GIFF is a colorful annual party in which we are all invited. Throughout its life it has become a place where people from all over the world come to share their passion for good cinema. Be they cinephiles or music lovers, children, youths and adults, the Festival is an open space for new ideas, for the betterment of the industry and above all for people to share GIFF’s lifetime motto… More cinema please.