Argentina’s Academy of Film Arts and Sciences has chosen the drama “Belem,” inspired by the event of actress Dolores Fonji, to represent the Oscars and the country of Goya in Spain.
Currently the highest honor of the San Sebastian Film Festival, Golden Shell “Belém,” received a seven-minute standing ovation at the festival on September 23rd.
Fonji’s second director’s outing tells the fascinating story of a young woman who was imprisoned after suffering a miscarriage, and Soledad Deza (written by Fonji himself), a brave lawyer who fights for justice in this deeply controversial, high-quality case.
The real designer was in San Sebastian for the world premiere.
The Oscar-nominated studio behind “Wild Tales” and Netflix Global Hit “The Eternaut” produced by Amazon MGM Studios and K&S Films is set in Tucumán, one of Argentina’s traditionally conservative states. Her case, along with others like Belem, played a key role in shaping the national laws of reproductive rights. She was called Belem to keep her true identity a secret.
“These nominations aren’t just about our perception of the film. They are homage to the voices we’ve chosen at the center. The fact that it was honest, filtered, told a deep, personal story, and it resonated widely, means everything: Latin America, Canada, Australia.
Another candidate for Oscar’s honors was Hernan Rosselli’s family drama “Argo Viejo, Argo Nuevo, Argo Prestado,” and Benjamin Avila’s thriller “The Woman in the Line” (“La Mougel de la Fira”) and a comedy comedy by Mariano Corn and Gaston De Platte.”
Christian Tapia Multiori’s suspense thrillers Gatylero, The Woman in the Line and Homo Argentum were competing to represent Goya’s Argentina.
This is Fonji’s second film in San Sebastian. Her director’s distinctive debut, “Blondie,” produced by Santiago Miter and Agustina Lalmi Campbell’s La Union de los Rios, also accidentally opened the edition, and in another film produced by La Union.
The Oscar International feature summary will be announced on December 16th, with the last five candidates announced on January 22nd.
The 98th Academy Awards will be held on March 15th, 2026, and the Spanish Academy Goyas in Spain will be held on February 28th next year.
