Jury

Colombia has picked Cannes Un Certain Regard jury prizewinner “A Poet” as its submission to the 98th Academy Awards international feature category.

Expressing his delight at the honor, helmer-scribe Simón Mesa Soto said: “Since its release in Colombian theatres, ‘A Poet’ has been beautifully received by audiences. Many Colombians have seen it and have connected with our poet. That’s what has excited us the most. Now, knowing that we will represent Colombia on the road to the Oscars is a huge honor and the beginning of a journey that we hope will open a new chapter for Colombian cinema.”

Described by Variety as a “hilarious fable about trying to lead a creative life and failing miserably at making ends meet,” the dark comedy follows failed poet Oscar Restrepo, played by non-pro Ubeimar Rios, whose life is falling apart. He finds a chance at redeeming himself when he meets a talented young poetess and takes her under his wing. But as he gets more involved in guiding her, he begins to wonder if poetry really is the best thing for her.

The film shifts tonally between comedy, drama, parody and tragedy – making it, according to Mesa Soto, his most personal work to date.

“Those films about writers or poets often seem made for the First World – I wanted to create a version of that from the perspective of Colombia, from this tropical, complex, and unique place,” he told Variety in an earlier interview.

“As I was finishing my first film, I felt overwhelmed and somewhat disillusioned with filmmaking and art – it’s so hard, especially in Colombia. I even considered quitting cinema altogether. I’m also a university professor, so I thought maybe I’d just focus on teaching. I imagined myself in 20 years as a kind of bohemian professor, living off his past, like some of the poet-like teachers I knew in Medellín – eccentric, stuck in a surreal world where they believed they were great artists. That image haunted me. I thought: what if I made a film about the worst version of myself in 20 years if I gave up on cinema?” he said.

“A Poet” was shot in Medellín with a combined cast of pros and non-pros that includes Rebeca Andrade, Guillermo Cardona, Allison Correa, Margarita Soto and Humberto Restrepo.

Colombia has been nominated for an Oscar once so far with “Ciro Guerra’s “Embrace of the Serpent” in 2015. Its next opportunity came with “Birds of Passage,” co-directed by Guerra and Cristina Gallego, which made the shortlist in 2018.

Juan Sarmiento G., Manuel Ruiz Montealegre and Mesa Soto serve as producers in the Colombia-Germany-Sweden co-production. Its co-producers are Katharina Bergfeld, David Herdies, Michael Krotkiewski, Heino Deckert and Kristina Börjeson.

Arthouse distributor 1-2 Special releases the film in North America while Luxbox handles international sales.

The Oscar international feature shortlist will be announced on Dec. 16 and the final five nominees will be announced on Jan. 22.