FOREIGN OSCAR GUIDE: Latin America

When Claudia Llosa’s The Milk of Sorrow received its 2009 Oscar nomination (a first for Peru), it was one of the more eye-opening nominations in the recent history of the Best Foreign Language Film category. I’m sure I speak for many when I say that the region’s film industry is often exclusively associated with a very small group of countries – Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. Peru’s nomination was certainly a surprise then, but not for those who were familiar with the developments in the region’s cinema. Since then, Chile has also secured its first nomination (from Pablo Larraín’s No) and it seems like only a matter of time until other Latin American countries get their first nods too. Though there’s still a long way to go for Latin American filmmakers to achieve the success of their Eastern counterparts, the region’s cinema is on the upswing. This year, the submissions include a number of critical darlings, a box office hit and a Hollywood-style epic.

Read more at The Awards Circuit