The works-in-progress showcases at the San Sebastián Film Festival — the most important festival in the Spanish-speaking world — return this year with eight anticipated projects split between its two categories: WIP Europe and WIP Latam. Both showcases run between Sept. 22-24 in the Basque city.
Amongst the Latin American showcase, prolific Mexican auteur Fernando Eimbcke is set to make the most of his stay in the Basque Country by presenting “Olmo,” backed by Brad Pitt’s Plan B Ent, in Horizontes Latinos and his new project “Flies” as part of the WIP lineup. The Chilean duo of multidisciplinary stop-motion animators León & Cociña follows “The Wolf House” with fantasy “The Neverending Plague,” joining two other sophomore features in Fernanda Tovar’s “Sad Girls” and Esteban Hoyos García and Juan Miguel Gelacio Ramírez’s “We Were No Longer Five.”
The most noticeable absence this year is Argentina. For the first time in 15 years, the powerhouse South American country is nowhere to be seen in the WIP Latam selection, reflecting the also meagre offering in the festival’s main program (there are only three Argentinian films in official selection this year: “27 Nights,” “Belén” and “The Currents”).
Explorations of diaspora heavily permeate the European camp, with Massih Parsaei’s “Lovers Sleep Alone” trailing an Iranian man living in exile in Berlin, and Elif Sözen’s “Veha” going the opposite direction by telling the story of a woman returning to her home country of Turkey after many years living abroad. Jonas Bak follows his 2021 debut “Wood and Water” with the two-hander drama “Somewhere Between Sleep,” and German-Ukrainian director Tatjana Moutchnik makes her first feature outing with “February, Seven Days,” investigating the Russian-Ukrainian tensions through the lens of a grieving family.
Participating projects at last year’s WIP Latam have enjoyed a successful year, with Daniel Hendler’s “A Loose End” recently playing Venice Spotlight and Iván Fund’s “The Messager” winning Berlin’s prestigious Jury Prize. On the European side, Sarah Miro Fischer’s “The Good Sister” premiered in the Panorama section of Berlin, while Seyhmus Altun’s “As We Breathe” will compete in San Sebastián’s New Directors sidebar.
Projects at WIP Europe are all in the running for the category’s Industry Award worth €10,000 ($11,700), while the WIP Latam offers the meatier Egeda Platino Industria Award worth €30,000 ($35,200).
Below, we look at the eight titles across the festival’s two WIP lineups:
WIP Latam
“We Were No Longer Five” (“A la hora de poner la mesa ya no éramos cinco”), dir. Esteban Hoyos García, Juan Miguel Gelacio Ramírez – Colombia, USA
(Selva Producciones, Chicamocha Films, Andante Producciones, Redline Enterprises)
The Colombian directing duo is back to San Sebastián’s WIP Latam two years after their debut “Selva/Jungla.” Their sophomore feature is about a mother who has lost track of her son in armed conflict. Losing hope with institutions, she turns to a group of women who tell her about a mysterious village where you can ask a dead person for a favor, setting her out on a journey in search of answers that blur the lines between the living and the dead. Stars “Birds of Passage” actor Carmiña Martínez.
“Sad Girls” (“Chicas Tristes”), dir. Fernanda Tovar – Mexico, Spain, France
(Colectivo Colmena, Martinishot Films, Potenza Producciones, Promenades Films)
Tovar’s short film “Mi edad, la tuya y la edad del mundo” screened at Cannes’ Critics’ Week in 2022 and received a special mention at the Morelia Festival. Her feature debut, “Sad Girls” analyzes the changing relationship between the two best swimmers in their team and their friends after an incident at a party. One wants to keep quiet, the other wants revenge. Their friendship, previously unbreakable, will be put to the test as never before. The project marks Colectivo Colmena’s first international co-production.
“The Neverending Plague” (“La plaga sin fin”), dir. Joaquín Cociña Varas, Cristóbal León Dooner – Chile, The Netherlands, Uruguay, Germany, France
(León & Cociña Films, Globo Rojo Films, Vikings Films, Montelona, Autentika Films, Premium Films)
The duo known as León & Cociña previously won the best short film award at Venice Horizons for “Los Huesos” and Berlin’s Caligari Award for their debut “The Wolf House.” Their sophomore effort is a fantasy following Princess Diana, who falls in love with young nomad Lalo against her father’s wishes. Desperate, she embarks on a journey in search of love. Stars Antonia Giesen (“La Jauria”) and Andrew Bargsted (“My Brothers Dream Awake”).
“Flies” (“Moscas”), dir. Fernando Eimbcke – Mexico
(Kinotitlán, Teorema)
The next film by renowned Mexican director Eimbcke (“Olmo,” “Duck Season”) is produced by Michel Franco’s Teorema and stars “Totem” breakout Teresita Sánchez. The actor plays Olga, whose dire financial situation sees her subletting a room in her flat to Tulio, whose wife is hospitalized across the road. When Tulio goes away for a few days, leaving his 9-year-old son in his place, Olga must face her biggest fear: emotional connection.
“Chicas Tristes” courtesy of Colectivo Colmena
WIP Europe
“Lovers Sleep Alone” (Working title), dir. Massih Parsaei – Germany
(Filmfive, Filmuniversität Babelsberg Konrad Wolf)
Tehran-born Parsaei has directed a series of shorts over the last decade, including “Vertraut” (2016), “Ölelések” (2018), and “Über Anna” (2018). “Lovers Sleep Alone” is his feature debut, which he is also writing and editing. It follows Iman, a young man living in exile in Berlin after leaving Iran and cutting ties with his family. A lonely drifter, Iman’s only relationship is a sexual affair with André. A surprise visit from his cousin comes to disrupt the man’s routine, bringing back suppressed memories of a long-gone past.
“February, Seven Days” (“Sieben tage februar”), dir. Tatjana Moutchnik – Germany, Austria
(Wood Water Films, Wega Film)
The feature debut of German-Ukrainian director Tatjana Moutchnik (“A Veteran’s Destiny,” “Bear Hill Path”) takes place in Germany in 2022, where two Ukrainian brothers reunite after years apart to mourn their recently deceased mother. While the family debates on what is the most culturally appropriate mourning ritual, Russia begins its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, turning their lives upside down. Veteran Austrian producer Veit Heiduschka (“Amour”) is one of the film’s producers under his Wega Film banner.
“Somewhere Between Sleep,” dir. Jonas Bak – France, Germany
(Trance Films)
Bak’s 2021 feature debut “Wood and Water” got a special mention from the Compass Perspektive Award in Berlin and went on to be screened in New York, London and Uruguay, where it won the Best Film Award in the New Directors competition. His sophomore feature reunites him with mother Anke Bak, who starred in his first outing. In “Somewhere Between Sleep,” Anke meets Lisa by chance on a cold day as they both consider leaving their small Black Forest town.
“Veha,” dir. Elif Sözen – Turkey, France, Saudi Arabia
(Kalavara Film, Les Films D’Ici, Red Sea Fund)
Featuring “The Unfaithful” star Olcay Yusufoglu, Sözen’s (“Celebration,” “One”) debut finds Meral and her young son returning to their small Turkish village after the passing of her mother. When Meral disappears, it is up to her old friend Nilay to not only understand why her friend mysteriously left but also to care for her son and manage their now irreparably attached future. Şebnem Sönmez (“7 Numara”) is also part of the cast.
