Alternativa Film Fest Screens New Talent From Latin America, Asia

Pics from as far afield as Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Japan, Brazil and Georgia competed in the Alternativa Film Festival, the burgeoning nomadic festival that launched in Kazakhstan, continued in Indonesia and celebrated its third edition in Medellín, Colombia.

Founded by tech company inDrive, the festival shortlisted a total of 30 competition films, 15 feature-length films and 15 shorts, with an additional seven selected for the out of competition line-up, led by Cannes Un Certain Regard top winner, “The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo.”

The line-up featured works from 10 Latin American countries, 10 Asian countries and across 18 different languages. Feature-length films, fiction and non-fiction, hailed from Latin America and Asia, while the short film categories were reserved exclusively for Latin America.

Among the 15 feature-length contenders were such acclaimed titles as Argentina’s “Belén,” Peru’s “Runa Simi,” Thailand’s “A Useful Ghost,” Oscar-nominated “Cutting Through Rocks” and Sundance winner “Cactus Pears.”

The 3rd Alternativa Film Festival ran over April 21-30.

“A Useful Ghost” (“Pee Chai Dai Ka”) Ratchapoom Boonbunchachoke, Thailand

Produced by 185 Films (Bangkok) with Haut les Mains (France), Momo Film Co. (Singapore) and Mayana Films (Germany). Its producers are Cattleya Paosrijaroen, Soros Sukhum. Cast includes Davika Hoorne, Witsarut Himmarat, Apasiri Nitibhon, Wanlop Rungkumjad, Wisarut Homhuan. The debut feature follows Nat, a deceased woman who returns as a vacuum-cleaner-possessing ghost to protect her family by removing other spirits. Released in multiple territories. As the director notes, “For anyone who appreciates a love story between a human and a vacuum cleaner.”

“Becoming,” Zhannat Alshanova, Kazakhstan

Produced by Films de Force Majeure (France), Accidental Films, Volya Films, M-Films, and Kjellson & Wiks, the film premiered in the Filmmakers of the Present section at Locarno Film Festival 2025. Producers include Jean-Laurent Csinidis, Zhannat Alshanova, Denis Vaslin, Marija Razgute and co-producer Marie Kjellson. Written and directed by Alshanova, the film, set in Kazakhstan, follows 17-year-old Mila, who joins a swimming team seeking structure but faces mounting pressure and fear of losing her place. “’Becoming’ is the result of an unusual co-production bringing together five countries that rarely collaborate,” says Jean-Laurent Csinidis of Films de Force Majeure.

“Belén,” Dolores Fonzi, Argentina

Written by Laura Paredes and Fonzi, it stars Fonzi, Camila Plaate, Laura Paredes, Julieta Cardinali and Luis Machín. Based on a true story that sparked an international movement, the film follows Julieta, a young woman falsely accused of infanticide, and Soledad Deza, the lawyer who takes on her explosive case. Set in Tucumán, Argentina, the trial becomes a flashpoint in the fight for reproductive rights, as a corrupt, classist and patriarchal system closes in. Produced by K&S Films, its producers are Leticia Cristi, Hugo Sigman and Matías Mosteirin.

 “Brigitte, Planet B,” (“Brigitte, Planeta B”) Santiago Posada, Colombia

Produced by Colombia’s Dynamo and Pando with support from Caracol TV, the documentary is directed and written by Posada and produced by Vivian Valencia. It centers on Brigitte Baptiste, Ph.D., a leading Colombian environmental scientist and influential transgender public figure. The film traces her life and ideas through observational footage, archival material and animation, exploring how her ecological thinking and public presence challenge scientific and social conventions while addressing themes of identity, family and the future of the planet.

“Cactus Pears” (“Sabar Bonda”), Rohan Parashuram Kanawade, U.K.

U.K.-based Lotus Visual Productions continues to grow its profile with internationally resonant South Asian stories. “Cactus Pears” premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival, winning the World Cinema Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic. The film follows a grieving man who forms a fragile bond with a local farmer during a mourning period in rural India. Backed by global sales agent MPM Premium, with distribution by Strand Releasing (North America) and India’s Spirit Media, the film is set for a U.K. theatrical release on June 19, 2026, accompanied by a nationwide tour with the director.

“Cutting Through Rocks,” Sara Khaki; Mohammadreza Eyni, U.S.

U.S.-based Gandom Films Production focuses on socially driven, character-centered storytelling, with titles including “Our Iranian Lockdown” and “The Friend’s House.” The Oscar-nominated documentary follows Sara Shahverdi, a trailblazing councilwoman in a conservative Iranian village, training teenage girls to ride motorcycles while fighting child marriage. As accusations mount, her mission—and identity—are tested. Eight years in the making, the film is handled internationally by Autlook.

“Gemstones” (“Piedras preciosas”), Simón Vélez, Colombia, Portugal

Written by Paulo Carneiro and Vélez, produced by Triángulo with Bam Bam Cinema. Cast includes Juan Lugo, Laura Taurines, Sofía Jaramillo, Yira Plaza, Daniel Cortés. Based in Medellín, Triángulo is known for collaborative auteur cinema, with titles including “Los Conductos” and Berlinale Silver Bear best director winner “Pepe.” Film follows Machado, a Colombian living in France hired to steal an emerald in Medellín, whose plan unravels as he becomes entangled in a chain of events that forces him to reconsider his mission. Premiered at the Berlinale with Colombian distribution by Cineplex.

“Lost Land” (“Hàrà Watan”), Akio Fujimoto, Japan, Malaysia, France, Germany

A multi-country co-production led by E.x.N K.K. with Cinemata, Panorama Films, Scarlet Visions and Elom Initiatives. Produced by Kazutaka Watanabe, Elise Shick, Angèle de Lorme, Christian Jilka and Sujauddin Karimuddin. Built as a borderless collaboration across Asia and Europe, the story follows a pair of Rohingya siblings’ game of hide and seek, displaced lives navigating fractured borders and shifting identities. It traces journeys shaped by loss, survival and the search for belonging across continents.

“Only Heaven Knows” (“Dünüyö”), Nurzhamal Karamoldoeva, Kyrgyzstan, U.S.

From Paradigma N, an independent production company based in Bishkek, focused on socially engaged storytelling and underrepresented Central Asian perspectives, with titles including “Madrasah,” “Who Is Next?” and “Invisible Traces.” Produced by Aziza Khalbekova, the film follows Mira, a Kyrgyz immigrant in Chicago whose husband disappears amid debt and betrayal. Her search unravels the fragile foundations of their American dream, becoming a journey toward self-liberation. The first feature film made with the support of the Kyrgyz diaspora in Chicago, says Karamoldoeva.

“Queer As Punk” Yihwen Chen, Malaysia

Locke Films, based in Kuala Lumpur, has worked with Netflix, BBC, Euronews, and Channel News Asia. Key titles include “The Boys Club” and “Queer As Punk,” which premiered at the Berlinale and screened at over 65 festivals worldwide. Co-produced with Talamedia, the film follows a queer punk band in Malaysia navigating identity, music, and resistance in a conservative environment. As Chen notes, what began as a film about a punk band in Malaysia captures the intersection of music, identity and political risk.

“Runa Simi,” Augusto Zegarra, Peru

From Alaska 88, a documentary-focused company based in Peru, with key titles including “Wiñaymanta” and “Runa Simi.” Documentary follows Fernando Valencia, a voice actor from Cusco, and his son Dylan as he attempts to dub “The Lion King” into Quechua, the language of the Incas. His journey to preserve his language forces him to confront identity, fatherhood, and cultural legacy. As Zegarra notes, it is “a story of resistance, memory and heritage… a protest through tenderness.” Benjamin Bratt executive produces.

“The Condor Daughter” (“La Hija Cóndor”) Álvaro Olmos Torrico, Bolivia, Peru, Uruguay

Empatía Cinema, founded in La Paz in 2009, focuses on Indigenous perspectives and native languages such as Quechua and Aymara. Key titles include “San Antonio,” “The Visitor,” “The Ones from Below” and “The Condor Daughter.” Co-produced with Ayara Producciones and LaMayor Cine, the drama follows a young Indigenous woman confronting tradition, identity and transformation in the Bolivian highlands. As Olmos Torrico’s work often reflects, it bridges modern life and ancestral culture through an intimate, local gaze.

“The Nature of Invisible Things” (“A natureza das coisas invisveis”), Rafaela Camelo, Brazil, Chile
 
A co-production between Moveo Filmes (Brasília), Pinda Producciones (Santiago), and Apoteótica Cinematográfica (Brasília). Produced by Daniela Marinho, Rebeca Gutiérrez Campos, Otavio Chamorro and Camelo. World-premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival (Generation Kplus, Opening Film), the coming-of-age drama follows two girls who form a bond in a hospital as they navigate illness, memory and the fragility of life. Camelo notes that it “explores how children make sense of death and how we live on in each other.”

“The Reserve” (“La reserva”) Pablo Pérez Lombardini, Mexico

Won the Coup de Coeur” at Cinelatino, Toulouse. Lead produced by Pikila, founded in 2016 by Lombardini, co-produced with CTT Exp&Rentals, AM Tecnología, Alejandro de Icaza, Caffeine Post. Produced by Liliana Pardo S. and Lombardini. Cast includes Carolina Guzmán, Abel Aguilar and Verónica Ángel Pérez. The film follows Julia, a forest ranger in Monte Virgen, who uncovers illegal logging and is gradually abandoned by her community as she fights to protect the reserve. Alone, she loses everything except her dignity. As Lombardini notes: “Every year environmental defenders… are killed for protecting their land.”

“9-Month Contract,” Ketevan Vashagashvili, Georgia

A Georgian mother turns to surrogacy to secure a home for her daughter. What begins as a quick solution becomes a profound sacrifice, exposing how inequality and conflicting laws shape intimate choices. Produced by 1991 Productions with Agitprop, Vincent Productions, MDR/Arte; producers Anna Khazaradze, Nino Chichua. Cast includes Zhana Vakhtangashvili, Elene Kukhtinovi. As the director notes, “How far will a mother go for her child?”