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''Utama'' is a 2022 internationally co-produced
drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...
film directed by Alejandro Loayza Grisi in his directorial debut film. It premiered at the
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...
on January 22, 2022 and was released in French theaters on May 11, 2022. It was selected as the
Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...
n entry for the
95th Academy Awards The 95th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), took place on March 12, 2023, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Los Angeles. During the gala, the AMPAS presented Academy Awards (commonl ...
for the Best International Feature Film award.


Plot

An elderly
Quechua Quechua may refer to: *Quechua people, several Indigenous ethnic groups in South America, especially in Peru *Quechuan languages, an Indigenous South American language family spoken primarily in the Andes, derived from a common ancestral language ...
-speaking couple lives in the
Altiplano The Altiplano (Spanish language, Spanish for "high plain"), Collao (Quechuan languages, Quechua and Aymara language, Aymara: Qullaw, meaning "place of the Qulla people, Qulla") or Andean Plateau, in west-central South America, is the most extens ...
, the arid high plateau of the Andes, and the sick Virginio, knowing that he is about to die, spends his last days hiding this condition from his wife Sisa. A long life together has marked the life of the Quechua couple. Together they are busy with tasks like grazing their
llama The llama (; or ) (''Lama glama'') is a domesticated South American camelid, widely used as a List of meat animals, meat and pack animal by Inca empire, Andean cultures since the pre-Columbian era. Llamas are social animals and live with ...
s. His house is surrounded by high mountains. Virginio often looks at the sky and hopes that it will rain. Since there has been an extended period of drought and the village well is empty, Sisa has to walk to the river every day. Women from surrounding villages also flock to the last remaining spring. One day they receive a visit from their grandson Clever, who brings news from the city. His grandparents conspicuously argue in Quechua over Clever's motives for visiting; he speaks to them in Spanish. Clever wants his grandparents to pack up and move to join the family to the city, where the sick Virginio can be examined and treated. Clever and Virginio go to the mountains with nearby villagers and they perform a ritual to bring rain back to the land. Afterwards, the frustrated villagers debate the solutions to their drought, many opting to leave for the city. During his shepherding Virginio falls unconscious. Clever finds him and brings him back to a worried Sisa, who asks him to disclose his mysterious cough. Virginio worries that Sisa will be alone, once he passes and he would rather have her come with him to the afterlife than to move to the city. Clever confronts him about his selfishness; they argue and Clever leaves the village. He soon returns with a doctor, who tries to convince Virginio to come to the city to get treated. A defeated Virginio refuses. He remains silent about dying but encounters many motifs around death including a dehydrated llama, a
condor Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua language, Quechua ''kuntur''. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere. One species, the And ...
, and the news of Clever becoming a father, which he overhears. Virginio discretely makes plans to give Clever a tin box filled with photos and bits of gold. He gives Clever the box as well as his hat the day before he peacefully dies in his sleep. The neighboring villagers attend Virginio's funeral. Clever gets ready to return to the city; he says goodbye to Sisa and she asks him to visit her often. Under the thundering sky, the widowed Sisa shepherds the llamas.


Release

The first screenings of the film took place on January 22, 2022 at the
Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...
. It was released in French cinemas on May 11, 2022. At the end of June 2022 it was shown at the Munich Film Festival. The film was released in Swiss cinemas on June 23, 2022. In early July 2022, the film was shown at the
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival (, KVIFF) is an annual film festival held in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become Central and Eastern Europe, Central and Eastern Eur ...
in the Horizons section and in late July 2022 at the New Horizons International Film Festival. Performances at the Leipzig Film Art Fair were scheduled for September 2022. In October 2022 it was presented at the
Vancouver International Film Festival The Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF) is an annual film festival held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, for two weeks in late September and early October. The festival is operated by the Greater Vancouver International Film Festi ...
and the
Busan International Film Festival The Busan International Film Festival (BIFF; ), formerly the Pusan International Film Festival (PIFF), held annually in Haeundae District, Busan, South Korea, is one of the most significant film festivals in Asia. The first festival, held fro ...
. The film was scheduled for release in German cinemas in January 2023.


Reception


Critical reception


Accolades


See also

*
List of submissions to the 95th Academy Awards for Best International Feature Film This is a list of submissions to the 95th Academy Awards for the Best International Feature Film. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has invited the film industries of various countries to submit their best film for the Acade ...
* List of Bolivian submissions for the Academy Award for Best International Feature Film


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Utama 2022 films 2022 directorial debut films 2022 drama films Bolivian drama films Uruguayan drama films French drama films Quechua-language films 2020s Spanish-language films Films shot in Bolivia Films set in Bolivia Films about old age Films about families 2020s Uruguayan films Films about grandparent–grandchild relationships