This year the Latin-American presence at the Cannes Film Festival and the parallel sections Critic’s Week and Directors’ Fortnight is not as strong as other editions, but nevertheless there are films to watch out for coming from great Latin American directors.
THE SECRET AGENT (Brazil), starring Wagner Moura (Narcos, Civil War), Udo Kier, and Gabriel Leone, is a politically charged thriller that blends Mendonça Filho’s signature formal rigor with themes of surveillance, disinformation, and the erosion of democratic norms. Set in 1977, during the final years of Brazil’s military dictatorship, the film follows Marcelo, a 40-year-old teacher who returns to Recife in search of peace, only to find that the city is far from the refuge he hoped for.
The Filipino filmmaker Lav Diaz will premiere his historical drama MAGELLAN starring Mexican actor Gael García Bernal. The film, set in the 16th century, follows Magellan, a young and ambitious Portuguese navigator. He rebels against the power of the King of Portugal, who doesn’t support his dream of discovering the world, and persuades the Spanish monarchy to fund his bold expedition to the fabled lands of the East.
Academy Award-winning Chilean director Sebastián Lelio (A Fantastic Woman) returns to Cannes after a long hiatus with his Spanish-language musical THE WAVE / LA OLA, screening in the Cannes Premieres out-of-competition section. Inspired by the feminist protests that erupted across Chile in 2018, the film follows a university student who becomes an unexpected central figure in the movement.
The Colombian drama A POET the second feature by director Simón Mesa Soto, in the Un Certain Regard section. This marks the first time that Colombia has a film in this competition since José Luis Rugeles’ Alias Maria in 2015. Starring Ubeimar Rios, Rebeca Andrade, Guillermo Cardona, Allison Correa, Margarita Soto, and Humberto Restrepo, the film follows Óscar Restrepo, whose obsession with poetry has brought him no glory. The Colombian director is a regular at Cannes: his graduation film, LEIDI, won the Palme d’Or for short film at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival, while his first feature, AMPARO, was awarded the Prix Fondation Louis Roederer de la Révélation en 2021.
Diego Céspedes (Chile) will debut with MYSTERIOUS GAZE OF THE FLAMINGO / LA MISTERIOSA MIRADA DEL FLAMENCO will compete in the Un Certain Regard section. Set in 1983, in a remote Chilean mining town haunted by a mythic disease said to spread when men fall in love—through a mere glance—eight-year-old Lidia watches as her two brothers are quarantined following a raid on a clandestine gay speakeasy.
The Marché du Film is proud to welcome Brazil is the Country of Honour at the The Marché du Film 2025
The Cannes Film Festival hosts every year the largest film market in the world, Le Marche Du Film, and this year in coincidence of the Brazil-France Season — celebrating 200 years of diplomatic relations between the two countries — Brazil will work together with the Marché du Film this year to shine a spotlight on their country’s vibrant audiovisual industry, its exceptional creative talents, and its enduring commitment to international collaboration.
