Karnawal

by Juan Pablo Félix

During Carnival, near the border between Argentina and Bolivia, a young Malambo dancer prepares for the most important competition of his life. When his ex-convict father returns, he jeopardizes everything by dragging his son into his criminal world.

Cabra is a rebellious teenager who lives with his mother in the North of Argentina, near the Bolivian border. He dreams of becoming a professional Malambo dancer – the gauchos folkloric tap-dance. While training for his most important dance competition, Cabra receives the unexpected visit from his father, El Corto, a conman who has the permission to leave jail for a few days. El Corto takes Cabra and his mother on a mysterious journey along the roads of northern Argentina, where father and son reconnect. While trying to find out why El Corto is taking them on this trip, Cabra and his mother suddenly find themselves involved in a violent hold-up. Simultaneously on the run and lost in the middle of the desert, Cabra struggles to return in time for his dance contest. Will he get there in time? And will he have to abandon his father to follow his dreams?

Genre / Language / Length
Drama / Spanish / 95 minutes
Original title
Karnawal
directed by
Juan Pablo Félix
director of photography
Ramiro Civita
screenplay by
Juan Pablo Félix
produced by
Bikini Films in co-production with 3 Moinhos Produçoes, Picardia Films, Phototaxia Pictures, Norsk Filmproduksjon
Cast
  • Alfredo Castro (POST MORTEM, LOS PERROS)
  • Martin López Lacci
  • Mónica Lairana (LA CAMA)
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Press Quotes

"Jaw-dropping in its energy and beauty.”
SydneysBuzz

****
"First-time feature director Juan Pablo Félix takes the same energetic, forthright approach to his filmmaking that his protagonist does to his beloved malambo dance - a complex and rhythmic traditional dance from Argentina - with the director's fancy footwork moving seamlessly from indie drama and coming-of-age tale to tense thriller and back again."
Eye for Film

"A confident debut."
Letterboxd

"An excellent examination of complicated families."
"A charged final act."
Starbroek News

"The commendable Karnawal, of the Argentinian Juan Pablo Félix is masterfully filmed and carried by the exceptional interpretation of the Chilean actor Alfredo Castro as a seductive and dangerous convict that his wife and son follow somehow. The breathtaking intrigue between town and pampas is interwoven by the marvelous steps of the malambo dancers."
LeDevoir

Selected Festivals & Awards

Cleveland International Film Festival
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