The Spanish film 'Sirat' and the Brazilian 'The Secret Agent' are among the top contenders to be among the 15 films pre-selected for an Oscar nomination, which will be announced tomorrow by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The film representing Brazil in this awards season has received praise from the specialized Hollywood press, which hails it as a worthy successor to its predecessor 'I’m Still Here', which won the Oscar for Best International Feature Film in the last edition.
This historical thriller, written and directed by Brazilian filmmaker Kleber Mendonça Filho, follows Marcelo (Wagner Moura), a technology expert and fugitive who travels to his hometown of Recife during Carnival to reunite with his son, only to discover that the city is more dangerous than he expected.
Set in Brazil in 1977, the cast is led by Brazilian actor Wagner Moura, known for 'Narcos' and 'Elite Squad', alongside Maria Fernanda Cândido and Gabriel Leone.
Meanwhile, Spain could once again appear on the list and repeat the success of 'Society of the Snow', the film by Juan Antonio Bayona about the survivors of the 1972 Andes tragedy.
This time, with 'Sirat', the work of director Oliver Laxe, a recognized figure in the international festival circuit, who this time ventures into the Moroccan desert to follow the desperate search of a father, Luis (Sergi López), and his youngest son, Esteban (Bruno Núñez), to find Mar, their daughter and older sister, who disappeared months ago at an illegal rave in the mountains.
The film was awarded the Jury Prize at the Cannes Film Festival 2025, in addition to receiving two Golden Globe nominations for Best Original Score and Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language, with which it will compete on January 11 alongside 'The Secret Agent'.
Other Hispanic titles in the running for this lottery include the Argentine 'Belén', a work inspired by real events and based on the book Somos Belén by Ana Correa. The film follows the trail of Argentine social dramas that have triumphed at the awards: its producer, K&S Films, was behind 'Argentina, 1985', the winner of the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Foreign Language in 2023.
Also, 'Un Poeta', Colombia's entry directed by Simón Mesa Soto, has a chance to be included in this pre-list, composed of the semifinalists for the Oscars in ten of its categories and is considered the prelude to the nominations for the industry's most prestigious awards.
To the Hispanic bets are added the acclaimed 'Sentimental Value', Norway's representative; or the moving 'The Voice of Hind', which competes for Tunisia and revolves around a five-year-old Palestinian girl, whose heartbreaking emergency call to the Red Crescent went viral in early 2024.
The specialized Hollywood press includes the Iranian Jafar Panahi's Korean 'No Other Choice' or 'It Was Just An Accident', representing France; also the drama 'Palestine 36', the representative of Palestine, whose pre-selection would mark a milestone in its career for the international feature film award.
