Malaga’s MAFF: Abner Benaim, Nerea Barros, Storyboard Media, Yanillys Perez Set for Fest’s Centerpiece Project Competition

variety.com:

John Hopewell Chief International Correspondent “The Simple Life,” the sixth movie of Oscar-shortlisted Abner Benaim, and “The Coast,” the directorial feature debut of “The Gypsy Bride” star Nerea Barros, both make their market debut at next March’s Malaga Festival Fund & Co-Production Event (MAFF), one of the top forums for arthouse projects in the Spanish-speaking world.

Proving the possibility to carve out an international film career based out of Panama, “The Simple Life” (“La Vida Simple”) marks the sixth feature from Benaim, Oscar shortlisted for “Plaza Catedral.” Marking a departure, “The Simple Life” looks like a more personal turn, about a film director, sans camera and crew, in Panama, compelled by unforeseen circumstances to live the very movie he’s longed to capture on film, suffering existential crisis. “The Coast” (“La Costa”), which Barros calls an “experimental” film, follows up “Memory,” nominated for a 2023 best doc short Spanish Academy Goya Award, also directed by Barros, who scored a Spanish Academy supporting actress Goya Award for “Marshland.” “The Coast” turns on what she calls two “obsessions,” “the legacy of the elderly, and climate change.” In another high-profile MAFF entry, Chile’s “Box 205” marks a major industry undertaking – a four-part series and feature film – and the debut feature of producer Pablo del Rió and first TV series from Storyboard Media, winning a major $600,000 endowment from the Chilean National TV Council (CNTV).

Most titles come with something to recommend themselves, however, whether its directors’ shorts or the projects’ development trophies, or their producers’ track record.