HispanicBusiness

BEST DOCUMENTARY: "EL MÉDICO: THE CUBATÓN STORY"
New York Premiere/Cuba, Sweden/85 Minutes
Director: Daniel Fridell
Producers: Thomas Allercrantz, Daniel Fridell, Ingemar Johansson, Adel Kjellström, Margus Öunapuu, Petri Rossi
High up in the Sierra Maestra mountains, where Castro's revolution began, "El Médico," a doctor and musician, serves the cause. When a Swedish music producer sees "El Médico" as the next big thing, Communist ideals collide with capitalist dreams, with the magic and beauty of Cuba and her music as backdrop. Presented by HBO®. Winner receives $1,000 cash award.

HBO®/ NYILFF SHORT FILM COMPETITION WINNER:
"THE ACTING LESSON" by Carmen Peláez
Written by: Carmen Peláez
Directors: Carmen Peláez and Nicolas Calzada
Cast: Brigitte Khali and Wanda Arriaga

HBO and the New York International Latino Film Festival (NYILFF) today announced that "The Acting Lesson," an original screenplay by Carmen Peláez, has been chosen as the 2012 winner of the HBO/NYILFF Short Film Competition. The screenplay tells the story of Emily, a rising starlet who interviews her director's maid Pepa, claiming that she is doing research for her next big movie role. But when the questions get personal, Pepa is forced to delve deep into her own history, erasing the line between telenovela and real life.

In addition to receiving the $15,000 grand prize, an HBO creative executive will serve as a mentor to Peláez and consult during the production of the winning script to film. The short, which is being shot in the Miami area and co-directed by Peláez and Nicholas Calzada, was exhibited during screenings at the New York International Latino Film Festival, August 13-19, in New York City.

THE 2012 NYILFF JURY

DOCUMENTARY JURY
Cristina Ibarra
Based in New York City, Chicana filmmaker Cristina Ibarra's films are inspired by her homeland of the US/Mexico border. Her PBS documentary, "Las Marthas," will be completed this winter. "The Last Conquistador," her documentary collaboration, was broadcast on POV in 2008. Her short films, "Dirty Laundry: A Homemade Telenovela" and "Grandma's Hip Hop" have also been on PBS. She's a NYILFF award-winning filmmaker with her mini-film "Wheels of Change." She's a founding member of fulana.org, a Latina interdisciplinary collective, and SubCine.com, a Latino self-distribution filmmaker collective. See her work online: UndocumentedFilms.com.

Raphaela Neihausen
Raphaela Neihausen is Executive Director of the weekly doc series Stranger Than Fiction at Manhattan's IFC Center and the annual festivals DOC NYC (New York's Documentary Film Festival) and the Montclair Film Festival. She produced the documentary "Miss Gulag" (supported by the Ford Foundation and Sundance Documentary Fund) that premiered at the Berlin Film Festival and went on to be broadcast worldwide. She holds a BSFS/MA from Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service, graduating with honors.

Araceli Cruz
Araceli Cruz is a California native, covering arts & entertainment as Senior Associate Editor at the prominent Village Voice. Prior to making her quest to the East Coast, she majored in Journalism at the San Francisco State University, and left her mark in the media world as Features Reporter at The Press-Enterprise and Editor at nocheLatina. She also contributes her talent today as a Freelance writer in a diverse range of media. Her inspiration extends from, and towards, her involvement in the art world, contributing her own artwork as part of the art collective called Openings. You can follow Araceli on Facebook and Twitter @chelipj.