13/02/2023 - Juan Sebastian Torales’s feature promises to mix “pure realism” with “a fantastical universe, located in a little-known region of Argentina”

Fleeing homophobic attacks, 14-year-old Nino moves from the city to a house in the middle of a dark, dank forest, where his father works. Here, Nino learns about a mysterious creature called Almamula, which takes with them anyone who commits carnal sins. While Nino feels guilty for what he is going through and for having turned his family's life upside down, his mother tries to put him back on the right track by organising his confirmation in the local church. The pressure of the approaching ceremony weighs heavily on Nino, and his fascination for Almamula grows, as they would accept his sins. Little by little, Nino invites Almamula into his prayers, as he searches for salvation.

This is the synopsis of Juan Sebastian Torales’s Almamula [+see also:
trailer
interview: Juan Sebastián Torales
film profile], set to world-premiere in the Generation 14Plus strand of this year’s Berlinale (16-26 February). Speaking to Cineuropa, the helmer said: “Almamula is the result of a long, introspective process. I have been living in Paris for 17 years, and Almamula as a tale was my way of exorcising the ghosts of my uprooting, along with everything I have left behind in Santiago del Estero: from the ties, the experiences and the smells, to the landscapes and wounds that have not yet healed. Santiago del Estero is a land with a very strong cultural capital, and growing up there means being surrounded by a lot of mysticism, folklore, nature and a society that works in its very own, unique ways. I hope the audience will enjoy this first look into the world of my version of Almamula.”

Almamula was produced by Pilar Peredo and Edgard Tenembaum for France’s Tu Vas Voir, and co-produced by Lorena Quevedo for Argentina’s Twins Latin Films and Augusto Pelliccia for Italy’s Augustus Color. Caroline de Jenlis and Bernard de la Villardière, of Palermo Production, served as the associate producers. Its international sales are being handled by Spain’s Bendita Film Sales. The picture is in the running for the GWFF Best First Feature Award as well as for the Teddy Award.

Check out our exclusive trailer below: