Oscars 2027: Latin America Sends 17 Films Into International Feature Race
Latin America is making its bid for Oscar attention with 17 national submissions, bringing established filmmakers, emerging voices and a first-time entry from El Salvador into the race for Best International Feature Film. From supernatural horror to family drama and documentary, the selections reflect a region whose filmmaking extends well beyond a single genre or national industry.
Argentina has selected The Virgin of the Quarry Lake, directed by Laura Casabé, while Bolivia enters with Álvaro Olmos Torrico’s The Condor Daughter. Brazil’s submission is Allan Deberton’s Gugu’s World, and Chile has chosen Manuela Martelli’s The Meltdown, placing four distinctive filmmaking voices into the international competition.
Colombia is represented by Gala del Sol’s Rains Over Babel, with Costa Rica submitting Kim Torres’s If We Don’t Burn, How Do We Light Up the Night. Ecuador joins the field with The Ivy, directed by Ana Cristina Barragán. Together, those selections add fantasy, coming-of-age storytelling and intimate drama to the regional slate.
The Caribbean contingent includes Cuba’s Malecón, directed by Carlos Larrazabal, and the Dominican Republic’s Melodrama, from Andrés Farías. Both films enter a crowded field seeking to turn their national selections into a place on the Academy’s shortlist.
Central America also has a milestone to celebrate. El Salvador makes its first appearance in the category with Arturo López Rodas’s Vértices. Guatemala has selected Jayro Bustamante’s Mountains of Fire, while Panama is represented by Chichero, directed by Arturo Montenegro and Aarón Bromley.
Mexico’s entry is David Pablos’s On the Road. Further south, Paraguay has chosen Marcelo Martinessi’s Narciso, while Peru submits Paolo Tizón’s Night Has Come. Uruguay enters with Daniel Hendler’s A Loose End, and Venezuela completes the 17-country lineup with Jorge Thielen Armand’s Death Has No Master.
The submissions arrive during a consequential year for the category. Alongside the national selection process, new Academy rules allow non-English-language films to qualify through designated top awards at six international festivals. The nomination credit will now go to the film rather than its submitting country, with the director accepting the statuette on behalf of the creative team.
For now, these films are submissions, with Academy nominations still ahead. The 15-film shortlist is scheduled for December 15, followed by nominations on January 21. The 99th Oscars will take place March 14, 2027, at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood.
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