Bafici 2025: a new edition of the great independent cinema festival

Attention cinephiles! Movie lovers have thirteen days to indulge in great films, masterclasses, and special activities to celebrate independent cinema in grand style.

The 26th edition of Bafici arrives with 298 films from 44 countries as diverse as Germany, Canada, the United States, India, Portugal, France, Spain, Norway, Switzerland, Belgium, China, Italy, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay.

Bafici has become the most important Independent Film Festival in Latin America with a curated selection of films that emphasize quality and diversity. This year, there will be no less than 112 world premieres and 116 national productions.

What to Watch at Bafici?

There’s so much, so varied, and so good that it’s hard to decide. Here are some hints to help you plan your schedule.

The opening film will be Upa! A Spring in Athens by Santiago Giralt, Camila Toker, and Tamae Garateguy. A raw and humorous portrait about the marginalization of artists during the current government in Argentina. What's it about? Ailén, Nina, and Pina are a strange trio made up of a bankrupt producer, a canceled actress, and a depressed filmmaker who decide to travel to the Peloponnese to explore a musical version of the Medea myth.

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The film that will close the festival is Quinografía by Mariano Donoso and Federico Cardone. A journey through the places where Quino, the genius creator of Mafalda, forged his creativity and legacy through images and unpublished testimonies, aiming to rediscover his work, affections, and the significant spaces of his life and art.

International Competition

Which films are competing in this category? There’s drama, thriller, humor, life stories, and action. Here are ten highlights from this edition for you to check out and decide which one to see.

• Eephus by Carson Lund (United States)
  As a construction project looms over a beloved baseball field in a small town, a couple of teams from the New England recreational league face off for the last time. Tensions explode as an era of camaraderie fades into an uncertain future.

• Moon by Kurdwin Ayub (Iraq)
  Sarah leaves Austria to train three sisters from a wealthy family in martial arts in the Middle East. What seemed like an ideal job becomes unsettling as the young women are isolated and constantly watched. They’re not interested in sports, so why did they hire Sarah?

• Aimer Perdre by Lenny Guit and Harpo Guit (France)
  Armande Pigeon is the queen of deception. She struggles to survive because she can't stop gambling, always losing. One night, with Ronnie, everything changes when they win big—but when luck is on your side, you have to know when to stop.

• Mi madre es una vaca by Moara Passoni (Brazil)
  Left in the care of her aunt at a family ranch on the edge of the Brazilian wetland, 12-year-old Mía desperately craves her mother’s love. But, with a jaguar threatening the family, love arrives in an unexpected way.

• Gatillero by Cris Tapia Marchiori (Argentina)
  A former hitman takes a minor job for his old boss. However, in a corrupt neighborhood, nothing is what it seems, and he quickly gets caught in a web of unexpected events in a race against time and his own destiny.

• Hippopotami by JJ Lin (China)
  In the suburbs of a northern Chinese city undergoing urbanization, a peculiar girl dreams of seeing animals at the zoo and embarks on a journey that will forever change her view of life.

• Denominación de origen by Tomás Alzamora Muñoz (Chile)
  The town of San Carlos suffers an injustice: the city of Chillán takes the title of Best Longaniza of Chile. In response, a group of San Carlans organizes a social movement to reclaim the pride and dignity of their town.

• Una quinta portuguesa by Avelina Prat (Spain/Portugal)
  The disappearance of his wife leaves Fernando, a calm geography teacher, completely devastated. Directionless, he assumes the identity of another man as a gardener at a Portuguese estate, where he forms an unexpected friendship with the owner and immerses himself in a life that isn’t his.

• No es momento para pop by Amit Vankin (Israel)
  Finding an apartment in Tel Aviv is never easy, especially on Memorial Day. Still, Yael has no choice but to leave her home, and her struggle to resolve her housing crisis coincides with the solemnity and respectful silence of Yom HaZikaron, when Tel Aviv and all of Israel stand still.

• Stranger Eyes by Yeo Siew Hua (Singapore, Taiwan, France, United States)
  A young couple searching for their missing daughter finds recordings of their most intimate moments filmed by a mysterious voyeur. This leads them to an investigation to uncover the truth behind the images... and themselves.

National Competition

Bafici is always a great opportunity to catch up on current national cinema productions and stay up to date with what's happening at the forefront of the local industry. Here are 10 films in competition that are worth checking out.

• Suerte de pinos by Lorena Muñoz
  In a remote town in northern Spain, a family house remains locked with three padlocks. Seventy years ago, in the square where a pine tree is planted every year during a medieval festival, a great-grandmother and her daughter were killed in a double femicide witnessed by all, but kept silent until now.

• Tesis sobre una domesticación by Javier Van De Couter
  Prestigious, wealthy, and newly married, a transvestite actress decides to adopt a child. With the idea of family, the dream seems complete. A thesis that constructs a new narrative that includes pleasure, glamour, ambition, and contradiction: what is the cost of sustaining this new reality?

• La noche sin mí by María Laura Berch and Laura Chiabrando
  Eva perceives herself as different. An unexpected event transforms her. Her feminine universe is put to the test, holding the unsustainable in the family structure. From this night on, everything will be different for her, even if nothing changes.

• La virgen de la Tosquera by Laura Casabé
  Natalia, Mariela, and Josefina are inseparable friends, madly in love with Diego, a childhood friend. In the troubled summer of 2001, Silvia, an older and worldly woman, appears and captures his attention. Natalia then seeks help from her grandmother, who will introduce her to the realm of spells and black magic.

• Presente continuo by Ulises Rosell
  A film that explores the perception of Lisandro, a 16-year-old boy on the autism spectrum. His mother, Valentina, an actress, raised him among backstage and dressing rooms. Does he perceive any difference between reality and fiction?

• Después del silencio by Juana Gonzalez Posse
  While working every day in a dry cleaner's, Rosa is haunted by the memory of her childhood with her mother. One day, she sees on television that a woman from the neighborhood claims to have seen the Virgin Mary, and her daily life begins to be filled with religious elements.

• Este no es tiempo para Carnaval by Tadeo Pestaña Caro and Kevin Havas
  Joaco, a pirate movie seller, rides his motorcycle delivering movies in the neighborhoods of Salta. On the eve of Carnival, he meets Martina, the daughter of one of his clients, and becomes involved in investigating a series of robberies threatening the city’s deliverymen.

• La propia piel by Guadalupe Docampo
  Florencia deceives her daughter, mother, and sister to have a sexual encounter with Agustín, her ex-husband. Her mother's emergency surgery will expose her lies and Agustín's heartbreak but will also allow her to finally close the chapter on her marriage.

• Nocturno by Ana Pontes and Sol Muñoz
  Nina and Fermín spend the night in the neighborhood where their father is a security guard. Amid lights and shadows, they walk, play, and eat. Nina watches others in silence, as if seeing herself in a mirror about to break. The night advances quietly, while other children watch them from their windows.

• La zurda by Rosendo Ruiz
  Two working-class youths dream of succeeding with their cumbia band. One night, they are caught up in a crime they didn't commit. Knowing that their origins have condemned them in advance, they flee with no other choice.

Cinema and More Cinema

This is not all! The different sections have many more films to keep enjoying the best cinema.

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Tickets can be purchased online starting March 26th at bafici.org and at the Teatro San Martín (Av. Corrientes 1530) from 10 AM to 9:30 PM. From April 2nd to 13th, they can be bought in person at the following venues: TTeatro San Martín (Av. Corrientes 1530), Teatro Alvear (Av. Corrientes 1659), Cultural San Martín (Paraná 310), Cinépolis Plaza Houssay (Av. Córdoba 2135), Cinearte Cacodelphia (Roque Sáenz Peña 1150), Espacio INCAA Cine Gaumont (Av. Rivadavia 1635).

For free screenings, tickets must be reserved 48 hours in advance, starting at 2 PM, at bafici.org or at the festival box offices.