Shalim Ortiz, actor and producer of “Touched” along with other members of the cast and production crew will visit Nagua on November 19, the day of the film’s screening, to answer questions and speak with the public.

The III Dominican Global Film Festival will be inaugurated in Nagua next Thursday November 17th with US-Mexico production, “Sin Nombre.”  On Thursday the 19th, Shalim Ortiz and cast members of “Touched” will interact with the public.

“Sin Nombre,” winner of the Excellence in Directing Award and Excellence in Cinematography Award at the 2009 Sundance Film Festival will show at 8:00 pm after a red carpet ceremony at the Regional Center of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo in Nagua (CURNA in Spanish). 

The event in Nagua is made possible with support from CURNA Director Ramon E. Amparo and the Regional Office of the Ministry of Culture.

Members of the Festival’s organizing team will present “Sin Nombre” by director Cary Joji Fukunaga. In his debut feature film, Fukunaga skillfully blends various genres including suspense, the social drama of illegal immigration, a love story and a western. This film is considered to be the most moving and best told story about Latin American immigrants to the United States since “El Norte” came out in 1983.

The movie weaves together two stories. One story involves Sayra (Paulina Gaitan), a young Honduran woman who, along with her father and uncle, make the long odyssey from Honduras through Guatemala and Mexico with the eventual goal of reaching New Jersey where they have relatives.

The other story is about Willy (Edgar Flores), nicknamed Casper, who is a member of the Mara Salvatrucha gang from Southern Mexico. Willy, along with the gang leader and a new 12-year-old recruit, are planning to rob all the immigrants they find traveling on the roofs of the cargo trains. His and Sayra’s paths cross. 

The performances by these talented young actors are uniformly extraordinary yet subtle, without exaggeration. Flores, as Casper, is a tough young man who would like to break out of the gang, or “Mara” as they’re called, and lead a normal life.  Meanwhile, through one of his friends, the impressionable Smiley, Casper sees how the iconography and discipline of the gang casts a spell on and hypnotizes young people. 

Filmed in incredibly beautiful landscapes, this award-winning movie is a portrait of hope and desperation that is launching the career of this new and extraordinarily talented filmmaker.

OTHER FILMS

The Nagua film program includes the showing of “Sergio” on Wednesday the 18th at 10:00 am and “Sweet Life” at 7:00 pm.  In addition, “She is the Matador” will show on Thursday the 19th at 3:00 pm.  “Touched ” will be screened at 7:00 pm.

On Friday the 20th, “Actor´s Studio” will show at 3:00 pm and “Five Days without Nora” will begin at 7:00 pm.  On Sunday, “The Heart of Time” will show at 3:00 pm and “My Life in Greece” at 7:00 pm.

The III Dominican Global Film Festival will run until November 22 in Santo Domingo, Santiago, Puerto Plata and CapCana. All together, a total of 30 films - documentaries and features - will be shown. There will also be nine panels, workshops and masters classes going on all throughout the Festival.
Through the films, professional training and educational programs, the 2009 Festival seeks to inspire and educate emerging artists, industry professionals, high school and college students and film lovers all around.