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Panama Abner Benaimscreenwriter and director of “Plaza Catedral”, shortlisted for the Oscar, and one of the most prominent filmmakers in Central America, has set his sequel, “La vida simple”, which will debut on the market in 2024. Malaga Festival Fund and Event Co-production (MAFF) this March, one of the key forums for co-production of artistic cinema in Spanish.
Created at the Benaim label in Panama City, Apertura Films, “La Vida Simple” and co-produced by the Montevideo-based U Films (“9’”, “Ausencia de mí”, “Mala madre”, directed by Virginia Hinze and Lucía Gaviglio .
“The Simple Life” will mark a departure for Benaim, breaking with four comedy-ridden social issue films that focus on the social abyss in Panama (“Chance,” 2009) or endemic youth violence (“Plaza Catedral,” 2021) between narrative features, or a Latin American icon, “Rubén Blades no es mi nombre” (2018) and the US invasion of Panama in 1989 (“Invasion”, 2015) between documentary features or hybrids.
“Rubén Blades” “will definitely be related to the history of Latin America in the last 50 years,” Benaim said Variety while it was in preparation.
On the other hand, “The Simple Life” is more related to the reality of Benaim himself. In it, a film director – imagined as a Panamanian filmmaker who has lived in Spain for a long time – is stripped of his camera and equipment, finds himself in Panama and is forced by unforeseen circumstances to live the same film that he had longed to capture in movie.
“The central theme of this film is the inability to face the idea of one’s own death and the paralyzing effect it can have on one’s life. I suffered from panic attacks for many years and I think it is important to discuss this topic and share my experience through this story, without taboos. People often feel like they are the only ones who suffer, cinema can change that,” Benaim said. Variety.
However, the film will delve into a post-pandemic zeitgeist, one that seeks lighter and, finally, more enjoyable fare.
Poster “The Simple Life”
“I feel that the key to ‘The Simple Life’ in addressing these ‘difficult’ themes lies in the film’s light-hearted tone: ‘a tropical existential road movie,’” he added.
“When I sat down to write, the humor seeped in, as it usually does. When situations are difficult to face, the absurd comes in,” Benaim added: “It is a drama that allows humor and romance, and shares a message of optimism about life; that although the fear of the unknown is natural, it is also an opportunity to live fully and find meaning in every step we take. “All of this takes place in the wild and lush countryside of Panama, making the film itself an ode to Panama and its beautiful people and nature,” he added.
Benaim told Variety that his script is ready to film, although he noted that he liked working with the actors and adapting until the last minute, and “especially in this case when it’s a road movie where I want to allow the circumstances , the places and people we found along the way to influence the shooting.”
Scheduled to shoot in January 2025, “A Simple Life” is planned as an international co-production, said executive producer Malu Zayon of Apertura Films. Apertura is in talks with potential Spanish co-producers.
“After Benaim’s success with ‘Cathedral Square,’ shortlisted for the Oscars, now it delves into more personal territory: ‘The Simple Life’ is like a Latin American ‘Sideways’,” said Zayón.
“It’s an exciting project: a road trip always brings surprises, and the wild and lush nature of the Panama countryside, with its incredible people along with the actors we have in mind, will surely bring special moments to the film. “We want to capture that magic that one feels when we go on a trip, roll down the window, let the breeze in, receive the sunlight and feel good about life, even if it is for a fleeting moment.”
After 14 years, “Chance,” Benaim’s first fiction feature film, remains the highest-grossing Central American film in the region, Benaim highlighted. Winner of the best actor and best actress awards at Mexico’s Guadalajara Festival and released when the pandemic was still in full swing, “Plaza Catedral” was screened on Netflix and Spain’s exclusive streaming service Filmin.
