The castle

by Martín Benchimol

Long métrage documentaire

2022

PANORAMA selection - Berlinale 2023
Directed by
Martín Benchimol

Author
Martín Benchimol

Format
77
Produced by
Sister Productions (France)
Gema Films (Argentina)
Heidi Fleisher (France)
Synopsis
After working as a domestic worker all her life, Justina (60) inherits a huge mansion in the middle of the Argentine pampas from her former employer. The only condition is that she never sells it.
While the house collapses and the farm animals are sold, Alexia, her daughter, prepares to return to the city.
The castle allows us to share the last months that mother and daughter spend together in a bittersweet fairy tale that offers promises of salvation, while both the protagonists and the audience wonder how far the absurdity of our class society can go.
Festivals & awards
  • LATAM Work in Progress in San Sebastian Film Festival (Spain), 2022
  • Rough cuts — IDFA Forum (Netherlands (Amsterdam)), 2022
  • PANORAMA selection — Berlinale (Germany), 2023
  • Thessaloniki Documentary Film Festival (Greece), 2023
  • Prix du meilleur réalisateur — Festival Internacional de Cine de Cartagena de Indias (Colombia), 2023
  • Best Director Award — Honk Kong IFF (Hong Kong), 2023
  • Hot Docs IFF (Canada), 2023
  • Jeonju IFF (South Korea), 2023
  • Docaviv (Israel), 2023
  • Sheffield Doc FF (United Kingdom), 2023
Partners
CNC – Cinema du Monde
La Région Nouvelle Aquitaine
International sales
Luxbox