UofL’s Reel Latin America Film Festival returns for its 33rd year with five free films

Films from Brazil, Venezuela, the United States, the Dominican Republic and Spain screen Oct. 8 – Nov. 6 on the Belknap Campus, each with a faculty introduction and post-screening discussion.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The University of Louisville’s Reel Latin America(n) Film Festival returns this fall for its 33rd year with five recent feature films from Brazil, Venezuela, the United States, the Dominican Republic and Spain. Each film screens twice between Oct. 8 and Nov. 6 on UofL’s Belknap Campus: Thursdays at 5:30 p.m. in the Floyd Theater (Student Activities Center) and Fridays at noon in Room W104 of Ekstrom Library. All screenings are free and open to the public.

Held every year since 1994, the festival brings to Louisville films that seldom reach commercial theaters in the region. A UofL faculty member introduces each screening and leads a discussion after the film. All films are shown in their original languages with English subtitles.

This year’s program ranges from a ballet drama based on a true story to a documentary on the Chicano art collective ASCO, a Dominican comedy about family and bureaucracy, a near-future thriller about artificial intelligence in the courts, and an allegorical Venezuelan portrait of a family facing economic collapse.

“Most of these films never open in Louisville theaters. The festival gives students and the wider community the chance to see them on a big screen and to discuss them with faculty who study the region,” said Dr. Manuel F. Medina, professor of Classical and Modern Languages and director of UofL’s Latin American and Latino Studies program.

SCREENING SCHEDULE

THE FILMS

A Wolf Among Swans  (Um Lobo entre os Cisnes)

Directed by Marcos Schechtman and Helena Varvaki · Brazil, 2025 · 112 min. · In Portuguese with English subtitles

Based on a true story, the film follows Thiago Soares, a young dancer from the suburbs of Rio de Janeiro who leaves hip hop behind for classical ballet. Guided by his Cuban mentor, Dino Carrera, he confronts social, economic and personal obstacles on his way to becoming a principal dancer with the Royal Ballet in London.

Screenings: Thursday, Oct. 8, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater, Student Activities Center (introduced by Dr. Manuel F. Medina, Classical and Modern Languages / Latin American and Latino Studies); Friday, Nov. 6, noon, Ekstrom Library, Room W104.

Content advisory: Brief nudity, implied sexual content, some coarse language, scenes of physical injury (PG-13 equivalent).

Zafari

Directed by Mariana Rondón · Venezuela, 2024 · 100 min. · In Spanish with English subtitles

Against a backdrop of political and economic collapse, a family struggles to preserve its dignity and hope amid growing scarcity. Blending realism with allegory, Mariana Rondón examines survival, social fragmentation and the psychological toll of crisis.

Screenings: Friday, Oct. 9, noon, Ekstrom Library, Room W104 (introduced by Dr. Tricia Gray, Political Science); Thursday, Nov. 5, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater, Student Activities Center (introduced by Dr. Claire Sullivan, Classical and Modern Languages).

Content advisory: Sexual content, nudity, strong language, mild violent behavior, themes of poverty and societal collapse (R equivalent).

Asco Without Permission

Directed by Travis Gutiérrez Senger · United States, 2025 · 92 min. · In English and Spanish with English subtitles

A genre-defying documentary about ASCO, the groundbreaking Chicano art collective whose performance, photography, visual art and activism transformed the cultural landscape of Los Angeles in the 1970s and 1980s.

Screenings: Thursday, Oct. 15, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater, Student Activities Center (introduced by Dr. Christine Ehrick, History); Friday, Oct. 30, noon, Ekstrom Library, Room W104 (introduced by Dr. Simona Bertacco, Interdisciplinary and Public Humanities).

Content advisory: Mature themes; avant-garde performance art and 1970s activism content (R equivalent).

Pérez Rodríguez

Directed by Humberto Tavárez · Dominican Republic, 2024 · 103 min. · In Spanish with English subtitles

A sharp, darkly humorous Dominican comedy about a modest government employee whose carefully ordered life begins to unravel through a series of unexpected events, including a family dispute over an inheritance. The film takes aim at bureaucracy, class aspirations and family loyalties.

Screenings: Friday, Oct. 16, noon, Ekstrom Library, Room W104 (introduced by Dr. Tomás Edison, Classical and Modern Languages); Thursday, Oct. 22, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater, Student Activities Center.

Content advisory: Adult themes and language; dark comedic treatment of family conflict and inheritance disputes (R equivalent).

Artificial Justice

Directed by Simón Casal · Spain, 2024 · 98 min. · In Spanish with English subtitles

A political thriller set in a near future in which artificial intelligence plays an increasingly central role in the administration of justice. The film raises questions of accountability, bias, surveillance and human responsibility.

Screenings: Friday, Oct. 23, noon, Ekstrom Library, Room W104 (introduced by Prof. Diana Wilder, Interdisciplinary and Public Humanities); Thursday, Oct. 29, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater, Student Activities Center.

Content advisory: Moderate violence, some bloody images, adult political/thriller themes (R equivalent).

SPONSORS AND PARTNERS

The festival is organized by the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and the Latin American and Latino Studies program at the University of Louisville, with the support of the College of Arts and Sciences, UofL Libraries and the Floyd Theater. It forms part of Pragda’s Spanish Film Club series, with support from the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C., the Spain–USA Foundation and Spain Arts & Culture. Al Día en América serves as media partner and co-sponsor.

MORE INFORMATION

Full program, film pages and discussion guides (English and Spanish): https://medina502.com/reel_latinamerica_2026

SHORT CALENDAR LISTING

Reel Latin America(n) Film Festival, 33rd year. Five recent films from Latin America and Spain, each screened twice, Oct. 8 – Nov. 6: Thursdays, 5:30 p.m., Floyd Theater (UofL Student Activities Center); Fridays, noon, Ekstrom Library W104. Original languages with English subtitles; faculty-led discussion follows each film. Free and open to the public. medina502.com/reel_latinamerica_2026