4 Latin American Films Playing at ‘Art of the Real’ that Blur the Line Between Fact and Fiction

Over the past decade or so, the line between documentary and fiction has become increasingly difficult to pin down, with many contemporary filmmakers gleefully blurring boundaries long established by tradition and creating hybrid works that keep budgets down while constantly questioning the difference between reality and fabrication. It’s telling that The Film Society at Lincoln Center’s annual Art of the Real showcase, opts for the term “non-fiction” over “documentary,” freeing the filmmakers from preconditioned expectations while still only telling about half the story for most of the films featured in this year’s edition.

Yet alongside these provocative, transgressive hybrid works are a whole range of themes and formal approaches that are testament to non-fiction film’s endless possibilities. From personal essay films about love, memory and San Francisco, to an uninterrupted, 75-minute talking head interview with the 90-year old WWII veteran who led Japan’s first squadron of Kamikaze pilots, you’ll probably want to set apart some time to really dig into the selection curated by Dennis Lim and Rachael Rakes. Indeed, with so much diversity, Art of the Real shows us that perhaps documentary is in the eye of the beholder rather than merely a set of fixed conventions.

Either way, Latin America is proudly front and center in this new wave of cinematic experimentation, and nearly a quarter of this year’s Art of the Real program comes from south of the border. Here’s a rundown of the Latin American films to look out for.

Art of the Real runs April 10 – 26 at the Film Society of Lincoln Center. Visit filmlinc.com for tickets and showtimes.