DistantNews
Support us
🇲🇽 Mexico /Culture & Society

Gael García Bernal premieres his third film as director in Venice to the beat of Ricky Martin

From El Universal · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

Newswire Named sources Context piece
  • Gael García Bernal presented his third feature as a director, Hombre al agua, at the Venice Film Festival’s Venice Spotlight section.
  • The film stars García Bernal as a Cuban lifeguard whose life changes after he saves a wealthy Mexican businessman, while Ricky Martin makes a brief appearance.
  • García Bernal said the film is more ambitious, deeper and more personal than his previous two features.

Ricky Martin’s songs set the mood as Gael García Bernal arrived dancing at the Venice Film Festival for the premiere of Hombre al agua, his third feature as a director. The Mexican filmmaker wore a black suit, white shirt and tie, matching the black-and-white look that dominated the film’s presentation.

The movie screened in the Venice Spotlight section, outside the competition. García Bernal attended with actors Jorge Salinas, Esmeralda Pimentel, Manuel García Rulfo and Débora Nascimento. Diego Luna was also present. La Corriente del Golfo, the production company García Bernal founded, is behind the film.

In Hombre al agua, García Bernal plays Camilo, a Cuban lifeguard whose fate changes after he saves a wealthy Mexican businessman. Camilo becomes the businessman’s right-hand man in his corporate empire and marries his daughter, but his new life brings more questions than certainty.

It is a very ambitious film and very different from those other two. You mature as a director, and you learn what to do and what not to do, what not to repeat.

· Gael García BernalThe director described how his third feature differs from his earlier films.

Ricky Martin plays an actor within the story. A film project backed by Camilo’s wife hires his character to portray Camilo in a fictional biography. Songs including María and Livin' la Vida Loca played before the cast reached the red carpet.

García Bernal previously directed Déficit, released in 2007, and Chicuarotes, released in 2019. Both films reached major festival programs in Cannes. He told EFE that he felt honored to see his third film presented publicly at a festival. “It is a very ambitious film and very different from those other two. You mature as a director, and you learn what to do and what not to do, what not to repeat,” he said. He added that Hombre al agua “covers a deeper and more personal dimension, a deeper and more personal concern, than the previous ones.”

It covers a deeper and more personal dimension, a deeper and more personal concern, than the previous ones.

· Gael García BernalGarcía Bernal explained the film’s personal and thematic development.
About this summary

Originally published by El Universal in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

More Stories

From Our Blog