The Oscars are the highest recognition for cinematographic talent. Getting there is like qualifying for the World Cup, but automatically going to the final. It is a tremendous achievement. If we try to quantify the amount of content that is generated in the year and that is a potential candidate for a nomination, we will know that there are thousands, which makes the merit even greater. For the same reason, having two nominations, for a country like ours, is unimaginable. In fact, for Chile it is absolutely unprecedented.
Chile’s podiums have been few. In terms of filmography, in 2016 “The Story of a Bear” won the first Oscar for Chile in the Best Short Film category and a year later it was followed by “A Fantastic Woman”, in the Best Foreign Language Film category.
And if it is about individual talents, the first Oscar for Chile went to Alejandro Amenábar who won in 2005 in the Best Foreign Language Film category, with the production “Mar Adentro” and years later the photographer Claudio Miranda, who in 2013 won an Oscar after winning the Best Cinematography category in the film “Life of Pi.”
Being nominated for an Oscar is already an award in itself, and eventually winning the precious statuette means a lot of prestige for its authors, but does winning an Oscar bring more benefits? Of course. Among many things, being nominated does very good for the country’s image. And winning, even more.
Metaphorically speaking, these works are like opening a door to the world so that it can come to know us, how we are, our history, culture and what we are capable of.
In the past Gabriela Mistral and Neruda have opened our doors, along with several other world-renowned artists such as Claudio Bravo, Roberto Matta, Claudio Arrau, Violeta Parra, Víctor Jara, Vicente Huidobro and many others.
Today this access door is being opened by Pedro Pascal, who never stops mentioning his beloved Chile. And many have learned more about our country thanks to him.
Now Maite Alberdi and Pablo Larraín once again open our doors to the world, and behind them are their teams, the cast and countless professionals and technicians who make up the film and entertainment industry. For a long time now it has not only been identified as the seventh art, but has become an audiovisual expression capable of influencing culture, also in a very influential means of communication in societies and, without a doubt, in an industry. very lucrative.
So lucrative and relevant that it is part of the Orange Economy, which is a relevant engine of social and economic development in the world that is built from cultural diversity and creativity. It is estimated that until 2022, the Orange Economy represented 3% of the world’s Gross Domestic Product and employed more than 30 million people around the world, in economic activities related to art, culture, research, science, technology, among others. others, in which creativity is the main characteristic. More recent data shows that these numbers are only going up.
Among other things, if we look at the television and streaming business, they need to constantly offer quality content due to strong audience demand. Those who generate quality content like “La Memoria Infinita” or “El Conde” will be part of those platforms and of that demand that only grows.
Like any competition, success at the Oscars does not always depend solely on the quality of the work, but also on its competition, dissemination, promotion, exhibition, marketing strategy, previous awards, lobbying and endless factors. Both “La Memoria Infinita” and “El Conde” have had no less prior exhibition worldwide, due to their premieres in film circuits, their availability on Netflix and their awards harvests, all factors that contribute to their being able to win the title. precious and elusive Oscar from the Academy.