Guerra’s “Embrace of the Serpent” Sweeps Platino Ibero-American Film Awards

Posted on July 25, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Ciro Guerra continues to slither his way to the awards stage…

The 35-year-old film director and screenwriter’s critically acclaimed Embrace of the Serpent, which earned an Academy Award nomination, swept the 3rd Platino Ibero-American Film Awards on Sunday night in Uruguay, taking home seven of the eight categories for which it was nominated.

Although the awards had no clear favorite, Embrace of the Serpent, with Ixcanul, had scored the most nominations and its plaudit sweep did not seem to surprise many.

Shot in widescreen in 35 mm and in black and white Serpent claimed best picture, director, editing (Etienne Boussac, Cristina Gallego), art direction (Angélica Perea), original music (Nascuy Linares), cinematography (the film was shot by David Gallego) and sound (Carlos García, Marco Salavarría).

The story of Karamakate, a shaman who is the last survivor of his tribe and asked, 30 years apart, by two explorers – based on the figures of Theodor Koch-Gruenberg and Richard Evans Schultes – to help them discover the yakuna plant, Embrace of the Serpent charts the devastation of the Amazon by colonial powers, whether Colombian rubber companies or a crazed Spanish priest, but more particularly the loss of indigenous knowledge as whole peoples disappeared under the influx of invasion.

“The ravages of colonialism cast a dark pall over the stunning South American landscape in Embrace of the Serpent, he latest visual astonishment from the gifted Colombian writer-director Ciro Guerra,” Variety wrote in its Cannes Film Festival review.

Ciro Guerre’s third movie has won a string of significant festival, Academy and pan Latin American awards, including a Mexican Silver Ariel, Fénix Film Awards, and plaudits at the Mar del Plata and Palm Springs fests, among others.

Platino acting awards went to two Argentine talents who most certainly deserve wider recognition, Dolores Fonzi, star of Santiago Mitre’s Cannes Critics’ Week winner Paulina, who plays a young lawyer who refuses to compromise her principles when raped while working as a rural teacher, and Guillermo Francella, who portrays a real-life family patriarch and psychopath in Pablo Trapero’s The Clan, who continues for personal profit Argentina’s Dirty War practice of kidnapping and murder after the fall of Argentina’s military junta.

A third Argentine actor, Ricardo Darin, took the Platino Lifetime Achievement Award.

“We have the talent. We just need to have confidence in ourselves,” Darin said on stage, receiving the plaudit. ”That’s why we and Ibero-America need these awards,” he added.

A searing but crafted indictment of the tribulations of a young pregnant and unmarried girl in rural Guatemala, Berlin Silver Bear winner Ixcanul, the feature debut of Jayro Bustamante, once more confirmed its audience appeal, at least with the who have seen it, taking the Platinos’ Audience Award, plus best first feature.

BEST PICTURE
“Embrace of the Serpent,” (Colombia, Argentina, Venezuela)

BEST DIRECTOR
Ciro Guerra (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

BEST ACTOR
Guillermo Francella (“The Clan,” Argentina, Spain)

BEST ACTRESS
Dolores Fonzi (“Paulina,” Argentina)

ORIGINAL MUSIC
Nascuy Linares (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

BEST ANIMATION MOVIE
“Capture the Flag,” (Enrique Gato, Spain)

BEST DOCU FEATURE
“The Pearl Button,” (Patricio Guzmán, Chile, Spain)

BEST SCREENPLAY
Pablo Larraín, Guillermo Calderón, Daniel Villalobos (“The Club”)

FIRST FEATURE
“Ixcanul” (Jayro Bustamante, Guatemala, France)

EDITING
Etienne Boussac, Cristina Gallego (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

ART DIRECTION
Angélica Perea (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
David Gallego (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

SOUND
Carlos García, Marco Salavarría (“Embrace of the Serpent”)

LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Ricardo Darín

PLATINO AWARD FOR FILM AND EDUCATION IN VALUES
“The Second Mother,” (Anna Muylaert, Brazil)

AUDIENCE AWARDS

FEATURE
“Ixcanul,” (Guatemala, France)

ACTRESS
Penélope Cruz (“Ma ma,” Spain)

ACTOR
Ricardo Darín (“Truman,” Spain, Argentina)

Manzano to Receive Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmys

Posted on April 7, 2016 by Tom Castaneda

Sonia Manzano is getting her Emmy moment…

The 65-year-old Puerto Rican actress and writer will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences’ 43rd annual Daytime Emmy Awards on May 1 in Los Angeles.

Manzano is best known for playing Maria on Sesame Street from 1971 until her retirement in 2015.

During her 45 years on Sesame Street, Manzano picked up 15 Emmys for her work as a writer on the groundbreaking public television show.

“My children and just about every child in America has grown up learning their ABC’s from the iconic character of Maria on Sesame Street played by Sonia Manzano,” said NATAS President Bob Mauro. “Sonia not only brought the life events of marriage, having a baby and being a mother to viewers young and old, she also brought a seldom-seen diversity, a Latin role model, unlike anything on television at the time.”

A borinqueña daughter of the South Bronx and graduate of NYC’s famed High School of the Performing Arts, Manzano made her professional debut in the original off-Broadway cast of Godspell before joining Sesame Street in 1971. Her own life — from teenager through growing up, marrying and becoming a mother — was integrated into the complex social fabric of Sesame Street, the Peyton Place of the pre-pubescent set.

A community activist, occasional stage actress and author, Manzano wrote a memoir, Becoming Maria: Love and Chaos in the South Bronx, that was published in August by Scholastic Press.

Belén Among This Year’s Latin Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award Recipients

Posted on September 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

It’s a Lifetime honor for Ana Belén…

The Latin Recording Academy will honor a diverse group of Latin music icons, including the 64-year-old Spanish songstress, actress and director with special career honors in a celebration coinciding with the Latin Grammys in November.

Belén, who has released nearly 40 in her 54 year musical career, received the Fine Arts Golden Medal presented by the Spanish royal family at Toledo Cathedral in 2007. She was nominated for Best Female Soloist for Peces de ciudad at the 2002 Latin Grammy Awards.

In addition to Belén, other artists being recognized this year include Argentine jazz saxophone player Gato Barbieri, Spanish singer Víctor Manuel, Dominican performer Angela Carrasco, Brazilian pop artist Djavan, Puerto Rican salsa legends El Gran Combo De Puerto Rico, and Cuban singer-songwriter Pablo Milanés will receive the Lifetime Achievement awards. Violinist Federico Britos, producer Humberto Gatica and composer Chelique Sarabia will, respectively, receive the Academy’s Trustees Award.

“It is a great honor to recognize and celebrate such a distinguished and dynamic group of honorees who have been the creators of such timeless art,” said The Latin Recording Academy President/CEO Gabriel Abaroa Jr. said in a statement. “Their outstanding accomplishments and passion for their craft have created a timeless legacy. By honoring them we honor our music. They surely will continue to have an influence in both our culture and the Latin music industry.”

The Latin Academy’s special awards honorees will be celebrated during an invitation-only ceremony to be held on Wednesday, November 18 at the MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, as part of the weeklong 16th Annual Latin Grammy Awards festivities.

Blahnik to Debut Capsule Collection of Evening Bags

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Manolo Blahnik has it in the bag…

The 72-year-old Spanish fashion designer, the founder of the self-named, high-end shoe brand, will be debuting a capsule collection of evening bags inspired by his most iconic shoe styles.

Says Blahnik of his latest creations: “Every woman needs a jewel. Something very special and beautiful. There is nothing more stunning than a feminine hand holding a gem-like object.”

In Sex and the City, Blahniks shoe designs are a particular favorite of the show’s star character Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) and as a result are mentioned frequently.

He received a Lifetime Achievement Award from Footwear News in 2011.

Moreno Among the Recipients of This Year’s Kennedy Center Honors

Posted on July 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Rita Moreno continues to rack up the honors…

The 83-year-old Puerto Rican actress, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award at last year’s SAG Awards, has been announced as one of recipients of this year’s Kennedy Center Honors.

Each year, the Kennedy Center recognizes a select group for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts with the primary criterion in the selection process being excellence. Honorees are chosen by the center’s board of trustees.

Moreno, a Grammy, Oscar, Golden Globe and Tony Award winner, will be honored along side Star Wars patriarch George Lucas, actress Cicely Tyson, songwriter Carole King, conductor Seiji Ozawa and the Eagles.

Moreno, who recently guest-starred on the CW’s Jane the Virgin, has previously received the Library of Congress Living Legends Award, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a National Medal of Arts and the Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The event, a fundraiser for the Washington, D.C. arts center, will take place on December 6. CBS will broadcast the star-studded event on December 29.

Jimenez Inducted Into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame

Posted on June 19, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Flaco Jimenez’s name will appear in the Austin City Limits history books…

The 76-year-old Mexican American Conjunto, Norteño and Tejano music accordionist and a member of the Tejano fusion group Texas Tornados, who received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award earlier this year, has been inducted into the Austin City Limits Hall of Fame.

During the 2nd annual Austin City Limits Hall of Fame concert on Thursday, Jimenez was inducted with a class that included Loretta Lynn, Guy Clark, Asleep at the Wheel and the late Townes Van Zandt.

Jimenez’s short but sweet acceptance speech prefaced an upbeat six-song set earlier in the night with conjunto band Max Baca & Los TexManiacs featuring David Hidalgo of Los Lobos on guitar and vocals. Midway through, Dwight Yoakam came aboard to sing lead, with Jimenez’s colorful accordion accents propelling the extended cast on “Streets of Bakersfield” and Warren Zevon’s “Carmelita.”

The green room was jam-packed just moments earlier with friends, family and fellow musicians who just wanted to be close to Jimenez, who received the loudest reception of the night. He beamed recounting how Yoakam had mentioned his military service as an Army artilleryman during the Korean War.

“I was proud to serve my country,” Jimenez said.

Jimenez, a five-time Grammy winner, has enjoyed a successful career that has spanned more than six decades. In that time, he’s collaborated with artists like Bob Dylan, Ry Cooder, Doug Sahm and Carlos Santana.

Carlos Named the Latin Recording Academy’s 2015 Person of the Year

Posted on June 18, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Roberto Carlos is a person of major interest this year…

The 74-year-old Brazilian singer and composer will be honored as the 2015 Latin Recording Academy Person of the Year.

Carlos, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Billboard Latin Music Awards in April and is celebrating five decades of recording in Spanish, is the top-selling Brazilian and Latin American act of all time.

He’ll be honored the eve of the Latin Grammys at a star-studded tribute concert Wednesday, November18, at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas. Proceeds from the gala will benefit the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation.

Born in in the Southern municipality of Cachoeiro de Itapemirim to a watchmaker and a seamstress, Carlos began singing and taking music lessons at an early age. At 17, he moved to Rio de Janeiro and began singing nightly in clubs, devoting himself to the rock n’ roll of the day. By the early 1960s, signed to Columbia and aided by the TV show and musical movement Jovem Guarda (Young Guard), Carlos became a teen idol and began writing with his childhood friend and former bandmate Erasmo Carlos, still his main writing partner to this day. Instead of opting for bossa nova, the sophisticated Brazilian export for which his smooth, entreating voice is particularly well-suited for, they went for romantic pop, penning some of the most enduring compositions in the Latin American songbook. Translated to Spanish and married to the subtle beauty of Carlos’ voice, they became anthems for generations of listeners to this day.

Calos recently recorded his latest album — Roberto Carlos – Primera Fila — at London’s Abbey Road Studios. The set will be released later this year.

Previous recipients of the Recording Academy Person of the Year honor include Miguel Bosé, Plácido Domingo, Gloria Estefan, Vicente Fernández, Juan Luis Guerra, Carlos Santana, Joan Manuel Serrat, Shakira, Julio Iglesias and Caetano Veloso, among others.

Garcia to Be Inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame

Posted on June 16, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Jerry Garcia legacy lives on…

The late part-Spanish American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead, will be posthumously inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame this week.

Garcia and his songwriting partner Robert Hunter, who will also be honored, first paired together as performers in a folk duo in the early 1960’s. When Garcia formed the Grateful Dead in the mid-1960’s, he looked to Hunter for lyrics. Hunter became an official lyricist for the band, and when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994, Hunter was inducted as a band member, the only non-performer ever honored.

Garcia wrote the music while Hunter penned lyrics for songs like “Casey Jones”, “China Cat Sunflower,” “St. Stephen” and “Truckin,’” which was recognized by the United States Library of Congress in 1997 as a national treasure.

With more than 35 million albums sold worldwide, other notable tracks include, “Dark Star,” which is listed as one of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s “500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll” list, and was ranked #57 on Rolling Stone’s “100 Greatest Guitar Songs of All Time,” the 1987 single, “Touch Of Grey” which was also the band’s first music video and, “Friend of the Devil” from the 1970 album American Beauty, which has been covered by Bob Dylan, Tom Petty, The Counting Crows, Elvis Costello, Lyle Lovett and John Mayer. In 2007, the Grateful Dead received a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

The 46th Annual Induction and Awards Dinner will take place on June 18 at the New York Marriott Marquis.

The attendees will gather to celebrate the core of creativity that drives the music business: the craft of songwriting.

Other members of 2015 class of inductees: country hitmaker Bobby Braddock, late blues icon Willie Dixon, country star Toby Keith, ’80s pop chart-topper Cyndi Lauper and Linda Perry of 4 Non Blondes, who has written hits for Christina Aguilera, Alicia Keys, Gwen Stefani, James Blunt, the Dixie Chicks and others.

“Our 2015 lineup of inductees represents the rich diversity of American musical styles – Rock, Country, Blues and Pop – that have captivated the world over the past six decades,” said SHOF President & CEO Linda Moran. “Each one of these brilliant music creators have written instantly recognizable classics, songs that are both of their time and timeless. Our Annual Awards Gala is sure to be unforgettable.”

The evening’s lineup of performers and presenters includes Tony Bennett, Benny Blanco, Zac Brown, Michael Buble, Ledisi, Ne-Yo, Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland, Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi, Bernie Taupin and Paul Williams.

Moreno Cast in CBS’ Comedy Pilot “Joe Time”

Posted on March 20, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Rita Moreno is joe momma…

The 83-year-old Puerto Rican actress, who received a Lifetime Achievement Award at last year’s SAG Awards, has landed a series regular role in CBS’ comedy pilot Joe Time.

The project centers on Joe (Steven Weber), a family man who struggles with the fact that everyone around him is pursuing their dreams and enjoying their lives more than he is.

Moreno will play Judy, Joe’s (Weber) mom. She’s in love with her husband Mitch, and also preoccupied with physical fitness and her amazing personal trainer.

Moreno, one of an elite group of performers who have won an Oscar, an Emmy, a Tony and a Grammy in their careers, was recently cast as Jane’s (Gina Rodriguez) grandmother on the CW’s hit telenovela-inspired series Jane the Virgin.

She has earned two Emmys for her guest appearances on The Rockford Files and the Muppet Show and also co-starred on the TV Land comedy series Happily Divorced.

Moreno to Appear on the CW’s “Jane the Virgin”

Posted on January 29, 2015 by Tom Castaneda

Rita Moreno is heading to Virgin territory…

The 83-year-old Puerto Rican actress and singer, the only Hispanic entertainer with win an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Award, has joined the cast of the CW’s hit telenovela-inspired series Jane the Virgin.

Moreno will portray the mother of Rogelio De La Vega, Jane’s telenovela-star father, portrayed by Jaime Camil. That, of course, makes her Jane’s (Gina Rodriguez) grandmother

Moreno’s character, according to TVLine, will appear in episode 18 and is apparently “fiercely protective” of Rogelio.

Moreno, who earned the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2014 SAG Awards, is best known as the “America”-singing Anita in the film version of West Side Story.

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