Adrian Saba's "El Limpiador" will represent Peru as the official selection for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards.
The film tells the story of a forensic cleaner who becomes accountable for an 8-year-old orphan who has been left behind in the middle of an epidemic crisis in Lima.
The film was chosen by the ministry of Culture in Peru, which is made up of Alfredo Portocarrero, Rodrigo Ernesto Portalesm Rafael Alvaro Sedano and Pierre Emile Vandoorne. The committee said that it chose the film "for its original proposal of an apocalyptic Lima, where loneliness and strain are shown through an effective use of cinematographic elements, expressing a city that slowly fades out."
The film marks Saba's feature directional debut and has been screened at many film festivals around the world. It made its world premiere at the San Sebastian Film Festival where it won Special Mention. It later went on to screen at the Chicago, Palm Springs, Seattle International and San Francisco Film Festivals.
Latinos Post the film "A Solemn and Artful Apocalypse."
In the history of the Foreign Language Film category, Peru has entered 20 times. The country's first submission came in 1967 with "En La Selva No Hay Estrellas." In 2009, the country obtained its first Oscar nomination with the Berlin Film Festival winner "La Teta Asistada."
"El Limpiador" stars Adrian Du Bois, and Victor Prada. The movie has not been picked up for U.S. distribution. However, it was released in Peru earlier this year.