‘Society of the Snow’, ‘20,000 species of bees’ dominate Platinum Awards

In a triumphant evening for Spain, JA Bayona’s Oscar-nominated “Society of the Snow” took home the top prizes at Platino Mexico .

The plight of Argentine cinema, exacerbated by the closure of the INCAA film institute by far-right President Javier Milei, was on many people’s minds.

Bayona cited veteran Argentine filmmaker Adolfo Aristarain as one of his inspirations, saying upon receiving his Best Director award, “Argentina, we are here by your side, you are not alone.”

Bayona’s harrowing account of the 1972 crash of Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, in which only 16 people survived after 72 days stranded in the Andes, became Netflix’s second most-watched non-English film of all time. “I wouldn’t be here without the book that Pablo Vierci wrote,” said Bayona, who also thanked his cast and crew, after winning best feature film.

Estibaliz Urresola’s critically acclaimed feature debut “20,000 Species of Bees,” about an eight-year-old girl struggling with her gender identity, was also a big winner, taking home four awards, including best first feature.

Xcaret also became the setting for a gathering of Argentine filmmakers and their supporters from across Ibero-America to protest the disastrous changes impacting Argentina’s acclaimed film industry – with 25 Platinum nominations this year.

Chile also scored big wins on these 11^e edition, with ‘El Conde’ by Pablo Larrain and the moving documentary by Maite Alberdi, ‘The Eternal Memory’, both nominated for an Oscar, which won awards. Venerable Chilean actor Alfredo Castro won the award for best actor in a series for his role as Salvador Allende in “The Thousand Days of Allende.”

“It is likely that there will be few Argentine films next year,” lamented Argentine actress Cecilia Roth, who received the Platino Honorary Award. “For me, the Platino Awards is like a whole country where we can cross paths, communicate with each other and tell each other stories,” she noted. “Our industry is fragile, let us continue to nurture it,” she added. During this edition there were projects from 23 countries.

“They are killing our cinema, they are killing our culture,” declared Argentine actor-singer Andy Chango, the first to take the stage to win an award for his performance in the miniseries “El amor después del amor. ”

Daniel Burman from Argentina, winner of the award for Best Creator of a TV Miniseries or Series for “Iosi, the Regretful Spy” (“Iosi, el espia arrenpentido”), produced by Oficina Burman of The Mediapro Studio for Prime Video and noted The New York Times also mentioned the crisis in his country as one of the best TV programs of 2023.

“Society of the Snow” also took home the Audience Award for Best Ibero-American Film the day before the main event.

Meanwhile, “Burning Body” (“El Cuerpo en llamas”) won the Audience Award for best miniseries or series, while Enzo Vogrincic for “Society of the Snow,” Dolores Fonzi for “Blondi,” Santiago Korovsky for “División Palermo,” and Úrsula Corberó for ‘Burning Body’ won audience awards in the acting categories.

The twelfth Platinum Awards will be held in Madrid next year. Xcaret will alternately have Madrid as its host location over the next four years.

Full list of winners:

MOVIE

Best feature

“Society of the Snow”, JA Bayona (Spain)

Director

JA Bayona, “Society of the Snow” (Spain)

Lead performance

Enzo Vogrincic, “Society of the Snow” (Spain)

Laia Costa, “Un amor” (Spain)

Scenario

Estibaliz Urresola, ‘20,000 species of bees’, (Spain)

First function

“20,000 species of bees,” (Spain)

Best comedy

“Bajo Terapia”, Gerardo Herrero (Spain)

Original score/music

Alfonso de Vilallonga, “Robot Dreams” (Spain)

Supportive role performance

Jose Coronado, “Cerrar los ojos,” (Spain)

Ana Gabarain, “20,000 species of bees” (Spain)

Animation function

“Robot Dreams” (Spain)

Documentary best feature film

‘The Eternal Memory’, Maite Alberdi (Chile)

To process

Jaume Marti, Andres Gil, “Society of the Snow” (Spain)

Art direction

Rodrigo Bazaes, “El Conde” (Chile)

Cinematography

Pedro Luque, “Society of the Snow” (Spain)

Sound direction

Oriol Tarragó, Marc Orts, Jorge Adrados, “Society of the Snow” (Spain)

Film and education in values

“20,000 species of bees” (Spain)

HONORARY PRIZE

Cecilia Roth

TV Best Series or Miniseries

“Barrabrava,” (Argentina, Uruguay)

Best creator of series or miniseries

Daniel Burman, “Iosi, the sorry spy” (Argentina)

Actor in a series or miniseries

Andy Chango, “El amor después del amor” (Argentina)

Actress in a series or miniseries

Carmen Machi, “Las Mesias” (Spain)

Supporting role in a series or miniseries

Alfredo Castro, “The Thousand Days of Allende” (Chile)

Supporting role in a series or miniseries

Lola Dueñas, “Las Mesias” (Spain)