Colombia's Academy Announces Nominees for National Film Awards

The nominees for “Colombia’s Oscars” were announced this week, with the widely lauded “Embrace of the Serpent” scooping up the most nominations among the national films in the running.

The Colombian Academy of Motion Picture, Arts and Sciences, known as the ACACC, announced the nominees for its national film awards Monday for its fourth Macondo Awards ceremony, due to take place at Bogota’s Hotel Tequendama Dec. 4.

“These are our nominees for the Macondo Awards 2015. Good luck to everyone!!”

“Embrace of the Serpent,” which has received eight nominations at the Macondos and has been awarded prizes all over the world, including the Art Cinema Award at Cannes, is also on the longlist for Best Foreign Film at the Oscars.

The movie, based on the diaries of German ethnologist Theodor Koch-Grunberg and botanist Richard Evan Schultes from the United States, tells the story of their relationship with Karamakate, an Amazonian shaman and last survivor of his people over the course of 40 years.

PHOTO GALLERY: Candid Cannes (click on the photo to open gallery)

Nilbio Torres (R) and Antonio Bolivar of "Embrace of the Serpent" at the red carpet at Cannes. | Photo: Samuel de Roman / Cool Media

The nominees are all films released between Nov. 1, 2013, and June 30, 2015.

The ACACC will pay special tribute to documentary maker Marta Rodriguez, who will receive the “lifetime achievement award” for over 50 years experience in the industry. El Espectador reported that the Bogota native said she feels grateful to have had 50 years showing “Colombia as it really is, which is violent and has violated the human rights of many people.”

“You have to show our country as it is from all aspects and I dedicated myself to it."

The nominations in full:

Best Picture
Embrace of the Serpent (El Abrazo de la Serpiente) - Ciro Guerra
Good People (Gente de Bien) - Franco Lolli
The Fungi (Los hongos) - Oscar Ruiz Navia
Dirty Hands (Manos sucias) - Kubota Josef Wladyka

Best Director
Good People - Franco Lolli
Embrace of the Serpent - Ciro Guerra
Dust on the Tounge (Tierra en la Lengua) - Ruben Mendoza

Best Screenplay
Embrace of the Serpent - Ciro Guerra and Jacks Toulemonde Vidal
Dirty Hands - Josef Wladyka Kubota and Alan White
Good people - Franco Lolli, Virginie Legeay and Catherine Paille

Best Original Score
Embrace of the Serpent - Nascuy Linares
The Vanished Elephant (El elefante desaparecido) - Selma Mutal
They All Go (Todos se van) - Ivan Wyszogrod

Best Actor
Abel Rodriguez - They All Go
Humberto Arango - She (Ella)
Cristian James Advincula - Dirty Hands

Best Actress
Mabel Pizarro - Pink Noise (Ruido Rosa)
Alejandra Borrero - Good People
Claudia Ruiz del Castillo - Climates (Climas)

Best Supporting Actor
Felipe Botero - Mateo
Jhon Alex Toro - The Rector (La Rectora)
Happy Antequera - They All Go

Best Supporting Actress
Indira Serrano - They All Go
Shirley Martinez - She
Alma Rodriguez - Earth in the language

Best Documentary
Hell or Heaven (Infierno o Paraiso) - German Piffano
Matachinde - Victor Palacios
Boys of Buenaventura (Las Ultimas Vacaciones) - Manuel F. Contreras
Buenaventura, don’t leave me again (Buenaventura, no me dejes mas) - Marcela Gomez Montoya

Best Editing
Embrace of the Serpent - Etienne Boussac and Cristina Gallego
The Fungi - Felipe Guerrero
Good People - Nicolas Desmaisson and Julie Duclaux

Best Art Direction
Embrace of the Serpent - Ramses Benjumea
Pink Noise - Miguel Vargas Mejia
Dirty Hands - Sofia Guzman

Best Cinematography
Embrace of the Serpent - David Gallego
Dirty Hands - Alan White
Dust on the Tounge - Juan Carlos Gil

Best Sound
Poppy Garden (Jardin de Amapolas) - Miguel Vargas
Embrace of the Serpent - Carlos Garcia
Dust on the Tounge - Isabel Torres

Best Makeup
Enclosed (Encerrada) - Olga Turrini
Secret confession (Secreto de Confesion) - Stella Jacobs

Lifetime Award
Marta Rodriguez