#MACABRO XVII: ALUCARDA TURNS 40

TRIBUTE TO TINA ROMERO, SCREENING, AND PUBLICATION OF COMMEMORATIVE BOOK

On the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the premiere of Alucarda, la hija de las tinieblas, directed by Juan López Moctezuma in 1975 and released in January 1978, Macabro has prepared a tribute with a screening of the film at a gala to be held in the Octavio Paz courtyard of the Biblioteca de México; a tribute to actress Tina Romero, who plays Alucarda in the film, and the publication of a commemorative book.

The first encounter between Alucarda, the films of Juan López Moctezuma, and Macabro FICH took place in 2004, when a retrospective was held in honor of the aforementioned Mexican director's films at the Cineteca Nacional. Later, Macabro, through Edna Campos, the festival's director and founder, worked on the production and screenplay of Alucardos, Retrato de un vampiro (Mexico, 2011) alongside Ulises Guzmán, the documentary's director.

Alucarda is the second film by the late director Juan López Moctezuma and is considered one of the most representative cult films of genre cinema in Mexico. A co-production between Mexico and the United States, it tells the story of two orphans living in a convent where a battle between good and evil unfolds, driven by a constant diabolical influence on Alucarda's life.

RECOGNITION FOR TINA ROMERO (ALUCARDA)

Actress Tina Romero will be honored with the Juan López Moctezuma Award, which has been given since 2011 to film personalities (directors, actors, cinematographers, film writers, producers, and promoters) who have made a significant contribution to horror cinema. The recognition for Tina Romero is for her iconic portrayal of the character Alucarda. This recognition has previously been given to: Cinematográfica Calderón, Alfredo Gurrola, Elsa Cárdenas, Luigi Cozzi, Lamberto Bava, Stuart Gordon, and Ken Foree.

Tina Romero was born in New York City, United States, to Mexican parents, and began living in Mexico in 1958. There she developed her artistic skills at various acting schools, and in 1975, at age 26, she made her debut as the lead in the controversial horror film Alucarda, la hija de las tinieblas, and that same year she appeared in Chin Chin el teporocho and the film Las Poquianchis.

In 1980 she filmed the movies Estampas de Sor Juana and the telenovela Las grandes aguas, and by 1982 made her Hollywood debut in the film Missing starring Sissy Spacek. In 1983 she returned to Mexico and made the film Las apariencias engañan. In 1984 she appeared in the films Noche de carnaval and Mujeres salvajes. In 1985 she starred in the film Los náufragos del Liguria directed by her then-husband Gabriel Retes.

For a long time she combined her film work with television, appearing in telenovelas such as Santa, Añoranza, Las grandes aguas, El rincón de los prodigios, and La casa al final de la calle, among others.

ALUCARDA 40 (COMMEMORATIVE BOOK)

The publication of the commemorative book Alucarda 40 will include graphic material from Juan López Moctezuma's own archive, held by Manuel Santillán Durán, as well as texts by specialists on the subject such as Mauricio Matamoros, Rebeca Jiménez Calero, and Iván Farías, among others. The book will be published by Samsara Editorial, coordinated by Edna Campos.

Macabro will also dedicate its now-traditional “Danza Macabra” to the film's theme, so attendees will be asked to come dressed as characters from the movie.

ABOUT MACABRO

Macabro is the first genre film festival in Mexico and the second in Latin America after Buenos Aires Rojo Sangre. It was created as a showcase for contemporary horror cinema, as well as for the rescue and reappraisal of classic and cult films, the promotion of Mexican and Latin American genre filmmaking, historical review, and support for emerging talent, with a programming model that has marked a turning point in the cinematic exhibition of horror and fantasy film in Mexico.

It has been based in Mexico City since its founding in 2002, where it has put down deep roots and focused on building audiences for the genre and its many forms of expression.

The festival is an independent cultural project supported and recognized by the Mexico City government through the Secretaría de Cultura and PROCINE, the Cineteca Nacional, the Instituto Mexicano de Cinematografía, and the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, among other institutions. In nearly 17 years it has established itself as one of the most respected festivals on the circuit in Mexico and Latin America. International media outlets such as Movie Maker Magazine in its October 2017 edition, included it as one of the 15 most anticipated festivals in the world within the specialized circuit for 2018.

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