Patagonia (film)
Encyclopedia
Patagonia is a 2010 drama film about different Welsh and Argentine people connected to "Y Wladfa," the Welsh
settlement in Patagonia
, Argentina
. The film stars several well-known Welsh actors including Matthew Rhys
, Nia Roberts, and the singer Duffy
. Directed by Welsh
director Marc Evans
, it premièred at the Seattle International Film Festival
on 10 June 2010 and had its U.K. première in Wales on 8 March 2011 in Cardiff
.
It was selected as the British entry for Best Foreign Language Film
at the 84th Academy Awards
.
couple living in Cardiff
where Rhys works as a photographer and Gwen is employed as a historical interpreter at a local Welsh cultural centre. Gwen is also an aspiring actress and although she periodically attends auditions, she has yet to be hired for a theatrical part. The couple's inability to conceive a child has caused increasing tension between them. Hoping to reinvigorate their relationship, the pair decide to travel together to southern Argentina where Rhys has been commissioned to photograph the historic Welsh chapels in Patagonia
, a vast windswept landscape which was a destination for Welsh immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. While there, they are served by their local Welsh-Argentine guide, Mateo.
Meanwhile, an elderly Welsh-Argentine woman named Cerys is planning a trip to Wales to discover the farm where her mother was raised before immigrating to Patagonia during the 1920s. She decides to take along her agoraphobic young neighbour Alejandro to assist her. In Wales, he finds romance with a local girl, Sissy.
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
settlement in Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. The film stars several well-known Welsh actors including Matthew Rhys
Matthew Rhys
Matthew Rhys Evans , known professionally as Matthew Rhys, is a Welsh actor, best known as Kevin Walker on the U.S. ABC family drama Brothers & Sisters, and as Dylan Thomas in The Edge of Love.-Early life:...
, Nia Roberts, and the singer Duffy
Duffy (singer)
Aimée Ann Duffy , known as Duffy, is a Welsh singer-songwriter. Her 2008 debut album Rockferry entered the UK Album Chart at number one. It was the best-selling album in the United Kingdom in 2008 with 1.68 million copies sold...
. Directed by Welsh
Welsh people
The Welsh people are an ethnic group and nation associated with Wales and the Welsh language.John Davies argues that the origin of the "Welsh nation" can be traced to the late 4th and early 5th centuries, following the Roman departure from Britain, although Brythonic Celtic languages seem to have...
director Marc Evans
Marc Evans
Marc Evans is a Welsh-born film director, whose credits include the films House of America, Resurrection Man and My Little Eye.-Biography:Evans was born in 1963 in Carmarthen, Wales...
, it premièred at the Seattle International Film Festival
Seattle International Film Festival
The Seattle International Film Festival , held annually in Seattle, Washington since 1976, is among the top film festivals in North America. Audiences have grown steadily; the 2006 festival had 160,000 attendees...
on 10 June 2010 and had its U.K. première in Wales on 8 March 2011 in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
.
It was selected as the British entry for Best Foreign Language Film
Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film
The Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film is one of the Academy Awards of Merit, popularly known as the Oscars, handed out annually by the U.S.-based Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences...
at the 84th Academy Awards
84th Academy Awards
The 84th Academy Awards ceremony will honor the best films of 2011 and will take place on February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California. It will be televised in the United States on ABC. The host was originally going to be Eddie Murphy. However, after Brett Ratner resigned as...
.
Plot
Gwen and Rhys are a Welsh-speakingWelsh language
Welsh is a member of the Brythonic branch of the Celtic languages spoken natively in Wales, by some along the Welsh border in England, and in Y Wladfa...
couple living in Cardiff
Cardiff
Cardiff is the capital, largest city and most populous county of Wales and the 10th largest city in the United Kingdom. The city is Wales' chief commercial centre, the base for most national cultural and sporting institutions, the Welsh national media, and the seat of the National Assembly for...
where Rhys works as a photographer and Gwen is employed as a historical interpreter at a local Welsh cultural centre. Gwen is also an aspiring actress and although she periodically attends auditions, she has yet to be hired for a theatrical part. The couple's inability to conceive a child has caused increasing tension between them. Hoping to reinvigorate their relationship, the pair decide to travel together to southern Argentina where Rhys has been commissioned to photograph the historic Welsh chapels in Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
, a vast windswept landscape which was a destination for Welsh immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. While there, they are served by their local Welsh-Argentine guide, Mateo.
Meanwhile, an elderly Welsh-Argentine woman named Cerys is planning a trip to Wales to discover the farm where her mother was raised before immigrating to Patagonia during the 1920s. She decides to take along her agoraphobic young neighbour Alejandro to assist her. In Wales, he finds romance with a local girl, Sissy.
Cast
- Matthew GravelleMatthew Gravelle-Career:In 2003 he appeared in the UK drama series Holby City. His other TV appearances include Casualty, Caerdydd and Judge John Deed. He appeared in "End of Days", the first series finalé of Torchwood as a medical Doctor dealing with cases of the Black Death...
as Rhys - Nia Roberts as Gwen
- Matthew RhysMatthew RhysMatthew Rhys Evans , known professionally as Matthew Rhys, is a Welsh actor, best known as Kevin Walker on the U.S. ABC family drama Brothers & Sisters, and as Dylan Thomas in The Edge of Love.-Early life:...
as Mateo - Marta Lubos as Cerys
- Nahuel Pérez Biscayart as Alejandro
- DuffyDuffy (singer)Aimée Ann Duffy , known as Duffy, is a Welsh singer-songwriter. Her 2008 debut album Rockferry entered the UK Album Chart at number one. It was the best-selling album in the United Kingdom in 2008 with 1.68 million copies sold...
as Sissy - Marco Antonio Caponi as Diego
- Rhys Parry JonesRhys Parry JonesRhys Parry Jones is a Welsh actor most famous for his role in the S4C children's series Plismon Puw. Rhys has also featured in episodes of Eastenders, Tracy Beaker and the BBC Wales sitcom High Hopes....
as Martín - Gabriela Ferrero as Eleonara
- Marcin Kwasny as Marc
- Radosław Kaim as Kris