Chilean actor Alfredo Castro stars in "After Elena" ("Después de Elena"), a dark family comedy directed by Shawn Garry that world premieres at the Toronto Film Festival on September 11. Producer Gabriela Sandoval said the film "shows Castro in a completely different register from what we've seen him in before." The cast also includes Nicolás Zárate, Carola Varleta, and Guilherme Sepúlveda, with Catalina Saavedra—who won an acting prize at Sundance for her 2009 debut in the Chilean drama "The Maid"—in a small but pivotal role.
Castro, 70, plays Roberto, a widower whose three adult children and their families move into his home after economic and emotional crises upend their lives. Old wounds, buried secrets and tensions surface as the family navigates their grief. The narrative follows a suicide attempt by one of his sons that sets off a chain of domestic chaos.
Sandoval said the production was drawn to "addressing themes such as old age, death, grief and family trauma, but from a different perspective: not as a conventional drama, but through dark humor and absurdity as a narrative vehicle." The film is a co-production involving companies from Chile, Colombia, Italy, and Argentina.
"After Elena" is the second feature by Garry, who previously directed "Desierto Sur." He co-wrote the screenplay with writer-director Bernardo Quesney and Carla Stagno.
