10 · 06 · 08

Cinco Días sin Nora premiere

Clara Sánchez/Translated by Caroline MacKinnon

[imagen] Cinco días sin Nora captivated audiences yesterday at the 6th Morelia International Film Festival. Audiences lined up on the red carpet to see the first feature film by director Mariana Chenillo, including actor Plutarco Haza.

Chenillo’s film, which is competing for the title of Best Mexican Feature Film, tells the story of Nora, a woman who before she dies, creates a meticulous plan for José, her ex-husband, who will have to be in charge of the funeral and cooking the entire family a series of elaborate dishes for Passover.

The story deals with Catholicism and Judaism with a cast that consists of Fernando Luján, Ari Brickman, Verónica Langer, Enrique Arreola, Max Kerlow, Cecilia Suárez, Juan Carlos Colombo, Angelina Peláez, Silvia Mariscal, Juan Pablo Medina, Rodrigo Cachero, Marina de Tavira, Laura Vania and Aranza Moreno.

[imagen] At the press conference before the premiere, in which nearly the entire cast was present, Chenillo said that the film took nearly four years to make and that it came together thanks to the help of FIDECINE and IXE Bank, through the government fiscal stimulus package 226.

Fernando Luján said that he himself offered to Chenillo that he play the role of José in the film. "It is one of the few roles where I haven't injected my own way of thinking into the character. This is because there was a director with an impressive ability considering it was her first film. So I put myself at her disposal.”

Cecilia Suárez said that she had to do various auditions before the director selected her. Enrique Arreola said, “I came to the audition with my hat and my bicycle thinking it would help me get the part.”

Lujan said that the director brought them a 100-page text that she had put together, explaining in details the mortuary rites of Jewish people, so they could understand them better.

“I’ve never worked with a director that gave us so much materiel to prepare for a role,” said Ari Brickman.

Laura Imperiale, the film’s producer, said that although they still don’t have a distributor, they want to put the film in theaters at the beginning of next year.