Director’s Statement
The issue of pet adoption has always been something very close to my heart. In particular, the misuse and mislabeling of aggressive dogs has come to the forefront of my attention, especially in the past few years. There are aggressive and dangerous dogs, but unfortunately the majority of dogs labeled “aggressive” are far from vicious, rabid animals. Many are caring and loving creatures that may have had a single bad incident. Its this “unseen” side of dog aggression that I wanted to highlight in “Chippy.”

AniFab judges have scored Chippy a 9 out of 10 with one judge writing, "Wow, the most serious fictional portrayal I have ever seen of this moment of decision. Powerful!"

​They cannot communicate with our language, they cannot call for help, they cannot revolt, they cannot speak up for themselves. They need human voices.

And while it is true pets should never end up in a shelter, they are lucky, in their misfortune, to get a second chance. And this is that side of animal shelters that I find most interesting: more than a gloomy place, they represent the bright future that lies before animals who are waiting there.

AniFab judge's aggregate score was 7.4 out of 10 with one judge commenting, "Lovely.  Well done.  Congratulations on making a wonderful movie about such an important subject literally right under our noses.  Thank you for helping everyone to not forget our seniors.  Really enjoyed this story."

Ezequiel Yanco is a historian and filmmaker based in Buenos Aires (1976). He received a bachelor's degree with honors in history from the University of Buenos Aires, and an MFA on creative writing from New York University. 

​He taught at the Universidad del Cine in Buenos Aires. He has contributed to magazines such as Los Inrockuptibles and Le Nouvel Observateur. He co-edited Desconfiar de las imágenes (Caja Negra, 2013), a book that compiles a selection of Harun Farocki’s articles.

​Director Statement
​On this film, I was interested in bringing together my academic training as a historian and my practice as a filmmaker, two careers paths that I have pursued separately until now.  I wanted to investigate the Conquest of the Desert, the land expropriation and genocide of the native population by the Argentinian army at the end of the 19th century, recording at the same time the present of that territory and its inhabitants.

A few years ago, I went to the provinces of La Pampa and San Luis, looking for locations and characters for the film. In one of those trips, I found Pueblo Nación Ranquel, which caught my attention because San Luis had created an artificial community in the middle of the desert, to settle the Ranqueles families of the nearest villages. An experiment of communal life for various indigenous people who have never lived in a community before.
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I settled the point of view of the film on Uriel and his passage towards adolescence. In this way, I could approach the games, activities and life experiences of the other kids and teenagers. Role-playing games have a strong fictional potential, transforming the documentary into narrative material. From Uriel’s point of view I got really close to their daily life, to the new experiences of the indigenous life, their cultural legacy and the socio-political tensions of the community, leaving in a permanent offscreen the lives of the adults.

AniFab judges aggregate score for La Vida En Comun is 9.1 out of 10 with one judge noting, "Wow, stunning.  To be transported by this boy into his world, to feel what he feels, to eloquently lay out in front of me and flow into a state of unconscious consciousness.  This story inspires and motivates.  I want to see / know more.

AniFab judege's aggregate score for The Only Beautiful Thing is 7.8 out of 10 with one judge commenting: "​Hard to pin this one down. It's a drama, and the dog is the catalyst - but it took a while for me to really figure out the dynamics.  Overall, great acting."