Patricia Ortega

Contents

Patricia Ortega (Venezuelan Spanish pronunciation: [paˈtɾisia oɾˈteɡa], born 1977) is a Venezuelan film director, screenwriter/scriptwriter & producer. She has won multiple accolades, particularly for her 2018 film Being Impossible, and also in 2024, she won Best Director for her film Mamacruz, in the Carmen Awards

Early life

Ortega says that she has been a movie lover since she was young, and so the decision to become a filmmaker was natural. She has studied journalism at university.[1]

Career

Ortega studied at the Escuela Internacional de Cine y Televisión in Cuba, specialising in Film Direction.[2]

After creating some short films, Ortega became president of the independent Venezuelan production company Mandrágora Films in 2009. In the next ten years, she made ten short fiction and documentary films with the company; in 2013 she directed her first feature film, El regreso (English: The Return), which saw a wide commercial release in cinemas across Venezuela.[2]

Her second feature film, Being Impossible (Spanish: Yo, imposible), however, did well internationally and has yet to be released in her home nation.[3] Ortega has drawn strength from Being Impossible during times of both personal and political upheaval.[4] She found out that Being Impossible would be screening at the US film festival South by Southwest on the same day that Juan Guaidó was declared Acting President of Venezuela; she found the news of the screening "beautiful", but this was overwhelmed by the political situation that "worried" her.[4] Ortega won the Best Director and Best Screenplay awards at the Venezuelan Film Festival in June 2019 for Being Impossible.[5]

In 2019, she began development of her third feature film, Mamacruz.[2]

Personal life

Ortega was raised in a religious Catholic family, and says that she was always the black sheep of the family who did not follow traditional roles. She is divorced,[4] and has lived in Porlamar on the Venezuelan Caribbean island of Margarita. She now lives in Seville, Spain, with her partner.[3]

Filmography

  • Pasajes (2004)
  • Al otro lado del mar (2006)
  • The Return (2013)
  • La T invisible (2017, short film)
  • Being Impossible (2018)
  • Mamacruz (2023)[6]
  • 9 Moons (2026)
  • Caballé (2026)[7]

Awards and nominations

YearEventAwardWorkResultRef.
2013Festival Entre Largos y Cortos de Oriente (ELCO)Best First FeatureThe ReturnWon[8]
2014Margarita Latin American and Caribbean Film FestivalGolden Pelican for Best Fiction FilmWon[9]
2018Havana Film FestivalUnete AwardBeing ImpossibleSpecial Recognition[3]
Valladolid International Film FestivalRainbow Spike AwardWon[10]
2019Femme Revolution Film FestBest Construction of a Female CharacterWon[3]
Amsterdam LGBTI Film FestivalBest Mix Feature Audience AwardWon[3]
Reflections of Spanish and Latin American Cinema FestivalAudience AwardWon[3]
South by SouthwestGamechanger AwardNominated[11]
Venezuelan Film FestivalBest DirectorWon[5]
Best Screenplay (with Enmanuel Chávez)Won
Houston International LGBTQ Film FestivalBest Script (with Enmanuel Chávez)Won[12]
2020Platino AwardsBest DirectorNominated[13]

References

  1. 1.Stewart, Sophia (7 March 2019). "SXSW 2019 Women Directors: Meet Patricia Ortega – 'Being Impossible'". Women and Hollywood. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  2. 2.[2.2][2.3]"Yo Imposible: About the Filmmakers". Indie Pasión. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  3. 3.[3.2][3.3][3.4][3.5][3.6]Gutiérrez, Julio (11 April 2019). "Patricia Ortega: "Mi película 'Yo, imposible' vuela por el mundo"". Panorama (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  4. 4.[4.2][4.3]Aziz, Neha (18 February 2019). "Patricia Ortega Talks About Her Second Feature, Being Impossible – SXSW Filmmaker In Focus". South by Southwest. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  5. 5.[5.2]"CINE / 15° Festival del Cine Venezolano: Premios Para Una Producción Que Resiste". CCNES Noticias. 21 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  6. 6.Holland, Jonathan (21 January 2023). "'Mamacruz': Sundance Review". ScreenDaily.
  7. 7.Spain, EFE (3 November 2026). "La cineasta venezolana Patricia Ortega rueda un 'biopic' de la soprano Montserrat Caballé". Swissinfo.
  8. 8."El regreso se llevó el galardón a Mejor Largometraje Ópera Prima en ELCO 2013" [The Return Wins Best First Feature at ELCO 2013]. Correo del Orinoco (in Spanish). Caracas. 22 September 2013. p. 33. Retrieved 22 July 2018 – via issuu.
  9. 9.Pulgar, Silanny (19 October 2013). "El Regreso gana premio Pelícano de Oro en Margarita" [The Return Wins Golden Pelican at Margarita]. La Verdad (in Spanish). Maracaibo. Archived from the original on 23 July 2018. Retrieved 22 July 2018.
  10. 10."Yo, imposible Awards". MUBI. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  11. 11."Being Impossible". Australian Centre for the Moving Image. Archived from the original on 23 June 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
  12. 12."Yo Imposible". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
  13. 13."Los VII Premios Platino van en México. RD ha presentado al menos 11 filmes". DiarioDigitalRD (in Spanish). 11 January 2020. Retrieved 16 January 2020.