La jaula de Oro
Director Diego Quemada-Díez with actors Karen Martínez, Rodolfo Domínguez and Brandon López. Getty Images

The Mexican film "La Jaula de Oro" (The Golden Cage) was honored with the Gillo Pontecorvo Award at the 66th Cannes Film Festival.

The International Institute For Movies and Media In Latin American Countries released a statement saying that this distinction was attributed to the director Diego Quemada-Díez, "a young promising director of Hispanic and Mexican films."

The institute gives out this prestigious award parallel to the Cannes Film Festival, where "La Jaula de Oro" is competing for the "Camera d'Or," and highlighted its "social commitment, fresh cinematography and the film narrative."

"I'm very happy. It's great that the first prize that the movie wins has the name of this Italian filmmaker whom I admire so much," expressed the director after winning the award.

Quemada-Díez assured that one of his favorite movies is "The Battle of Algiers" directed by Gillo Pontecorvo, who died in 2006 and was known for his political commentary in his films.

"I love Pontecorvo. In my movies there are influences of Italian neorealism," added the director who is competing in Cannes with his first film, which features the dramatic journey of a group of Guatemalan adolescents that travel by train to the border of Mexico and the United States.

After the film was released this week in Cannes, it received very good reviews and became one of the favorites to win awards in the "Un Certain Regard" section.

The winners list of the "Un Certain Regard" section will be announced this weekend, and on Sunday, the winner of the "Camera d'Or," award that is given to the best first feature film of Cannes Festival, will be announced too.

We wish the best of luck to this Latin American contender!

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