By Sigal Ratner-Arias
NEW YORK (AP) --Director Sebastian Lelio feels that "A Fantastic Woman" has gone beyond the cinematic experience with its social message, to a great extent thanks to the performance of its star, Daniela Vega.
The film follows Marina, a transgender woman who, after the passing of her older lover, is mistreated by his family and the police officers investigating his death. It is Chile's selection for the Academy Awards and on Monday was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in the best foreign film category.
"I am very proud of Daniela, of how she faced the challenge of a movie that not only meant an absolute leading role … that goes through an emotional spectrum, but that in addition flies, faces wind storms, sings two operatic arias. In short, it's a polytonal role of great complexity and she … didn't have much experience so it was an all or nothing betting," Lelio told The Associated Press in a phone interview shortly after the Globes nominations were announced.
"It was very beautiful to see how she gave herself completely and played this character with such complexity and beauty," he added about Vega, whose performance has received Oscars buzz. If she is nominated next month, it would be the first Oscar nomination for a transgender actress.
"Somehow Daniela's presence and the power that her body brings are the heart of the movie and it has been very nice and exciting to witness how she has become a voice not only of the movie but a sort of symbol of everything that is fragile, cornered," said Lelio. "In some ways this is when cinema surpasses cinema and gets in the social fabric and that is very powerful."
"A Fantastic Woman" debuted last February at the Berlin International Film Festival, where it won the Teddy Award for best feature film as well as the Silver Bear for its screenplay, written by Lelio and Gonzalo Maza. Among other honors, it has also been nominated at the Independent Spirit Awards.
Lelio is in Los Angeles filming an English version of his acclaimed 2013 film "Gloria," starring Oscar-winner Julianne Moore.
"It has been very exciting to be able to revisit what's universal in the story and see a performer as powerful as Julianne Moore playing this role," he said.
For now, he is savoring the Globes nomination, where "A Fantastic Woman" will compete against Angelina Jolie's "First They Killed My Father" (Cambodia), "In the Fade" (Germany/France), "Loveless" (Russia) and "The Square" (Sweden/Germany/France).
"It's a joy for the team, for everyone who made this movie, to be among this select group of such powerful movies that have been selected", the director said.
As for Vega, he said: "I spoke to her this morning and she was very happy with the news. She is already getting her dress."
California governor signs law to protect children from social media addiction
California will make it illegal for social media platforms to knowingly provide addictive feeds to children without parental consent beginning in 2027 under a new law Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom signed Friday.
California follows New York state, which passed a law earlier this year allowing parents to block their kids from getting social media posts suggested by a platform's algorithm. Utah has passed laws in recent years aimed at limiting children's access to social media, but they have faced challenges in court.
The California law will take effect in a state home to some of the largest technology companies in the world. Similar proposals have failed to pass in recent years, but Newsom signed a first-in-the-nation law in 2022 barring online platforms from using users' personal information in ways that could harm children. It is part of a growing push in states across the country to try to address the impacts of social media on the well-being of children.
"Every parent knows the harm social media addiction can inflict on their children — isolation from human contact, stress and anxiety, and endless hours wasted late into the night," Newsom said in a statement. "With this bill, California is helping protect children and teenagers from purposely designed features that feed these destructive habits."
The law bans platforms from sending notifications without permission from parents to minors between 12 a.m. and 6 a.m., and between 8 a.m. and 3 p.m. on weekdays from September through May, when children are typically in school. The legislation also makes platforms set children's accounts to private by default.
Opponents of the legislation say it could inadvertently prevent adults from accessing content if they cannot verify their... Read More