“I have a name, but I still can’t explain it. Actually, I’ll be able to explain very few things.” Thus narrates Pepe, the first and only hippopotamus to be killed in the Americas, his name given to him by the Colombian press. One of four hippos kept by notorious drug lord Pablo Escobar in his private zoo, Pepe and his companions took to wandering the Magdalena River, eventually becoming a dangerous nuisance to the locals. In this unclassifiable feature, Pepe tells us his side of the story.
Directed by Dominican director Nelson Carlos de Los Santos Arias, winner of this year’s Silver Bear for Best Director at the Berlin Film Festival, Pepe is a wild, unpredictable foray into this unlikely history. Formally audacious, it mixes multiple formats and celluloid stocks, archival audio, and news footage, as well as an extended, almost Jaws-like drama of a small village gearing up to face the threat of the hippos. It’s a wry, humorous look at what history would be like if everyone were given a voice.
Silver Bear for Best Director, Berlin 2024
Community Partner
Jhon Narváez, Sor María Ríos, Fareed Matjila, Harmony Ahalwa, Jorge Puntillón García, Shifafure Faustinus
Dominican Republic/Namibia/
Germany/France
2024
In Spanish, Mbukushu, Afrikaans and German with English subtitles
Book Tickets
Indigenous & Community Access
Indigenous Access Tickets Community Access Tickets Ticket Donation Requests
Credits & Director
Producer
Pablo Lozano, Tanya Valette, Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
Screenwriter
Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
Cinematography
Camilo Soratti, Roman Lechapelier, Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
ANIM
Manuel Barenboim
Editor
Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
Original Music
Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias
Nelson Carlo de los Santos Arias is a Dominican director who studied film in Buenos Aires and Edinburgh and has an MFA from the California Institute of the Arts. His first short film SheSaid HeWalks HeSaid SheWalks (2009) won a BAFTA Scotland while his documentary Pareces una carreta… (2013) was part of the major Latin America art exhibition at the Guggenheim Museum in New York. His graduation film Santa Teresa & Otras Historias (2015) won the Prix Georges De Beauregard at FidMarseille and Cocote (2017) won the Signs of Life Award at Locarno. He developed Pepe (2024) while participating in the DAAD artists-in-Berlin program.
Filmography: You Look Like a Carriage That Not Even the Oxen Can Stop (2013); Santa Teresa & Other Stories (2015); Cocote (2017)
Missing VIFF? Check out what's playing at the VIFF Centre
Holy Days
After his mom passes, Brian (Elijah Tamati) is comforted by Sisters Agnes, Luke and Mary Clare (Judy Davis, Miriam Margolyes and Jacki Weaver, respectively). The quirky quartet hit the road to save their convent from being sold to a property developer.
Two Pianos
Once promising concert pianist Mathias (François Civil) returns to his native Lyon after a long absence. He's here to pay homage to his mentor, Elena (Charlotte Rampling). But a chance encounter with an old flame sends him spiraling.
The Golden Spurtle
Each year the sleepy highland village of Carrbridge awakens with excitement as locals and competitors from around the globe vie for the honour of winning The Golden Spurtle in the World Porridge Making Championships.
Best Boy
Sibling rivalry is the name of the game in Jesse Noah Klein's pitch black comedy. Eli, Lawrence and Phillip (who's a woman) reunite after the passing of their father and, in accordance with his last wishes, compete for the prized title of "Best Boy".
Lucid
Art student Mia is struggling with a make-or-break assignment, a self-portrait. It's only when grandma lets slip that her mom used to hypnotize her as a child to blank out the bad bits that she realizes the severity of the challenge...