A24 on Wednesday unveiled the first trailer for its surreal comedic feature Problemista, marking the feature directorial debut of Los Espookys co-creator Julio Torres, who stars opposite Academy Award winner Tilda Swinton.
Slated for theatrical release on August 4th, Problemista tells the story of Alejandro (Torres), an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador, struggling to bring his unusual ideas to life in New York City. As time on his work visa runs out, a job assisting erratic art-world outcast Elizabeth (Swinton) becomes his only hope to stay in the country and realize his dream.
A four-time Emmy nominee, Torres directed from his own script, also producing alongside Fruit Tree’s Dave McCary, Ali Herting and Emma Stone. RZA, Greta Lee, Catalina Saaverdra and James Scully are among those rounding out the cast, with Isabella Rosselini providing narration.
In her review of the film out of SXSW, where it world premiered, Deadline’s Valerie Complex called Problemista “a certified hit.”
Said Complex, “Torres has an active imagination and whatever he is thinking is exactly what we see on screen. He’s taken a simple story about immigration and human connection, and turned it into a comedic, surrealist fantasy that serves as an epic critique of capitalism. Even if the concept is kookie, it’s still a style of storytelling that distinctly belongs to Torres; no one would be able to pull this off except him.
“Problemista is about authenticity and learning to be confident enough to take up space, continued Complex in her review. “Especially as a person of color who often feel invisible, or feel they must shrink themselves in order to fit in. Sometimes you’ve got to cause a little chaos and let that anxiety push you to succeed, which I’m sure Torres had to deal with a degree of chaos to make this film happen.”
View the first trailer for the new A24 film above.
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