Embassy of Uruguay in Canada

In this edition, Uruguay was represented by the film Don’t You Let Me Go (Agárrame fuerte), directed by Ana Guevara and Leticia Jorge, a work included in the Uruguayan Film and Audiovisual Catalogue 2025–2026, promoted by the Uruguayan Film and Audiovisual Agency, in coordination with national institutions linked to cultural and audiovisual promotion.

The screening took place on May 15, 2026, at Saint Paul University, an institution that has hosted the festival since 2023 and has become a point of reference for the promotion of Latin American cinema in the Canadian capital. The screening brought together 149 attendees, including Canadian audiences, representatives of the local cultural sector, members of the Uruguayan community living in Ottawa-Gatineau, and the broader Latin American public.

The activity provided a valuable opportunity for social gathering, community integration, and cultural exchange. In its role of maintaining close ties with Uruguayan citizens residing in Canada, the Consular Section promotes spaces that strengthen community bonds, encourage exchange among Uruguayans, Latin Americans, and Canadian audiences, and help keep Uruguay’s presence alive abroad.

Don’t You Let Me Go addresses, from a sensitive and contemporary perspective, themes such as friendship, grief, shared memory, and emotional bonds among women. Its intimate narrative and aesthetic sensitivity allowed Canadian audiences to engage with a notable expression of recent Uruguayan cinema.

The film also has a special connection with Canada, as one of its actresses, Eva Dans, was born in Montreal, province of Quebec. In this context, the presence of Otilia Piugross, Eva Dans’s mother and a resident of Gatineau, added a particularly meaningful human, emotional, and community dimension to the presentation of the Uruguayan film in Ottawa.

Uruguay’s participation in the Latin American Film Festival forms part of the line of work carried out by the Embassy and its Consular Section to promote Uruguayan culture in Canada, create spaces for engagement with the community, and strengthen cultural and social ties between Uruguay and Canada.

The Embassy extends special thanks to Saint Paul University, the Group of Latin American Embassies in Canada (GRULA), and Uruguay Audiovisual for their support in promoting and disseminating Uruguayan cinema in Canada.