The Summer of Flying Fish () is a 2013 Chilean-French comedy-drama film directed by Marcela Said. It stars Gregory Cohen, Francisca Walker, María Izquierdo, Roberto Cayuqueo, and Bastián Bodenhöfer.
The film premiered in the Directors' Fortnight section at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.Chile en Cannes. La Tercera. 28 April 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013.La Psicomagia de Jodorowsky hipnotiza Cannes. El Mercurio online. 18 May 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2013.
Plot Manena is on vacation in southern Chile with her father Francisco, a wealthy landowner and avid hunter. Francisco is obsessed with eradicating the carp that have invaded his aquaculture ponds, resorting to increasingly extreme measures—including the use of explosives. Manena appears to be the only one who senses the growing tension that her father's actions are causing within the local Mapuche community, who assert ancestral rights to the land.El verano de los peces voladores. Cinechile.cl. Encyclopedia of Chilean film (in Spanish). Retrieved 21 May 2013.The Summer of Flying Fish. Alpha Violet. Retrieved 21 May 2013.
Cast Gregory Cohen – Francisco Francisca Walker – Manena María Izquierdo – Teresa Roberto Cayuqueo – Pedro Bastián Bodenhöfer – Carlos Guillermo Lorca – Lorca Paola Lattus – Ester Emilia Lara – Isidora Enrique Soto – Nacho
Reception As Said's first feature film following a background in documentary filmmaking, The Summer of Flying Fish received a mixed critical response after its screening at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. Although praised for its suspenseful atmosphere and evocative tone, the film was also criticized for a weak narrative structure, underdeveloped characters, and unclear motivations.
According to Variety critic Peter Debruge, the film blends scripted drama with documentary techniques, using non-professional actors and naturalistic settings to depict tensions between white landowners and the Indigenous Mapuche. Debruge describes the film as a subtle, politically conscious hybrid that relies on subtext rather than exposition, though he notes it may have limited commercial appeal due to its understated narrative and style.
See also Cinema of Chile
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