CHICO & RITA, set in the jazz worlds of Cuba, Europe and America, was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Animated Feature.
The Oscar nominee opens its US theatrical run on February 10 at NYC¹s Angelika Film Center, before expanding nationally throughout February, March and April. The film has been released internationally to wide critical acclaim and has already won the Goya for Best Animated Feature in Spain and the European Film Award for Best Animated Feature.
CHICO & RITA is the product of collaboration and longtime friendship between Oscar-winning director Fernando Trueba (Belle Epoque) and internationally renowned designer and illustrator Javier Mariscal.
The film is a celebration of their mutual passion for the people, culture, and music of Cuba and is based loosely on the life of legendary Cuban pianist and composer Bebo Valdez, who records for Trueba¹s Calle 54 Records. The film is being released in the US by specialty distributor GKIDS under their adult-skewing LumaFilms banner, due to nudity and other mature content.
CHICO & RITA is an epic story of love, passion, and heartbreak. Cuba, 1948. Chico is a young piano player with big dreams. Rita is a beautiful singer with an extraordinary voice. Music and desire unite them as they chase their dreams and each other from Havana to New York to Paris, Hollywood and Las Vegas. With an original soundtrack by legendary Cuban pianist and five-time Grammy®-winning composer Bebo Valdés, CHICO & RITA captures a defining moment in the evolution of history and jazz, and features the music of (and animated cameos by) Thelonious Monk, Charlie Parker, Cole Porter, Dizzy Gillespie, Woody Herman, Tito Puente, Chano Pozo, and others. The soundtrack is available on Trueba¹s Calle 54 Records label and Sony Music Latin.
