Santiago Wild Festival Postponed

The Smithsonian Channel- and Jackson Wild-sponsored Santiago Wild, the first film festival dedicated to wildlife and the environment in Chile, has been postponed until further notice.

The festival, organized by Ladera Sur, was slated to take place in the Chilean capital this week (March 18 to 20). All six screenings had be sold out within two hours. The event included a national competition for Chilean filmmakers and the world premieres of two Smithsonian Channel productions made in Latin America: Inside the Puma Triangle, filmed in Chile, and Epic Animal Migrations: Mexico.

Martín del Río, director at Ladera Sur, said: “With great sadness, we announce that Santiago Wild festival has been suspended until further notice. After the government’s announcement not to hold mass events, we will seek a new date, which we hope to announce soon. Our highest priority is to protect the health of attendees and all workers of the event.”

“The response to this event was simply fantastic and shows the thirst in Latin America for quality wildlife programming,” said David Royle, executive VP and chief programming officer at Smithsonian Networks. “We remain committed to supporting Santiago Wild in the future and to continuing to work with filmmakers throughout Latin America.”

Smithsonian Channel and Jackson Wild fully support the reschedule and remain committed to the festival.