Once upon a time, a man travelled to the end of the world. There, at the tip of recently independent South America, he founded his kingdom. It was 1860 and this French adventurer, Orélie-Antoine de Tounens, was perhaps a little crazy. Armed with a constitution penned by himself and a new flag, he fought his way through the rugged wilderness on horseback. After arriving he managed to unite the natives and was chosen to become their ruler. At least, that’s one version of this true story. Or, he was helped by a native traitor. He was a French spy! He succeeded, but was captured. Banished. Died. But returned? Who remembers the what and where of it? In Rey, the problems of history and memory are emphasised by the degradation of image and sound.
Director Niles Atallah shot some segments in 2011, then buried the 35mm, 16mm and Super-8 film in his back garden. What does time do to a story? The results of these burials recur throughout the film – as deteriorating memories and the king’s wild visions.
With the support of the Hubert Bals Fund, Atallah also experimented with puppets, masks and stop-motion animation. Everything culminated in this astonishing, delicate work of art: an ode to film and a fascinating fairy tale. Winner Special Jury Award Tiger Competition 2017.  

Director
Niles Atallah
Premiere
World premiere
Countries of production
Chile, France, Netherlands, Germany, Qatar
Year
2017
Festival Edition
IFFR 2017
Length
90'
Medium
DCP
International title
King
Language
Spanish
Producer
Lucie Kalmar / Mômerade
Production Companies
Mômerade, Diluvio
Sales
Mômerade
Screenplay
Niles Atallah
Cinematography
Benjamín Echazarreta
Editor
Benjamin Mirguet
Production Design
Natalia Geisse
Sound Design
Roberto Espinoza
Music
Sebastián Jatz
Cast
Claudio Riveros, Rodrigo Lisboa
Local Distributor
EYE Film Institute Netherlands
Website
http://nilesatallah.com
Director
Niles Atallah
Premiere
World premiere
Countries of production
Chile, France, Netherlands, Germany, Qatar
Year
2017
Festival Edition
IFFR 2017
Length
90'
Medium
DCP
International title
King
Language
Spanish
Producer
Lucie Kalmar / Mômerade
Production Companies
Mômerade, Diluvio
Sales
Mômerade
Screenplay
Niles Atallah
Cinematography
Benjamín Echazarreta
Editor
Benjamin Mirguet
Production Design
Natalia Geisse
Sound Design
Roberto Espinoza
Music
Sebastián Jatz
Cast
Claudio Riveros, Rodrigo Lisboa
Local Distributor
EYE Film Institute Netherlands
Website
http://nilesatallah.com