Cielo (film)

Cielo is a 2017 Canadian-Chilean documentary film, directed by Alison McAlpine and released in 2017. It was filmed in the Atacama Desert in Chile, Cielo investigates the connection with space life, which is managed by a desert inhabited by Chileans and astronomers offering a unique perspective with the relationship to the night sky.

The film premiered at the New York Film Festival in October 2017 and was released in its final version, and commercially, in 2018. Cielo has been presented at well over 300 international festivals and cinemas including Karlovy Vary IFF in Official Competition; Hot Docs in Official Competition; Film Forum, New York City; TIFF Bell Lightbox Toronto; Ahrya Fine Arts by Laemmle, LA; Filmhouse Edinburgh; and Cinema du Parc Montreal.

Reception
Cielo was named "one of the 10 best documentaries of 2018" by Esquire, while The Guardian included it on its list of "the best films of 2018... that you didn't see." Cielo has received critical acclaim by publications such as Variety, The Village Voice, The Globe and Mail, American Cinematographer, RogerEbert.com, Le Devoir, and Now, among others.

Filmmaker Walter Murch described it as "a beautiful film!! Photography, sound, structure, and subject matter- enough to lift the spirits out of any earthly trough. A moving film in all senses of the word."

Awards and nominations

 * 2018: American Cinematographer Award, Salem Film Fest, US
 * 2018: Premio Kinêma, SANFIC, Chile
 * 2019: Best Cinematography, Byron Bay International Film Festival, Australia
 * 2018: Creative Excellence Award, Banff Mountain Film Festival, Canada
 * 2019: Audience Award, Best Full-Length Film, Trento Film Festival, Italy
 * 2019: Best Director, Patagonia Eco Film Fest, Argentina
 * 2019: Best Cinematography, BBK Mendi Film Bilbao, Spain
 * 2019: Four Prix Iris nominations at the 21st Quebec Cinema Awards in 2019, for Best Documentary Film, Best Cinematography in a Documentary (Benjamin Echazarreta), Best Sound in a Documentary (McAlpine, Andrés Carrasco, Miguel Hormazábal, Mauricio López, Rodrigo Salvatierra, Carlo Sanchez Farías and Claudio Vargas) and Most Successful Film Outside Quebec.