The renowned actress Norma Reyes spent her entire life embracing all kinds of roles—except that of the perfect mother. The Star I Lost stars Mirta Busnelli and Ana Pauls, a real-life mother and daughter who portray a mother and daughter on screen
After decades as the star in the spotlight, the renowned Norma Reyes is grappling with the challenges of being an aging actress. Although she spent her career gracing the stage as a wide cast of characters, she never quite nailed the part of “loving mother” at home. With little money and fewer opportunities, Norma reluctantly accepts a role as a great-grandmother in a play that is slowly becoming a mild reflection of her own life. Norma’s struggling playwright daughter, Celeste, experiences a sudden shift in Norma’s demeanor, one of love and attentiveness she longed for as a child. But given Norma’s profession, Celeste can’t help but wonder: Is this new chapter in their relationship genuine, or is this Norma’s greatest performance yet? THE STAR I LOST unpacks the complexity of a mother-daughter dynamic behind the curtain, and the layers of emotions from a lifetime of unrequited love.
Luz Orlando Brennan (Buenos Aires, Argentina) screenwriter, director and producer of theater and film. She graduated as a screenwriter from ENERC and trained in different acting schools. She also studied Sociology and Literature at the UBA. Her works as a screenwriter toured many festivals around the world, like Berlinale, San Sebastián, Viennale, AFI Film Festival, Annecy International Film Festival, and Ottawa International Animation Festival, BFI London, Zurich International Film Festival, Havana International Festival and Guadalajara International Festival. As a screenwriter, she has collaborated with numerous directors such as Natalia Meta (Death in Buenos Aires, 2014), Bárbara Cerro (Artemis, Dior, All the futures) Diego Fried (The Silent Party, 2019), Ariel Martínez Herrera (Toxico, 2020), as an assistant director for the director Edgardo Castro (La Noche, Familia) and as an associate producer in El prófugo (The Intruder, 2020) by Natalia Meta, selected in the 70 Berlinale Competition.
Her short film En Crítica (Critica, 2014) was screened in several festivals such as Shnit International Short Film Festival and the Sapporo International Short Film Festival (Japan), among others. Theatrically, Luz directed and adapted for stage Memento Mori based on the famous novel by Muriel Spark premiered at El Camarin de las Musas theater.
For over 10 years, she has taught screenwriting at the MFA studies in film directing at Universidad del Cine (FUC), highlighted by Variety as one of the 2019 best film schools.
La estrella que perdí/The Star I Lost (2024), her first feature film, was selected by festivals such as Cleveland International Film Festival (USA), BAFICI (Argentina) and SANFIC (Chile), FAM (Brasil) and had its premiere in Argentina with eight weeks on the bill and screened in more than sixty movie theaters.
World Premiere - Cleveland International Film Festival 2024
BAFICI 2024
SANFIC 2024
FAM 2024
FAM Mention Best Actress Feature Film
Actress - Mirta Busnelli
Actress - Ana Pauls
Actor - Gustavo Garzón
