30/01/2024 - Megan Montaner, Carlos Bardem and Antonio Dechent head the cast of Arturo Montenegro's feature film, which is currently being shot on location in its three producing countries

Megan Montaner, Antonio Dechent and Carlos Bardem in Papers (© Oscar Jiménez)

The shooting of Papers (Papeles), the new feature film by Panamanian director, screenwriter, actor and producer Arturo Montenegro, began on 15 January and will last for six weeks, until 1 March, in Panama, Uruguay and Spain. Its main cast includes Megan Montaner (who we have recently seen in series such as 30 Coins [+see also:
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This film -inspired by real events- recreates the global Panama Papers scandal, which took place in 2016. The film tells the story of how Ana Méndez (played by Megan Montaner), legal director of the world's number two offshore law firm, is faced with a catastrophic event: 11.8 million documents have been leaked. It is the biggest data leak in history. Devastated by the events, she ends up ruined and emotionally broken. Now, she must get her life back on track.

"Panama suddenly became a bad word. Why use the country's name?" asks Arturo Montenegro, whose two most recent films, Everybody Changes and Birthday Boy, represented his country at the Oscars, with the latter receiving a nomination at the Spanish Forqué Awards. And he recognises that now it has been blacklisted again by the European Union as a tax haven, it is time to discuss this story from their perspective. "I’d like to help reflect on these events and this is a challenge because we are talking about real things, about painful issues that are there and the wounds are still open. I wish to do so with the greatest possible respect and honesty because it is something that persists and where there are many people affected".

He notes that his aim is to tell the story "from a place that helps us to want to dream again and recover. Truthfully and without bias, in a responsible manner. Through successes, doubts and mistakes, like Ana's life and that of each one of us." And he acknowledges that the scandal deeply affected Panamanians. "It’s an issue that concerns us all because they tarnished our name. That is why I really wanted to disassociate the name of Panama and call the film Papers. So, just Papers, as every Panamanian would have wanted this powerful campaign to be called," he concludes.

Papers is produced by the Panamanian company Q Films, the Spanish company El Sueño Eterno Pictures and the Uruguayan company Criatura Cine. The film, winner of the Panama Film Fund, is supported by the National Directorate of Cinematography and Audiovisual Arts of the Ministry of Culture of Panama.

(Translated from Spanish by Vicky York)