Helmer Bruce LaBruce Sets Next Film, ‘Santo,’ in Chile, Berlin (EXCLUSIVE)

By Anna Marie de la Fuente

LOS ANGELES (Variety.com) – Bruce LaBruce, the provocative Toronto-based filmmaker, photographer, writer and artist, is shooting his next feature, “Santo the Obscene,” in Chile and Berlin.

Leading Chilean shingle Jirafa has boarded the film along with Canadian producer Nicolas Comeau, who produced LaBruce’s “Saint-Narcisse,” and LaBruce’s German producer, Jürgen Brining. Jirafa’s Bruno Bettati and Comeau meet with LaBruce during TIFF to establish the production design and kickstart the development phase.

“As in all his films, LaBruce makes a singular pick for his main cast: Chilean underground actor Jorge Benavides, a Berlin resident since 2014, will play Santo,” said Bettati, adding: “Benavides was born in the desert region of Antofagasta, el Norte Grande, where part of the film will be shot.”

The titular Santo is described as a “saint-like character who wanders the planet, healing people with the power of sexuality.”

Said LaBruce: “I recently travelled to Chile for the first time this past June to attend the Amor Intl. Film Festival in Santiago and Valparaiso. Although I didn’t get a chance to travel much outside of those cities, I did get a strong sense of the country and the many different kinds of vistas and landscapes that would be the perfect backdrop for my film.”

LaBruce’s recent films include “Gerontophilia,” which snagged the Grand Prix at the 2013 Festival du Nouveau Cinema in Montreal, and “Pierrot Lunaire,” winner of the Teddy Award at the 2014 Berlinale.