Maura Abad’s debut short film continues to attract attention from international film festivals, sparking interest among critics and experts and establishing itself as a cinematic work whose impact endures over time.
Press Office. –
The short film Memento Vivere has been selected to participate in the Guayaquil International Film Festival, whose 12th edition will be held August 13–21, 2026, in Santiago de Guayaquil, Ecuador. This debut film, which marks the beginning of Cuban-Ecuadorian author Maura Abad’s career as a producer, continues to attract the attention of critics and film experts around the world, a testament to the impact of this 10-minute short film, written by Maura and directed by Ecuadorian filmmaker Alberto Pablo Rivera.
The Abad-Rivera creative duo has already produced other short films, including Ecuador’s first film made using artificial intelligence, From out There. Maura is the author of the poetry collections 42 Poems, It’s All About the Context and One Frame at a Time, both of which offer profound reflections on life and death, love, memory, bonds, and resilience in the face of adversity. The first of these collections served as inspiration and a creative starting point for Memento Vivere, starring Frances Swett and Marcelo Galvez. With minimal dialogue and a style characterized by evocative imagery and a highly sensitive aesthetic, Memento Vivere has already garnered more than a dozen accolades, awards, and nominations from prestigious international film festivals.
The Guayaquil International Film Festival dates to 2015 and was created by the production company Renacer Films with the goal of promoting the film industry in Ecuador. In 2018, organization of the event was taken over by the FestiCineGye Foundation, establishing the festival as a regional leader among film festivals. The festival awards the Golden Iguana and Silver Iguana statuettes to recognize the best works and serves as a platform for national and international artists to showcase their feature films, short films, documentaries, and local productions. For Memento Vivere and its creators, being selected to participate in this festival is a testament to the impact of this work, its meticulous artistic production, and the power of a message that transcends spaces, languages, and borders.
