Aqua Films

Overview

Aqua Films is a Buenos Aires-based film production company owned by Enrique Pineyro and Veronica Cura. The company operates from offices at Marcelo T. de Alvear 1719 in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA), postal code 1060. Founded around 1999, Aqua Films produces Argentine fiction and documentary features and provides production services for international productions shooting in Argentina and South America.

The company is a registered production company with Argentina's Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA), the national film institute that funds domestic production and distribution through a quota-and-subsidy system. Aqua Films' dual role as both a producer of Argentine films and a service provider for foreign productions gives it a position in the Argentine film industry that spans local authorship and international co-production.

Production History

Aqua Films has produced feature films that have screened at major international festivals and received Argentine and international distribution. The company's production catalog includes:

• Garage Olimpo (1999, dir. Marco Bechis): A political thriller about Argentina's military dictatorship, the film was executive produced by Aqua Films and screened in competition at Venice.
• Esperando al Mesias (2000, dir. Daniel Burman): A drama about identity and family in Buenos Aires' Jewish community.
• Whisky Romeo Zulu (2004, dir. Enrique Pineyro): Pineyro, a former airline pilot, wrote, directed, and starred in this investigative film about airline safety violations leading to the LAPA crash. The film was produced by Aqua Films and became a reference point in Argentine documentary cinema.
• Cama Adentro (2004, dir. Jorge Gaggero): A drama about the relationship between an upper-class woman and her maid, starring Norma Aleandro.
• Fuerza Aerea Sociedad Anonima (2006, dir. Enrique Pineyro): A follow-up documentary investigating the Argentine Air Force.
• El Otro (2007, dir. Ariel Rotter): Rotter's second feature, executive produced by Veronica Cura and produced by Enrique Pineyro and Christian Baute. The film screened in competition at Cannes.

Production Services for Foreign Productions

Aqua Films operates as a production services company for international films and television projects shooting in Argentina. The company provides:

• Pre-production coordination and location scouting in Buenos Aires and across Argentina
• Customs clearance for temporary import and export of film equipment, as an experienced customs agent registered with Argentine authorities
• Crew hiring for local and foreign productions
• Post-production supervision and lab coordination
• Temporary Argentine work permits for international crew

This services division makes Aqua Films a practical contact point for international producers considering Argentina as a shooting location. Argentina offers competitive production costs relative to North America and Europe, and the INCAA provides tax incentives and subsidies for qualifying co-productions. The country's diverse geography (urban, mountain, desert, forest, coastal) and its established crew base make it a viable stand-in for multiple international settings.

Argentine Film Industry Context

Argentina produces internationally significant films and directors at a rate disproportionate to its population size. The Argentine New Wave of the late 1990s and 2000s produced filmmakers including Lucrecia Martel (La Cienaga, The Headless Woman), Pablo Trapero (Mundo Grua, El Bonaerense), and Martin Rejtman (Silvia Prieto). More recently, directors including Gaston Duprat and Mariano Cohn have won prizes at Venice and other major festivals.

Aqua Films operates within this ecosystem as both a producer of Argentine-authored films and a service provider. The company's productions have consistently engaged with Argentine political and social themes, particularly through Enrique Pineyro's documentary work investigating institutional corruption and safety failures.

The Buenos Aires International Independent Film Festival (BAFICI), founded in 1999, is one of Latin America's most important arthouse film festivals. BAFICI serves as a primary acquisition platform for Argentine distribution rights to international arthouse films and as a showcase for new Argentine cinema. The festival typically programs 200+ films across 10 days each April.

INCAA and Argentine Film Funding

The Instituto Nacional de Cine y Artes Audiovisuales (INCAA) is the Argentine government agency responsible for film funding, regulation, and promotion. The INCAA operates a quota system that requires Argentine theaters to screen a minimum number of domestic films per year, and provides production subsidies funded by a tax on theater tickets and broadcast television advertising revenue.

For producers like Aqua Films, INCAA subsidies and co-production treaties with countries including France, Germany, Italy, and Spain provide financing pathways for films that would struggle to secure full commercial funding. International co-productions structured through these treaties can access multiple national funding sources while maintaining Argentine creative authorship.

What Filmmakers Should Know

For international filmmakers considering Argentina as a production location or co-production partner:

• Co-production treaties: Argentina has bilateral co-production treaties with numerous countries. A treaty co-production qualifies as a national film in both participating countries, opening access to both funding systems.
• INCAA registration: Productions seeking INCAA funding or tax incentives must register with the institute and meet Argentine content and crew requirements.
• Production costs: Argentina's production costs are significantly lower than in the US or Europe, though inflation has created budgeting challenges. A 2024-2025 Argentine feature film typically budgets between $500,000 and $3 million depending on scope.
• Crew quality: Buenos Aires has a deep pool of experienced film crew across all departments, many of whom have worked on international productions.
• Currency considerations: Argentina's currency volatility affects budgeting for foreign productions. Most international shoots budget in USD or EUR with local expenditures converted at the official or "blue market" exchange rate depending on the transaction.

For Argentine filmmakers, Aqua Films represents a production model that combines domestic authorship with international co-production financing. The company's track record with politically engaged documentary and fiction cinema makes it a relevant partner for projects with similar thematic concerns.

Notable Productions

Garage Olimpo (1999, Venice competition), Whisky Romeo Zulu (2004), Cama Adentro (2004), El Otro (2007, Cannes competition), Fuerza Aerea Sociedad Anonima (2006).

See Also

For Latin American international sales representation, see Latido Films in this directory. For the BAFICI festival's role in Argentine distribution, see the Film Festivals Directory. To model co-production financing structures, use the Indie Film Budget Calculator.