The documentary The Fabulous Gold Harvesting Machine, directed by Alfredo Pourailly and co-produced by JUNTOS, 55 Sur Media, and Windmill Films (Netherlands), was one of the big winners at the 2024 Pedro Sienna Awards, taking home four honors: Best Documentary Feature, Best Direction, Best Editing, and Best Sound Design.
The ceremony took place last Friday, organized by Chile’s Ministry of Cultures, Arts and Heritage, with support from the Chilean Film Academy. The event was led by Minister Carolina Arredondo, who announced that, beginning this year, November 29 will officially be commemorated as Chilean Cinema Day, in honor of filmmakers Carmen Bueno and Jorge Müller.
In addition to the 18 competitive categories, the Pedro Sienna Award for Outstanding Career Achievement was presented to screenwriter and documentarian Carmen Castillo Echeverría, and the new Lihuén Award for Best Ibero-American Film went to Ainda Estou Aqui (Brazil), directed by Walter Salles.
Four Awards for a Debut
The Best Direction award for Alfredo Pourailly was especially meaningful, it marks his opera prima. His sensitivity and ability to capture, with a handheld camera and over eight years of filming in Tierra del Fuego, the lives of Toto and his son, the protagonists of this story of persistence and fragility, were widely praised.
The documentary also won Best Editing for the work of Javiera Velozo, Pourailly, and Melisa Miranda, who transformed hundreds of hours of footage into an intimate narrative that transcends the portrait of a gold prospector to become a meditation on memory, perseverance, and legacy.
In addition, The Fabulous Gold Harvesting Machine received the award for Best Sound Design, recognizing Roberto Espinoza and his team at Sonamos, whose work enhances atmospheres and silences with exquisite precision, amplifying the emotional depth of the images.
Finally, the recognition as Best Documentary Feature cements the film’s place within the national landscape, following an international festival run that included its world premiere at Hot Docs 2024 and screenings at several prestigious festivals.
With these four awards, The Fabulous Gold Harvesting Machine establishes itself as one of the most significant Chilean documentaries of recent years. Celebrating not only Toto’s endurance and craft at the southern edge of the world, but also the talent of a team that turned a modest story into a universal tale.