Mubi Acquires Chilean Film 'The Meltdown' Ahead of San Sebastian Screening
Mubi has acquired North American streaming rights to "The Meltdown" ("El Deshielo"), the second feature from Chilean writer-director Manuela Martelli, with plans to stream the film later in 2026 after it screens at the San Sebastian Film Festival in September (Variety).
The film world-premiered in the Un Certain Regard sidebar at the Cannes Film Festival in May. Un Certain Regard is a competitive section at Cannes that showcases distinctive, often smaller-budget work. Martelli was the first Chilean woman to compete in that section (Variety).
"The Meltdown" is set at an Andes ski resort in 1992, in the years after Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship ended. A young girl named Inés befriends Hanna, a German skier, and begins witnessing unsettling events. The 110-minute film stars Maya O'Rourke in her screen debut, alongside Paulina Urrutia, Mauricio Pešutić, Paula Zúñiga, Marcela Salinas and Lautaro Cantillana. Benjamín Echazarreta handled cinematography (San Sebastian Film Festival; Variety).
The film is a four-country co-production involving companies from Chile, the United States, Mexico and Spain: Ronda Cine, Cinema Inutile, Wood Producciones, Elástica Films, Piano and Fundación Río. Alejandra Garcia of Ronda Cine produced. Sales agent mk2 handled international sales (Screen Daily; Variety).
After San Sebastian, where it screens in the Horizontes Latinos strand — a section devoted to Latin American films — Kino Lorber will release "The Meltdown" in United States theatres in early 2027. Kino Lorber's pickup was its first acquisition from the 2026 Cannes market (IndieWire).
The film is also in contention to represent Chile at the Oscars and Spain's Goya Awards (Variety).
What gives the acquisition added weight is the funding climate around it. Chile's Audiovisual Investment Support Fund is set to drop from roughly $586,000 (540 million pesos) in 2026 to $208,000 (192 million pesos) in 2027 — a 64% reduction. The Chilean Ministry of Culture announced an overall budget decrease of 9% for the next year under President José Antonio Kast, who took office in March. Diego Rougier, president of the Chilean Film & TV Producers Association (APCT), has been among the voices tracking the cuts. For a film that pulled together financing across four countries, the timing is sharp: the international co-production model that made "The Meltdown" possible is becoming more necessary at home, not less (Variety).
For audiences, the takeaway is simpler. A film that broke ground at Cannes for Chilean women directors now has a clear path to screens — on Mubi's streaming platform, in US theatres through Kino Lorber, and on the festival circuit at San Sebastian's 74th edition this September.
