Lucia Puenzo'sfirst feature XXYhas been selected as the Argentinian submission for the foreign-language film category at next year's Academy Awards.

The $1.2m Argentinian-French-Spanish co-production, which won the Critics Week main prize at this year's Cannes Film Festival, is thestory of the brutal transforming moment when an intersexual teenager comes to terms with her identity, her first sexual encounter, her first confusing, heart-rending crush and the commotion this brings into her and her family's life.
The local Academy, comprised of 251 renowned professionals (directors, producers, screenwriters, actors and technicians), also namedXXYas the Argentinian submission for Best Latin American Film category at the Spanish Goya Awards to be held next January in Madrid.

XXY was a commercial and critical success in Argentina with more than 200,000 spectators.

31-year-old Puenzo -daughter of the renowned director Luis Punzo wasextremely surprised about the local Academy choice: 'Everyone was expecting Ricardo Darin's The Signal to be selected, but I'm truly grateful about this opportunity'.

XXY received 51 votes; The Signal, 25 and Esteban Sapir's The Aerial (La Antena), 16.

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