''Okupas'' is an Argentine television series, starring
Rodrigo de la Serna
Lionel Rodrigo de la Serna (; born 18 April 1976) is an Argentine actor. He is known for playing Alberto Granado in the 2004 biopic '' The Motorcycle Diaries'' and Palermo in the Netflix series '' Money Heist''. His role in '' Money Heist'' as ...
,
Diego Alonso Gómez
Diego Alonso Gómez (born 10 March 1972) is an Argentina, Argentine actor, mostly known for his roles in telenovelas. He rose to fame for his starring role as Sergio "El Pollo" in the 2000 Televisión Pública Argentina, Canal 7 series ''Okupas''. ...
,
Ariel Staltari
Ariel may refer to:
Film and television
*Ariel Award, a Mexican Academy of Film award
* ''Ariel'' (film), a 1988 Finnish film by Aki Kaurismäki
* ''ARIEL Visual'' and ''ARIEL Deluxe'', 1989 and 1991 anime video series based on the novel series ...
Bruno Stagnaro Bruno Stagnaro (born June 15, 1973) is an Argentine film and television director, producer and screenwriter. He works mainly in the cinema of Argentina. He has also acted professionally a few times.Canal 7 and was a great success in the Argentine television. Since then it was aired by many television channels and since July 2021 it is available on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
.
The series follows a group of four friends who live in a
squatted
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...
house discovering new experiences dealing with the police and gangs. It is considered an Argentine cult classic.
Plot
Ricardo ( de la Serna), a 24-year old dropout med student receives an invitation from his cousin, Clara (
Ana Celentano
Ana Celentano (born 1 August 1969) is an Argentine TV, theatre and film actress. She works mainly in the cinema of Argentina.
Biography
Ana Celentano was born and raised in La Plata, Argentina.
Partial filmography
* '' Night of the Pencils'' ...
), to stay at an old house in the
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the RÃo de la Plata, on South ...
neighbourhood of San Nicolás. The house had been until then
squatted
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...
by a group of families who were recently evicted. Never minding the situation, Ricardo settles in the dilapidated house. He decides to invite his working-class friend, Sergio "El Pollo" ( Alonso Gómez), who makes ends meet as a debt collector.
New characters are introduced over the course of the episodes: Walter (Staltari), a lazy dog walker, and "Chiqui" (Tirri), an easy-going pothead who's living in the streets until he's welcomed into the house by Ricardo. The four become involved in a number of situations with drugs, crime and gangs, all while developing an increasingly close friendship.
Cast
*
Rodrigo de la Serna
Lionel Rodrigo de la Serna (; born 18 April 1976) is an Argentine actor. He is known for playing Alberto Granado in the 2004 biopic '' The Motorcycle Diaries'' and Palermo in the Netflix series '' Money Heist''. His role in '' Money Heist'' as ...
as Ricardo Riganti, a 24-year old med student dropout who is asked to stay a dilapidated house in Downtown Buenos Aires.
*
Diego Alonso Gómez
Diego Alonso Gómez (born 10 March 1972) is an Argentina, Argentine actor, mostly known for his roles in telenovelas. He rose to fame for his starring role as Sergio "El Pollo" in the 2000 Televisión Pública Argentina, Canal 7 series ''Okupas''. ...
as Sergio "El Pollo", an old childhood friend of Ricardo's. His humble working-class origins stand in contrast to Ricardo's privileged origins.
*Ariel Staltari as Walter, a lazy dog walker and ''
rolinga
The ''Rolingas'' (also known as "''stones''") are an Argentina, Argentine Subculture, urban tribe comprising fans of The Rolling Stones and Argentine bands influenced by the aforementioned band. The musical genre associated with such bands is known ...
''. He adopts a dog whom he calls Severino, after the anarchist Severino Di Giovanni.
*Franco Tirri as "El Chiqui", a well-meaning, immature friend of Sergio's. At the beginning of the series, he's living in the streets and asks Ricardo for money in several occasions. He grows his own marihuana at the next-door squatted house.
*
Ana Celentano
Ana Celentano (born 1 August 1969) is an Argentine TV, theatre and film actress. She works mainly in the cinema of Argentina.
Biography
Ana Celentano was born and raised in La Plata, Argentina.
Partial filmography
* '' Night of the Pencils'' ...
as Clara Alvarado, Ricardo's cousin and the legal owner of the house. She has a boyfriend, but later she begins an affair with Sergio.
*Augusto BrÃtez as Peralta, Ricardo's neighbour from
Salta
Salta () is the capital and largest city in the Argentine province of the same name. With a population of 618,375 according to the 2010 census, it is also the 7th most-populous city in Argentina. The city serves as the cultural and economic ce ...
who is squatting the abandoned house next-door.
*Rosina Soto as SofÃa, Peralta's daughter. She has a son and is finishing high school as an adult. She initially develops a relationship with Ricardo, but later breaks up with him due to their contrasting social backgrounds and Ricardo's belief that studying is unnecessary.
*Dante Mastropierro as "El Negro Pablo", a shady character, squatter and drug dealer, and former associate of Sergio's. At the beginning of the series he lives in a squatted flat in
Dock Sud
Dock Sud is a town of Avellaneda Partido in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It forms part of the urban agglomeration of Greater Buenos Aires.
The area is characterized by its predominantly working-class background, with many of its inhabita ...
with Sergio, but they have a fall-out due to El Negro's lack of moral codes. He later tries to get back at Sergio by antagonising Ricardo, triggering most of the events of the series.
*Jorge Sesán as Miguel, a violent and foul-mouthed character introduced in the middle of the series. He claims to be the house's real owner and wins Ricardo's favour teaching him to use firearms and how to rob people.
Reception
The series' pilot episode had a rating peak of 3.5, an above-average score for the state-owned Canal 7. The final episode doubled that score with a rating peak of 6.7. The following year, due to the series' evident success, Canal 7 repeated the series and commissioned an additional episode showing behind-the-scenes material. In 2002, following the release of '' Tumberos'', ''Okupas'' was syndicated by
and broadcast for the third year in a row. It was also syndicated by Canal 9 in 2005.
On 20 October 2020, nearly twenty years after its original run, it was announced the series would be re-released on
Netflix
Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...
with a new soundtrack designed by Santiago Motorizado of ''
Él Mató a un PolicÃa Motorizado
Él Mató a un PolicÃa Motorizado, also known as EMAUPM or Él Mató, is an Argentine indie rock band from La Plata established in 2003. It is formed by Santiago "Motorizado" (bass and vocals), Willy "Doctora Muerte" (drums), Manuel "Pantro Puto ...
''. The new soundtrack was commissioned due to copyright issues with the original soundtrack.