''Virus Tropical'' is a 2017 adult animated coming-of-age drama film directed by Santiago Caicedo, based on the 2011 semi-autobiographical graphic novel of the same name by cartoonist

Power Paola Power Paola (born Paola Andrea Gaviria Silguero; June 20, 1977) is a Colombian-Ecuadorian cartoonist. She is the author of graphic memoirs ''Virus Tropical'' (2011)'','' ''Por Dentro'' (2012), ''Diario'' (2013), ''qp'' (2014), ''Todo Va a Estar B ...

. From a screenplay by Enrique Lozano, Power Paola handled the film's art direction. Produced by Timbo Estudio and Ikki Films, ''Virus Tropical'' had its world premiere at the Animation Is Film Festival on 21 October 2017. It was released in Colombian cinemas on 17 May 2018, where it grossed $31,100. The film received generally positive reviews. Additionally, it won the Quirino Award for Best Ibero-American Feature Film.

Production

The art direction of ''Virus Tropical'' was headed by cartoonist and writer of the titular graphic novel

. Paola produced around 5,000 individual drawings for the film, which combines

3D animation Animation is a method by which still figures are manipulated to appear as moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited on film. Today, most anima ...

with hand-drawn animation to create a boldly graphic yet childlike aesthetic to depict the film's tone. Released in

black and white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

, the film explores themes of

sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...

, growth and one's relationship with family.

Release

''Virus Tropical'' had its world premiere at the Animation Is Film Festival on 21 October 2017, and had a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unite ...

to 24 theatres in Colombia on 17 May 2018. It grossed $10,142 during its opening week for a total gross of $31,100 during its entire theatrical run.

Critical reception

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, ''Virus Tropical'' holds an approval rating of 78% based on nine critical reviews, with an average rating of 6.30/10.

References

External links

* * 2017 films 2017 animated films 2017 drama films Colombian adult animated films Ecuadorian animated films Colombian drama films Ecuadorian drama films 2010s coming-of-age drama films Films about adolescence Films about families Animated films based on comics 2010s Spanish-language films 2010s Colombian films {{DEFAULTSORT:Virus Tropical