Panama, March 5, 2026. - From March 9 onwards, the Panama flag will awaken strongly at the Málaga Festival, as it takes up the role of Honour's guest at MAFIZ (Málaga Festival Industry Zone) with a clear mission: to consolidate itself as the most attractive audiovisual production hub in the region.

The Panamanian delegation, led by the Deputy Minister of Culture, Arianne Benedetti, will not only carry a sample of his creative talent but an aggressive strategy of investment attraction. The highest point of this recognition will be the surrender of the Biznaga de Honor, that Benedetti will get from the mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre, symbolizing the close cultural partnership between both nations.

The country arrives at the Costa del Sol with a technical agenda designed to seduce international producers. Through the "Coproduce with us" and "We are Hub of Production" panels, Panama will put forward its competitive fiscal incentives and its logistics benefits for large-scale films.

The Panamanian presence permeates all layers of the festival, from development projects to completed works:
Projects and co-production: The Reina's Legate (Tatiana Salamín) and Menarquia (Jairo Ramos) feature in the MAFF Section.
Work in Progress: Documentaries such as Cuscú (Risseth Yangüez) and Pure R.A.P. (Ángel Corro) with the Fictional feature film La Residencia (Mariel García Spooner) are looking for final partners in Málaga.
Emerging Talent: The producers Xochil Vergara and Amine Ayoub (Wami Lab), Ana Laura Samaniego (Málaga Talent) and Sara Martínez (competing with the short as birds sing) represent the generational relief of the industry.

The Latin American Focus Section, organized in collaboration with DICINE and the Leaf Foundation of Bijao, will display three of the most awaited titles of 2025: "Papeles" by Arturo Montenegro, "Espina" by Daniel Poler and "Dearest Tropic" by Ana Endara.

Also, MAFIZ Specials will have a diversity of curatoriums ranging from the thriller Cautiverio (Omar Calvo) to historic and cultural documentaries such as Belisario, Architect of a nation (Fernando Aramburú Porra) and Dreamed Jazz (Luis Romero), Chichero a co-direction of Aaron Bronley and Arturo Montenegro and works by dedicated directors as Abner Benaim with Tropical Paradise.

That historic participation not only celebrates Panamanian art but also puts cinema as a key economic motor for the development of the country, using the display of one of the most important festivals of the Spanish-speaking circuit.