Simón Mesa Soto's 'Un poeta' premieres at Cannes, exploring artistic failure

Colombian filmmaker Simón Mesa Soto (Medellín, 1986) premiered his second feature film 'Un poeta' at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it was selected after a rushed post-production. The film, shot on 16mm film in Medellín, follows a failed poet and his relationship with a student, Yurlady, exploring themes of artistic failure, class tensions, and the contradictions of the art world. Mesa Soto, who won the Palme d'Or for his short 'Leidi' in 2014 and the Louis Roederer Foundation Rising Star Award for his debut 'Amparo' in 2021, cast non-professional actor Ubeimar Ríos in the lead role. The film was produced by his company Ocúltimo and shot in just over a month, from January 14 to February 16, 2025. Mesa Soto describes the project as deeply personal, born from his own doubts about being a failed artist. The film blends comedy and drama, parodying New York intellectual comedies while addressing social inequalities in Colombia. It has been described as a dark comedy that challenges market expectations of Latin American cinema.