Mariano Aiello

Mariano Aiello is an Argentine film director, producer, screenwriter and lawyer. He is best known for co-directing the documentary film Awka Liwen (2010) with German filmmaker and political scientist Kristina Hille. The film was written by Aiello, Hille and Argentine historian and writer Osvaldo Bayer.[1][2]

La Nación has described Aiello as a filmmaker and lawyer specializing in Indigenous rights.[1] His documentary work has dealt particularly with Argentine history, Indigenous peoples, land ownership and human rights.[2]

Career

Aiello collaborated with Kristina Hille on projects concerning Indigenous peoples and social issues in Latin America. According to Página/12, Aiello and Hille met in Guatemala during the 1990s, where they began working on audiovisual projects documenting the country's social conditions; their collaboration led to the creation of the production company Macanudo Films.[3]

Awka Liwen

Aiello and Hille directed Awka Liwen (Mapudungun for "Rebel Dawn"), a documentary written with Osvaldo Bayer examining the history of Indigenous dispossession, land ownership and economic inequality in Argentina.[3][1]

The film was previewed at the National Library of the Argentine Republic in Buenos Aires in November 2009.[4] It was released theatrically in Argentina in September 2010 and received reviews and extensive coverage in the Argentine press.[1][2]

Página/12 reported that the film had been declared of National Interest by the Presidency of Argentina.[5]

In 2012, Awka Liwen had its North American premiere as part of the Latinbeat programme at the Film Society of Lincoln Center in New York. Aiello attended a screening and discussion in person.[6]

In 2011, descendants of the Martínez de Hoz family brought legal proceedings related to statements and historical material contained in Awka Liwen. The dispute involved Bayer, Aiello and historian Felipe Pigna and received coverage from Argentine media and Reporters Without Borders.[7][8]

In July 2016, Página/12 reported that Argentina's National Civil Court of Appeals had rejected the claim against the filmmakers and other participants in the documentary.[9]

Martínez de Hoz

Aiello subsequently directed the documentary Martínez de Hoz, which developed out of his research and the legal dispute surrounding Awka Liwen. The film, narrated by Bayer, examines the historical and political role of the Martínez de Hoz family in Argentina.[10]

The documentary was theatrically released in Argentina in 2017.[11] Argentina's public educational television channel Canal Encuentro later included Martínez de Hoz in its documentary programming, crediting Aiello as director.[12]

Later work

In 2025, Aiello co-directed the short documentary Cuero y deforestación (Leather and Deforestation) with Roly Ruiz. The film examines deforestation of red quebracho forests in the Gran Chaco and the production of tannin for the leather industry. It was screened in Berlin during the eighth Refugees Film Festival at Lichtblick-Kino.[13]

Filmography

  • Awka Liwen (2010) – co-director, co-screenwriter and producer
  • Martínez de Hoz (2017) – director
  • Cuero y deforestación / Leather and Deforestation (2025) – co-director

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Un relato revisionista y sumamente polémico". La Nación (in Spanish). 9 September 2010. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 Ranzani, Oscar (12 September 2010). "Voces para una historia de exterminio". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  3. 1 2 "Awka Liwen, la otra historia". Página/12 (in Spanish). 19 October 2009. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  4. ↑ García, Facundo (22 November 2009). "Historia que no cuentan los que ganan". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  5. ↑ Ranzani, Oscar (8 September 2010). "Tiene un sentido nacional y auténtico". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  6. ↑ "Awka Liwen". Latinbeat 2012. Film at Lincoln Center. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  7. ↑ "Judicial abuse: filmmaker threatened with censorship, journalist sent back to prison". Reporters Without Borders. 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  8. ↑ "Una familia poderosa". Página/12 (in Spanish). 20 October 2011. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  9. ↑ Rodríguez, Carlos (17 July 2016). "Me siento un elegido". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  10. ↑ Ranzani, Oscar (28 June 2017). "Fue uno de los jefes de la dictadura". Página/12 (in Spanish). Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Martínez de Hoz 1". Cines Argentinos. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  12. ↑ "Canal Encuentro estrena nuevas series y documentales" (in Spanish). Government of Argentina. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  13. ↑ "The Refugees Film Festival #8 – The Sky Is Mine + Cuero y deforestación". Berlin: Lichtblick-Kino. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
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