J.A. Bayona’s ‘Society of the Snow’ Sweeps Platino Awards as Filmmaker Offers Support to Argentina

J.A. Bayona‘s Netflix epic Society of the Snow swept Saturday night’s Platino Awards, picking up a total of six trophies including the top award of the night for best Ibero-American fiction film.

Bayona’s film follows the tragic events that take place after Uruguayan Air Force flight 571, chartered to fly a rugby team to Chile, crashes on a glacier in the heart of the Andes in 1972. Only 16 of the 45 passengers ultimately made it out alive as a handful of others perished on the mountain during the 72 days from the time of the crash until rescuers arrived.

Bayona also made his way to the stage to accept a trophy for best director, and his film’s haul also included best male performance for star Enzo Vogrincic, best editing for Jaume Marti and Andres Gil, best cinematography for Pedro Luque, and best sound for Oriol Tarragó, Marc Orts and Jorge Adrados. Vogrincic also picked up an audience award for his performance during a pre-event press conference held on Friday.

For the third time in its 11-year history, the Platino Awards posted up inside the Gran Tlachco Theater at Xcaret Park in Riviera Maya. Xcaret, a luxury enclave home to hotels, restaurants, experiences and adventure in the heart of the resort town, will welcome the awards back in 2026 after the show returns to its other favored destination of Madrid, Spain.

“It took us 10 years because no one told us that a film with this budget was possible in Spanish,” Bayona said from the stage during his acceptance speech. “Today, actors tour the world, filling theaters and [being welcomed] like Hollywood stars after having become the most watched film in history in Spanish on Netflix and the third most watched of the year.”

Also taking home acting trophies on the film side were Laia Costa (Un amor) for lead, and José Coronado (Close Your Eyes) and Ane Gabarain (20,000 Species of Bees) in supporting categories. Estibaliz Urresola Solaguren’s 20,000 Species of Bees — an intimate study of a young girl who comes to realizations about her gender during a summer spent at a beekeeping farm — won four awards in total, the most of any film behind Society of the Snow.

Argentina was top of mind for many winners who made their way to the stage. Far right president Javier Milei cut arts funding, a move that many said will have dire impacts on the film and television industry there. Famed Argentinian actress Cecilia Roth was honored with a special trophy for her career achievements and during her acceptance speech, the onetime muse of Pedro Almodovar urged the audience “to take care of our cinema,” which is always in danger. She added, “I’m asking that we all be aware of our place in the world. Cinema needs to be listened to, and not only because it is not always listened to, but also because it can cease to exist. Let’s be vigilant, let’s resist.”

Her words drew cheers from the crowd of stars and industry insiders seated inside Gran Tlacho Theater including such notable names as Cristo Fernandez, Diego Calva, Manu Rios, Yalitza Aparicio, Luisana Lopilato and her husband Michael Bublé, among many others. Roth wasn’t the only one to speak out. “They’re killing our cinema, they’re killing our culture,” said actor Andy Chango upon winning a trophy for his performance in the miniseries El amor después del amor. “Cinema is a very powerful and fundamental tool of expression of a country,” Bayona also said during his time in the spotlight. “To be against national cinema is to be against the country. Argentina, here we are. They are not alone. We are here to support them.”

Actors and singers Esmeralda Pimentel and Májida Issa teamed to host the telecast as well as perform for the capacity crowd. The program also featured performances by Ana Guerra, Ana Mena, Ángela Aguilar, David Bisbal, Diana Hoyos, Gerónimo Rauch, Mariaca Semprún and Monsieur Periné. Mena paid tribute to Rocío Dúrcal, who would have turned 80 in 2024.

Maite Alberdi, the director who made Oscar history as the first Chilean woman to be nominated for an Academy Award, made her way to the stage backed by a team of producers to accept a best documentary award for The Eternal Memory. The film, which also snagged an Oscar nomination earlier this year, focused a lens on how a couple navigating Alzheimer’s disease. In accepting, Alberdi praised the impact of Ibero-American cinema on the global landscape.

One of her producers, Pablo Larrain, who was also nominated for his film El Conde, told The Hollywood Reporter on the red carpet how much the Platino Awards have grown over the past decade. “I’m very proud to be part of this community. Most people might think that our cultures are very similar because our language is similar. It’s not. It’s very hard to make a movie in Chile that’s successful in the rest of Latin America. But awards shows like this help show the interconnection with our countries and show how it’s getting better and better every year,” said the veteran filmmaker. “We’re looking at each other, talking, sharing experiences and our work.”

Larrain says the event also raises awareness of what’s going on within the artistic community. “We needed something like this, and now we’re finally together and it’s great. There’s a lot more to come and I think the organization of Premios Platino is taking it very seriously, and I think that’s very cool.”

Presenter Alice Braga agreed, telling THR on the red carpet, “To celebrate these awards with this community is so important because we are doing so many different things with different points of views from different cultures but all with the same goal: Make a strong industry from Latin America and Ibero-America. A celebration of that is more important than ever.”

The Platino Awards are supported by UN Tourism, ICAA, the Ibero-American Film Academies and Institutes, FIACINE, Madrid Film Office and WAWA, with additional support from Amazon Prime, LaLiga, Iberia, Mayakoba, Hertz, Barceló Hotel Group, L’ORÉAL Professionnel, AIE, CREA SGR, TNT MAX, RTVE, Movistar+, Agencia EFE, ¡HOLA!, and The Hollywood Reporter. This year’s installment, noted locally as Platino Xcaret Awards, was realized thanks to support and collaboration with the Ibero-American audiovisual industry of Quintana Roo, Riviera Maya, Grupo Xcaret, the Community of Madrid and the Madrid City Council.

The full list of winners is below, along with more photos from inside the event.

Honorary Award

Cecilia Roth

Best Feature

Society of the Snow, J.A. Bayona (Spain)

Director

J.A. Bayona, Society of the Snow (Spain)

Lead Performance 

Enzo Vogrincic, Society of the Snow (Spain)

Laia Costa, Un amor (Spain)

Screenplay

Estibaliz Urresola, 20,000 Species of Bees (Spain)

First Feature

20,000 Species of Bees (Spain)

Best Feature Comedy

Bajo Terapia, Gerardo Herrero (Spain)

Original Score / Music

Alfonso de Vilallonga, Robot Dreams (Spain)

Supporting Role Performance 

Jose Coronado, Cerrar los ojos (Spain)

Ana Gabarain, 20,000 Species of Bees (Spain)

Animated Feature

Robot Dreams (Spain)

Documentary Best Feature

The Eternal Memory, Maite Alberdi (Chile)

Editing 

Jaume Marti and Andres Gil, Society of the Snow (Spain)

Art Direction 

Rodrigo Bazaes, El Conde (Chile)

Cinematography

Pedro Luque, Society of the Snow (Spain)

Sound Direction

Oriol Tarragó, Marc Orts, Jorge Adrados, Society of the Snow (Spain)

Film & Education in Values

20,000 Species of Bees (Spain)

Best TV Series or Miniseries

Barrabrava (Argentina, Uruguay)

Best Series or Miniseries Creator

Daniel Burman, Iosi, the Regretful Spy (Argentina)

Actor in a Series or Miniseries 

Andy Chango, El amor después del amor (Argentina)

Actress in a Series or Miniseries

Carmen Machi, Las Mesias (Spain)

Supporting Actor in a Series or Miniseries

Alfredo Castro, The Thousand Days of Allende (Chile)

Supporting Actress in a Series or Miniseries

Lola Dueñas, Las Mesias (Spain)