Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Maite talks about her upcoming narrative debut

LOS ANGELES: Maite Alberdi who made history as the first Chilean woman nominated for an Oscar with her 2021 documentary 'The Mole Agent,' in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, revealed that despite her success, she still faces surprising questions about her achievements.

"I just received a question, 'When are you going to make a film?' And it's like, I make films," Alberdi recently told The Hollywood Reporter during an interview at Xcaret in Riviera Maya, Mexico, ahead of the Platino Awards. "According to these uninformed commenters, the assumption is that documentaries are not 'real films.' I've already made five films, and I will continue making films."

Alberdi has always found inspiration in real life because it offers a wealth of material. "Reality is so powerful, and it's so full of stories and experiences that I really don't need to write something because everything is already written," Alberdi said ahead of the Platino Awards ceremony, where 'The Eternal Memory' won a best documentary award. However, she's venturing into new territory with her next project: preparing for her narrative feature debut, an adaptation of Alia Trabucco Zeran's book 'Las Homicidas.'

The 2019 book explores the murders committed by four Chilean women and society's response to the crimes and their perpetrators. Alberdi expressed excitement about steering the production in a way she hasn't done in her previous documentaries. "You control everything. You write the script, the actors do what you ask them to do and the problems can be resolved by money," she explained. "Everything is so controlled."