It was a short visit to Mar del Plata for the film festival last weekend, and the only interviews I squeezed in were with the cast and director of Mal dia para pescar.

Scorrish-Catalan actor Gary Piquer plays Principe Orsini in the Uruguayan and Spanish-funded movie which is part Western, part sports drama, part black comedy, a tasty cocktail of a production.

The “prince” is the salesman who has lost heart, and no longer believes in what he does. Manager, parent, best friend to Jacob van Oppen (Jouko Ahola), a wrestler the self-proclaimed prince touts as the strongest man in the world.

Fighting his own battles, the Spanish prince is complex, conniving, and spins such a line about his protege that the small town folk of Santa Maria also stop believing in him.

It’s great news for Piquer, who co-wrote the script with director Alvaro Brechner, to win the best actor accolade in the international film category at Mar del Plata.

When I interviewed him, Piquer said that Brechner was encouraging him to do so with various help books, and although he was an actor of the lazy variety, he would probably continue writing.

Congratulations to the cast and crew of Mal dia. Let’s hope Argentina gets to see it in the cinemas soon.