Chilean filmmaker Sebastián Lelio dies at 52

Chilean filmmaker Sebastián Lelio, whose A Fantastic Woman won the Academy Award for best international feature in 2018, died at 52, his family announced Friday. The family shared the news in a statement posted by his partner, Amalia Kassai, and asked for privacy as relatives mourned. The statement attributed Lelio’s death to health reasons or complications but did not identify a specific illness or cause. Chilean media reported that he was found dead at his home in Las Condes, Santiago. The family’s announcement did not give further details about the circumstances of his death. A Fantastic Woman, released in 2017, follows a transgender woman navigating grief and hostility after the death of her partner. Its Oscar win in 2018 was Chile’s first in the category, then called best foreign-language film. The film also won awards at the Berlin International Film Festival and the Independent Spirit Awards. Lelio’s work ranged from Chilean-language films to English-language productions. His 2013 film Gloria, about a woman pursuing romance later in life, brought him wider international recognition. He later remade it as Gloria Bell, starring Julianne Moore. His other English-language...