Co-directors of the Costa Rican film “El Rey del Cha Cha Chá” (The King of Cha Cha Chá), featuring Mexican actor Damián Alcázar, announced yesterday that shooting of the movie is complete.

Co-directors Isabel Martínez, from Costa Rica, and Vicente Ferraz, from Brazil, said they are “very excited” about the project, which was completed on a very tight budget, but with “a lot of passion.”

The movie tells the story of Paco Jarquín, the 10 th commander of the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua from 1970-80. Jarquín is hailed as a hero by some Nicaraguans and a traitor by others.

During the 1980s, Jarquín disappeared after an armed conflict with opposition forces along the Costa Rican border, but 20 years later, his wife found out he was living in the country and began searching for him.

The film shows how Jarquín gave up the revolution for his true passion, dancing the cha, cha, chá and teaching dance classes in San José, the co-directors explained.

Alcázar said he traveled to Nicaragua to interview former Sandinista commanders and army officials to research the historical context of the film.

The entire production crew of the film is Costa Rican, with the exception of Alcázar and film students from the Veritas University in the southern San José suburb of Zapote.

The project will now enter the phase of post-production, which will take place in Brazil and Mexico. Co-directors hope to screen it next June in San José.

The movie was filmed in Costa Rica and Nicaragua over a two-month period and cost $670,000 to produce. 

-ACAN-EFE